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San José, Costa Rica, set the stage for ‘Connecting Minds, Transforming Realities,’ the opening workshop leading into TICAL2025, which brought together the regional community around open innovation, advanced connectivity, and co-creation.

Organized by RedCLARA, in collaboration with RedCONARE, RNP (Brazil), CEDIA (Ecuador), the CeNAT, and the Costa Rican Innovation and Research Promotion Agency (PRICCI) — an entity attached to the MICITT — the workshop gathered researchers, professors, entrepreneurs, and innovation managers from across Latin America and the Caribbean.

During the opening session, Luis Eliécer Cadenas, Executive Director of RedCLARA, emphasized that the organization offers far more than dedicated connectivity infrastructure to drive cooperation, digital development, and academic collaboration.

“RedCLARA is not just a connectivity network,” he said. “We are a digital platform, a collaborative environment, and a model of cooperation that amplifies the capabilities of our countries.”

Cadenas highlighted BELLA II, the EU-co-funded project led by RedCLARA, which is creating new opportunities for research and innovation. Among the latest advances, he mentioned an agreement with MICITT to significantly expand Costa Rica’s connectivity, and the upcoming integration of Guatemala into the project.

“The result of this cooperation is not linear — it’s exponential. Each connection adds up, but, more importantly, it multiplies,” he noted.

Building on that vision, the day moved into an exploration of how collaboration networks can truly transform realities.

Eduardo Grizendi, Chair of RedCLARA’s Board and Director of Engineering and Operations at RNP, opened the first segment by reminding participants that innovation goes beyond invention or technology.

“Invention is not the same as innovation — it only becomes innovation when it generates value for society,” he stated.

The following presentations illustrated how National Research and Education Networks (NRENs) are acting as catalysts of innovation across the region.

Leandro Ciuffo showcased RNP’s testbed and laboratory programs, which now connect more than 700 universities and 12 startups in Brazil to experiment with emerging technologies such as blockchain, 5G, digital identity, and artificial intelligence.

Ana Barbosa, RNP’s Open Innovation Coordinator, shared the impact of their incubation model, which has led to the creation of 23 startups born from academic projects — generating over USD 40 million in revenue and 300 new jobs.

“Not every researcher will become an entrepreneur, but every project can generate innovation,” she emphasized.

Luiz Coelho, also from RNP, closed the morning session with three success stories: Eduplay, an educational video platform with more than 115 million views; Conferência Web, a collaborative communication tool developed within Brazilian universities; and Diploma Digital, a blockchain-based solution that secures and authenticates academic records.

“Each of these services was born in the university, grew through the network, and today brings value to the entire country — and to the region,” he noted.

In the afternoon, CEDIA (Ecuador) contributed its perspective with a presentation by Freddy Sumba on developing innovation strategies and conceptual prototypes for science, education, and technology. His remarks underscored the importance of linking research with practice, and of building models that translate knowledge into tangible solutions.

This was followed by the collaborative exercise, ‘Sharing Ideas to Transform Realities,’ facilitated by Luis Vargas, Gustavo Patiño, Cristian Patiño, and Freddy Sumba (CEDIA). In a dynamic, participatory atmosphere, teams worked across disciplines to design collaborative projects addressing real-world challenges. Their proposals blended academic, technological, and public-policy perspectives — a demonstration that open innovation takes shape when diverse sectors align around a common purpose.

The workshop concluded with a reflection on the role of academic networks in sustaining these ecosystems. Carlos Gamboa, from RedCONARE, highlighted that innovation thrives on trust, continuity, and cooperation, and that networks are living communities that create shared value and strengthen regional capacity for innovation.

The session became a truly inspiring prelude to TICAL2025, officially opening tomorrow in San José, with an agenda focused on collaboration, digital transformation, and capacity building. Over the coming days, participants will continue exploring use cases, technologies, and open-innovation methodologies — as well as the advances of BELLA-II, regional testbeds, and the initiatives connecting Latin America and Europe under the EU–LAC Digital Alliance.

Looking ahead, to innovate, connect, and transform is no longer a slogan — it is a shared practice and the common language of the region’s digital future.