Welcome to SOLV Energy's Cultural Corner! As a way to illuminate our DEI path, we have introduced a new series highlighting diverse perspectives on career and life featuring members of our SOLV Energy team. Cultural Corner will build awareness and encourage appreciation for our variant cultural backgrounds!

Tell me about yourself. Who are you? Where did you grow up? How do you identify? I’m Brazilian, I was born and raised in Belo Horizonte, a city approximately the same size of Sacramento, which is the capital of the State of Minas Gerais. I’m “Mineira” with so much pride.

What do you value most? Time with my family.

What were you told as a child that you still believe today? “The more we share, the more we have.”

How does your cultural heritage influence who you are? Respect, humility, kindness, hospitality and empathy are strong values in my culture. I believe the way you treat people and how you help them when they need you, says a lot about who you are.

What family traditions or superstitions do you have? On New Year’s Eve, at midnight, we jump over 7 waves in the ocean and make 7 wishes for the year that’s coming.

What cultural similarities and differences do you have with your closest co-workers? Brazilians love soccer like Americans love football, we also love BBQ. Parents and their children tend to live in the same city for their whole lives.

Please share something that you’d like everyone at SOLV to know about your cultural heritage. My state is called Minas Gerais because we have a large quantity of “mines”, we are the biggest ore producer in Brazil and one of the world biggest exporters of silicon and steel, used to fabricate our solar panels and piles.

Who is the woman that has had the greatest influence on your career and why? My mom, she is a woman in STEM, a chemistry teacher and she works for the environmental protection department in my hometown. Since I was a kid, she has been my biggest inspiration. I remember going to the laboratory with her and watching all her experiments using different substances and materials. My curiosity, courage and determination definitely comes from her.