Evidence before opinion
Every recommendation we make needs data behind it. When there's no evidence, we say so — and design the experiment that's missing.
About us
From community organizing to ICT accreditation
Four years connecting entrepreneurs, researchers and public managers across the North Corridor, culminating in 2026 with accreditation as a Science, Technology and Innovation Institute under Federal Law No. 10,973/2004.
Our story
From an informal gathering to an ICT-registered CNPJ
Saint Lake Valley was born from a simple concern: the North Corridor of Belo Horizonte holds an international airport, industrial districts and billions in announced investment — but had no body connecting those assets to the people building technology.
What started as meetings among entrepreneurs, researchers and public managers gradually took shape. Then came the events, the first technical consulting engagements, outreach to city halls and universities and, in 2025, VN Summit — which brought together 2,589 people in Lagoa Santa.
In 2026 the movement was formalized as the Saint Lake Valley Institute of Technological Innovation, a non-profit civil association qualified as an ICT, headquartered in Lagoa Santa with registration approved by the city government.
ICT accreditation isn't a bureaucratic detail. It's what lets us sign R&D partnerships with methodological rigor, access funding lines closed to ordinary companies, and transfer technology with legal certainty for the party contracting us.
By the numbers
Institutional and VN Summit indicators
4+years of outreach
2,589attendees at VN Summit 2025
60speakers at VN Summit 2025
97.5kpeople reached by the Summit's outreach
R$2.5Min contracts and business generated
How we work
Four principles guiding every project
Open network
No single actor solves the region's bottleneck alone. We work on the triple helix logic: company, academia and government at the same table.
Measurable local impact
Our indicator is what happens in the North Corridor: jobs created, contracts signed, projects approved, companies that decided to stay.
Transfer, not dependency
The project ends when the method is in your team's hands. We document and train so the operation continues without us.
Governance
How the Institute is organized
A non-profit civil association, with a presidency and dedicated vice-presidencies.
RB
Rafael Becho
President & Principal Investigator (PI)
Leads the Institute's institutional representation, coordinates outreach across the North Corridor ecosystem, and is the principal investigator for the Institute's research projects.
EM
Elisangela Menezes
Vice President of Governance & STI
Leads institutional governance and the Institute's science, technology and innovation agenda.
RC
Renata Carvalho
Vice President of Management & Business
Leads administrative management and business development for the Institute alongside its member network.
LA
Leonardo Andrade
Vice President of Operations
Responsible for the operational execution of the Institute's projects, events and initiatives.
Network
Who we build with
The Institute operates on triple-helix logic — and that shows in how our network is made up.
Funding and government
FAPEMIG, FINEP, the Minas Gerais state government and North Corridor city halls.
Academia
Universities and research centers partnering on R&D projects.
Companies and corporations
Industry, operators and technology-based companies in the region.
Startups and members
An active base of entrepreneurs, investors and professionals in the ecosystem.
Join the network
Members get access to the agenda, business roundtables and the Institute's institutional outreach across the North Corridor.