It is very common to confuse the academic network operated by RNP with the Brazilian internet. After all, the history of the two is intertwined. In June 1992, the first internet connection was celebrated in the country, at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, Rio-92. From this first connection, the first internet network in Brazil emerged, connecting ten states and the Federal District.  

Initially, the network had academic purposes, so that Brazilian researchers could be connected with each other and with the world. The opening of the commercial internet would only come three years later, in May 1995. During this period, RNP played a fundamental role in raising awareness in the academic community about the strategic importance of the internet for the country, according to an article by network scientist Michael Stanton. 

First of all, we need to understand what an academic network is and how it connects people and teaching and research institutions in Brazil, just as other academic networks do around the world.  

"Thanks to an academic network, a researcher in Brazil can collaborate on a scientific project with a researcher in Europe, for example. This sharing of knowledge goes far beyond a physical connection; it is an exchange of ideas, which brings scientific and technological advancement to the country," says RNP’s Communications and Marketing Manager, Stela Tsirakis.

RNP operates the national academic network, the Ipê network, an infrastructure that not only offers quality internet access, but also supports the transmission of large volumes of data for scientific projects and the development of new technologies. To give you an idea, the capacity of an academic network can be up to 1,000 times faster than domestic broadband internet. 

This connectivity is present in all units of the federation through RNP's Points of Presence, and reaches User Organizations through branches of this network, taking the same quality of connection that reaches the capitals to the interior. 

Just as RNP operates in Brazil, other academic networks (or NRENs) play this role in several countries. NRENs are also interconnected to facilitate collaboration and knowledge exchange on a global scale, which is called GREN, or Global Education and Research Network. Examples of networks that operate at a continental level include Internet2 in the United States, RedCLARA in Latin America, and GEANT in Europe. Watch the video below from the Canadian academic network (Canarie) to see what a GREN does.

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We know that universities and research centers play a fundamental role in promoting digital transformation. They are institutions that need to remain at the forefront of knowledge, seeking solutions to the present and future challenges of a sustainable society.   

By bringing together the teaching and research community in Brazil, the academic network generates public value and a favorable environment for the co-creation of innovative services, solutions and models. "We form a community with our user organizations and integrate it globally. However, we do not do anything alone. This is only possible through partnerships with the entire Information and Communication Technologies sector, in Brazil and around the world, with the government and with other academic networks", concludes Stela.