First IoF project to be demonstrated live at United Nations Biodiversity Conference (COP 16) in Cali, Colombia, in October 2024
In partnership with the Colombian government, Veea VEEA, a first-to-market pioneer in hyperconverged multiaccess networks with AI-driven cybersecurity, is collaborating with O.N.E. Amazon, and AECOM to deploy a technologically advanced, multidimensional solution composed of hybrid edge-cloud computing and communications products in a protected conservation area of the Government of Colombia. The goal of the deployment is to monitor and analyze rainforest health and digitally connect every hectare to deliver sustainable economic and social benefits to rural communities. This “Internet of Forests” initiative underscores each entity’s commitment to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals which seek to promote prosperity while protecting the planet.
According to Inter-American Development Bank, “Biodiversity and ecosystems are declining globally and the pressures leading to such a decline are intensifying, requiring urgent action to reverse nature loss and avoid a 6th mass extinction (IPBES, 2019). There has been a global average decline of 69% in species populations since 1970 – Latin America and the Caribbean is at the very top of the list with an alarming 94% drop (WWF, 2022).” The advanced technological framework of IoF is designed not only to help preserve the ecosystem of Chiribiquete, Colombia’s largest national park and a UNESCO World Heritage site, but also to reveal the intrinsic value of one of the planet’s most vital natural resources, seeking sustainable management and protection of the Amazon rainforests for future generations.
“When we make the physical wonders of our planet visible in the digital realm, we unlock new opportunities for conservation, engagement, and economic growth,” said Allen Salmasi, co-founder and CEO of Veea. “With advanced solutions like digital twins, IoF offers transformative capabilities that can quantify and visualize natural environments in entirely new ways to enhance conservation efforts to build a sustainable future.”
The IoF initiative will enable detailed monitoring and data collection, from ground sensors and cameras installed in the rainforest, with collected data processed locally on VeeaHub devices in a mesh cluster installed in carefully selected zones throughout the rainforest with a satellite backhaul. Data fusion through integration of the processed ground data, from different sources, together with satellite-based LIDAR and/or high-resolution Imagery with the application of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI), provides for significant insights into and advanced knowledge of the relationship between landscape dynamics, environmental conditions, human activities, biophysical variables, and natural stocks. The range of capabilities deployed with the IoF provides for effective monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) mechanisms that can bring real-time knowledge of ground conditions, such as start of wildfires, and land use changes, such as deforestation, which are the primary causes of biodiversity losses, while providing for safeguarding and strengthening the rights and livelihoods of local communities.
“Our mission is to drive innovative solutions that promote sustainable development and significantly improve the well-being of the nearly 50 million inhabitants of the Amazon region, while helping with the preservation of biomes for future generations,” said Rodrigo Veloso, CEO of O.N.E. Amazon.
Robert Spencer, AECOM’s global nature and sustainability lead, said: “Nature tech is revolutionizing the way we make decisions about the unique Amazonian tropical forest environment and the communities that depend on it. By leveraging live data, we can ensure that our actions are both effective and sustainable. AECOM is committed to driving better decisions and community outcomes through this powerful nature-focused partnership.”
The IoF technology platform created by the ecosystem partners offers capabilities for not only protecting rainforest ecosystems and biodiversity conservation, but also supporting satellite-based internet connectivity for local communities. This provides for edge AI-assisted applications to enable sustainable businesses such as Smart Farming with precision agriculture, water management, ecotourism, a range of renewable energy production, and climate change adaptations.
Veea’s hybrid edge-cloud computing platform enables advanced networking, edge applications supported by a connectivity and application mesh, blockchains, IoT/IIoT/AIoT, and data management technologies — all of which combined provide for highly integrated “last-hectare” solutions in the rainforest, such as:
- Providing access to locally cached, and regularly updated, content for education, healthcare, training, news and infotainment
- Planning and managing affordable and renewable energy solutions
- Monitoring water pollution, air quality, natural disasters, and climate change
About Veea
Veea® makes living and working at the edge simpler and more secure. Veea has unified multi-tenant computing, multiaccess multiprotocol communications, edge storage and cybersecurity solutions through fully integrated cloud- and edge-managed products. Veea’s pioneering Multiaccess Edge Computing (MEC) product developed from the ground up in a compact form factor brings together the functionality typically provided for through any combination of servers, Network Attached Storage (NAS) devices, routers, firewalls, Wi-Fi Access Points (APs), IoT gateways, 4G or 5G wireless access, and Cloud Computing (CC) by means of multiple hardware, software and systems integrated and maintained by IT/OT professionals. Compared to such solutions, Veea Edge Platform offers application responsiveness, bolsters cybersecurity, data privacy and context awareness, and lowers data transport costs as well as the total cost of ownership, while providing for easy installation, operations, monitoring and maintenance of edge networks. At the heart of VeeaHub products resides a Linux server with a full-stack virtualized software environment for cloud-native applications that run in Secured DockerTM containers, with a high degree of user data and application isolation, Software Defined Networking (SDN), Network Function Virtualization (NFV) and cybersecurity, delivering hyperconverged networking over a connectivity and computing mesh network. The fully integrated turnkey solution offers end-to-end cloud management of devices, applications and value-added services with Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) and, optionally, a highly simplified plug and play 5G-based Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) offering. Veea Edge Platform enables direct connections from the wide area optical fiber, cellular and satellite networks to the local area networks created by a VeeaHub mesh cluster over cellular-like network-managed Wi-Fi and IoT devices – a unique patented capability called network slicing. Veea Developer Portal and development tools provide for rapid development of edge applications, optionally, with Edge AI. Veea has implemented a range of cost-effective solutions for B2B and B2B2C offerings through service providers, channel partners, system integrators, enterprise partners, and government agencies for smart retail, smart construction, smart logistics and warehouses, smart farms and greenhouses, smart buildings, smart schools, smart hospitals, smart museums to smart cities. Veea was formed in 2014 and is headquartered in New York City with a rich history of major innovations in the development of advanced networking, wireless and computing technologies, along with over 103 granted and 33 pending patents in key aspects of hyperconverged edge computing technologies. For more information, visit veea.com and follow us on X and LinkedIn.
About O.N.E. Amazon
As a pioneer in the integration of sustainability, tokenization, technology, and financial markets, O.N.E. Amazon develops innovative solutions to address environmental challenges. Its mission is to promote economic growth and enhance social well-being in the Amazon region through its Impact Fund. O.N.E. Amazon is actively engaged with governments, private landowners, indigenous tribes, NGOs and private enterprise in the Amazon rainforest territories across Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela, and French Guiana. Visit www.oneamazon.com.
About AECOM
AECOM is the world’s trusted infrastructure consulting firm, delivering professional services throughout the project lifecycle – from advisory, planning, design and engineering to program and construction management. On projects spanning transportation, buildings, water, new energy, and the environment, our public- and private-sector clients trust us to solve their most complex challenges. Our teams are driven by a common purpose to deliver a better world through our unrivaled technical and digital expertise, a culture of equity, diversity and inclusion, and a commitment to environmental, social and governance priorities. AECOM is a Fortune 500 firm and its Professional Services business had revenue of $14.4 billion in fiscal year 2023. See how we are delivering sustainable legacies for generations to come at aecom.com and @AECOM.
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