MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec 8, 2025--
At the Nobel Sustainability Trust Summit 2025, O.N.E Amazon advanced a clear case for redefining biodiversity as critical global infrastructure, emphasizing that the stability of economies, climates, and societies fundamentally depends on the health of ecosystems such as the Amazon rainforest.
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The roundtable, moderated by Jill Hudkins, Chief Executive Global Advisory of AECOM, convened a distinguished group of leaders working across conservation, science, policy, and sustainable development, including Gustavo Manrique, President of Sambito and former Minister of Environment of Ecuador; Dr. Richard Hansen, archaeologist and President of the Foundation for Anthropological Research & Environmental Studies (FARES); and Narendra Ramgulam, Deputy Director for sustainable tourism, Caribbean Tourism Organization.
Together, the panel examined how biodiversity functions as critical global infrastructure, underpinning water security, food systems, climate regulation, economic resilience, and long-term national stability, and underscored the need for stronger data, governance, and investment models capable of operating at the scale of ecological challenges.
Within this broader context, O.N.E Amazon CEO Rodrigo Veloso, described the deployment of the world’s first Internet of Forests (IoF™) as a foundational step toward this goal. Hundreds of sensors, acoustic devices, soil monitors, and imaging technologies have already been installed in regions such as the Darién in Panama and the Chiribiquete National Park in Colombia. “If we can measure it, we can value it,” Veloso said. “ The Internet of Forests allows us to rebuild nature’s backbone infrastructure and understand biodiversity at a level that makes conservation investable.”
Veloso noted that O.N.E Amazon’s model has only become possible due to the recent convergence of key enablers: new regulatory clarity in the United States, advances in blockchain compliance standards such as ERC-3643, and the rapid evolution of artificial intelligence capable of processing the ecological intelligence captured by the IoF™. Together, these developments create, for the first time, the conditions for nature-backed Digital Asset Securities to operate under full regulatory compliance.
“We are only able to launch a fully regulated nature-backed Digital Asset Security now because the regulatory landscape has changed,” Veloso said. “The leadership of the Environmental Task Force, the Crypto Task Force, and the clarity emerging under President Trump’s GENIUS Act make this possible. And when you combine this with blockchain, through the ERC-3643 standard, and AI, we can finally bring nature into markets responsibly. Lasting conservation depends on aligning market incentives with ecological outcomes, responsibly harnessing the power of markets to ensure the forest is more valuable alive than dead.”
“O.N.E Amazon’s selection as the first regulated Digital Asset Security under the SEC Project Crypto Innovation Exemption acknowledgment of ERC-3643 is a significant moment for the future of compliant tokenization in the United States and the world,” said Dennis O’Connell, President of ERC-3643 and Partner and CTO at PSG. “It shows the impact of global standards for identity, compliance, and investor protection can be practically applied to real-world assets with integrity. It proves that regulated digital infrastructure can deliver outcomes that matter, in this case supporting the long-term protection and economic valuation of one of the planet’s most essential ecosystems . ERC-3643 Association is proud to recognize O.N.E Amazon as a model for how responsible digital assets should be built.”
As global discussions increasingly recognize biodiversity as essential infrastructure, O.N.E Amazon is building the technological and financial architecture capable of protecting the Amazon rainforest at the scale the planet requires.
About O.N.E Amazon
O.N.E Amazon is a disruptive company that transforms conservation into Investment with Purpose. At its core is the O.N.E Amazon Coin (OAC), a new Digital Asset Security– soon to be launched- supported by the Internet of Forests (IoF™) and the One Amazon Impact & Sustainability Fund (OAIF). By turning the Amazon’s invisible services into measurable financial value, we make conservation more valuable than deforestation. By investing 85% of all funds raised into local initiatives, O.N.E Amazon delivers measurable impact for nature, for people, and for investors alike.
Jill Hudkins, Chief Executive Global Advisory, AECOM; Rodrigo Veloso, Founder & CEO, O.N.E Amazon; Dr. Richard Hansen, President, Foundation for Anthropological Research & Environmental Studies (FARES); Gustavo Manrique, President of Sambito; Narendra Ramgulam, Deputy Director for Sustainable Tourism, Caribbean Tourism Organization.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Egypt and Iran, two Middle East nations which target gays and lesbians, have complained to FIFA over a World Cup soccer match in Seattle that is planned to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride.
Leaders in the nation's soccer federations publicly rebuked the idea of playing the match June 26 at Seattle Stadium, which local organizers say will include a “once-in-a-lifetime moment to showcase and celebrate LGBTQIA+ communities in Washington.”
In Egypt, the soccer federation issued a statement late Tuesday saying it sent a letter to FIFA “categorically rejecting any activities related to supporting homosexuality during the match.”
Seattle PrideFest has been organized in the city since 2007 by a nonprofit which designated the June 26 game for celebration before FIFA made the World Cup draw Friday.
FIFA chose Saturday to allocate the Egypt-Iran game to Seattle instead of Vancouver, where the teams' group rivals Belgium and New Zealand will play at the same time.
Already, organizers in Seattle have promoted an art contest for the game, including one entry of a rainbow-flagged sun rising over Mount Rainier as a crab goalie goes for a soccer ball while holding a cup of coffee in its pinchers.
“With matches on Juneteenth and pride, we get to show the world that in Seattle, everyone is welcome,” Seattle's Mayor-elect Kate Wilson wrote on social media. “What an incredible honor!”
FIFA controls only stadiums and official fan zones in World Cup host cities and should have no formal authority over community events like Seattle PrideFest.
FIFA declined comment Tuesday to the Associated Press, and did not address a question if it would consider switching the Belgium-New Zealand game to Seattle.
In Iran, where gays and lesbians can face the death penalty, the president of Iran’s Football Federation Mehdi Taj criticized scheduling the match during an interview aired on state television late Monday.
Taj said Iran would bring up the issue during a FIFA Council meeting in Qatar next week. The longest-serving member of the 37-person council chaired by FIFA President Gianni Infantino is Egypt's Hany Abo Rida.
“Both Egypt and we have objected, because this is an unreasonable and illogical move that essentially signals support for a particular group, and we must definitely address this point,” Taj said. State TV on Tuesday confirmed a complaint would be sent to FIFA.
The Egypt soccer federation led by Ado Rida said of the pride celebration it “completely rejects such activities, which directly contradict the cultural, religious and social values in the region, especially in Arab and Islamic societies.”
It urged FIFA to stop the celebration to “avoid activities that may trigger cultural and religious sensitivity between the presented spectators of both countries, Egypt and Iran, especially as such activities contradict the cultures and religions of the two countries.”
Iran had threatened to boycott the World Cup draw in Washington, DC over complaints about five of its nine-person delegation, including Taj, not getting visas to enter the United States.
Iranians are subject to a travel ban imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration and the U.S. in the past has denied visas for those with ties to Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, like Taj. Iran ended up sending a smaller delegation including the team's coach.
Tensions remain high between Tehran and Washington over Iran's nuclear program, particularly after American warplanes bombed atomic sites in the country during Israel's 12-day war with the Islamic Republic in June. Unlike the 2022 World Cup, however, Iran is not scheduled to play the United States in the World Cup's opening matches.
Asked about the complaint Wednesday, Seattle's organizing committee said it was “moving forward as planned with our community programming outside the stadium during Pride weekend and throughout the tournament.”
“The Pacific Northwest is home to one of the nation’s largest Iranian-American communities, a thriving Egyptian diaspora and rich communities representing all nations we’re hosting in Seattle,” spokesperson Hana Tadesse said in a statement. "We’re committed to ensuring all residents and visitors experience the warmth, respect and dignity that defines our region.”
For years, Egyptian police have targeted gays and lesbians, sparking warnings even from the app Grindr in the past. Though Egypt technically does not outlaw homosexuality, authorities frequently prosecute members of the LGBTQ+ community on the grounds of “debauchery,” or “violating public decency.”
Iran also has targeted the LGBTQ community and its theocracy is believed to have executed thousands of people for their sexuality since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Hard-line former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad once famously went as far as to claim during a 2007 visit to the United States: “We don’t have homosexuals like in your country.” A crowd at Columbia University responded by laughing and heckling the leader.
FIFA risks being accused of a double standard if it sides with World Cup teams' federations over the city of Seattle.
At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, FIFA fiercely defended the right of the host nation's cultural norms to be respected in full by visiting teams.
A group of European federations wanted their team captains to wear a “One Love” armband with some rainbow colors that symbolized human rights and diversity, which FIFA and Qatari officials viewed in part as criticism of the emirate criminalizing same-sex relations. Some Wales fans had rainbow hats removed before entering the stadium.
Qatar also will play in Seattle at the World Cup, on June 24 against a European opponent which could be Italy or Wales.
AP Sports Writer Graham Dunbar in Geneva contributed to this report
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
From left: Alexi Lalas and Ronaldo listen as FIFA President Gianni Infantino and host Andrés Cantor applaude as Francesco Totti, and Hristo Stoichkov look on during the match schedule reveal for the 2026 soccer World Cup in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
