Nobel Sustainability Trust Successfully Hosts Annual Summit in Miami to Promote Global Solutions

A Successful 2025 Summit by the Nobel Sustainability Trust

The Nobel Sustainability Trust (NST) held its Annual Summit on December 5, 2025, at the luxurious St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort in Miami. This gathering, featuring a diverse assembly of international leaders, policy makers, scientists, and entrepreneurs, aimed to accelerate solutions towards a sustainable future.

The event began with an elegant gala dinner, hosted by renowned journalist Gloria Ordaz. The opening remarks were delivered by the NST leadership along with representatives from Miami Dade County's Mayor Daniella Levine Cava's office. A prominent keynote address was made by Ambassador Andrew Young, which set a powerful tone for the conversations to follow.

Global entrepreneur Jeff Hoffman, Chairman of the Global Entrepreneurship Network and co-founder of Priceline/Booking.com, moderated the official summit. The opening address was given by Peter Nobel, Chair of the NST, followed by a speech from Johan Rockström, which captured the audience's attention on urgent sustainability themes.

One of the morning’s highlights was the Sustainability Award ceremony, initiated by the NST board to recognize outstanding contributions in the field. Ed Russo delivered a keynote speech on behalf of the President of the United States, receiving an official NST award in recognition of his support for sustainable initiatives. Additional important addresses were made by 2025 Medal of Outstanding Contributions to Sustainability Award winners, S.E. Abdullah bin Hamad bin Abdullah Al Attiya and I.E. Dr. Yasmine Fouad, who emphasized governments' global commitment to sustainability.

In showcasing academic excellence, the themes of the 2025 Sustainability Award were introduced by the Technical University of Munich, followed by high-profile distinctions for leadership in implementation, outstanding research in biodiversity, and innovative urban sustainable solutions. The 2025 recipients included Prof. Manfred Curbach, Prof. Paul Hebert, and the Global Observatory for Healthy Sustainable Cities.

NST proudly announced its new academic partnership with the University of Cambridge and its Frontier Technology Lab, confirming Cambridge as an official strategic academic partner starting in 2026. This partnership will focus on cutting-edge technologies, AI governance, sustainability innovations, and future global solutions.

During a midday session, AECOM and NST unveiled their strategic partnership by awarding the first Smart Sustainable City certificate to Lusail City, Doha. The summit featured forward-looking discussions on topics including AI, smart sustainable city solutions, and biodiversity as a global infrastructure. A keynote address on behalf of the President of Panama was delivered by the country’s Foreign Minister, followed by significant talks from Youssef Nassef, head of the UNFCCC adaptation division, and Professor Graciela Chichilnisky.

The program was enriched by engaging panel discussions tackling "Climate Finance" and "The Next Age of Artificial Intelligence," emphasizing NST's mission to connect policies, science, technology, and investments to achieve real-world impacts.

As the summit in Miami concluded, it highlighted NST's increasing role as a global platform for sustainability, innovation, and international cooperation, with the next annual summit set to take place in Doha next year.

Nobel Summit