The Geospatial FM podcast topic profile:

1. Data engineering for geospatial

2. GEOSPATIAL FOR WORLD MODELS (foundation models are so last week)

3. GEOSPATIAL IN PREDICTION MARKETS (spatial finance is so 2022)

4. In this context, stocks, globally

5. Human rights outcomes of these stocks

Item 5 is always number 1. So we are finishing the year with that focus. Let's look at this BBC article about a murder of a tribal landowner to make way for the world's largest dictator vanity project, The Line in Saudi Arabia: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-52375343. Abdul Rahim Al-Huwaiti spoke in this video before he was murdered: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8Mp_CKbjdE. One thing he predicted was being framed by the government surrounding his dead body with weapons. They did report finding his body in such a state: https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadFile?gId=35599. Another BBC article profiles Col Rabih Alenezi https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-68945445. He said he was a security force leader who was asked by the government to, if necessary, kill villages who resisted eviction. He refused and escaped to the UK. Whoever replaced him obviously was not so upstanding, and Abdul Rahim al-Hwaiti was killed.

So we have a suitably arresting human rights issue to examine for the podcast. I then used The UN's Communication Report and Search tool (https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/Tmsearch/TMDocuments) to find out about the western companies involved, an issue flagged by the BBC. I found a UN Letter of Urgent Appeal to AECOM: https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=28030. The communication search tool shows the CEO, Mr Rudd, does not appear to have responded to the letter. It is significant that AECOM was a recipient, because they're the best international design firm according to Engineering News Record (https://www.enr.com/toplists/2025-top-500-design-firms-preview). Last year it was Jacbos, also a delivery partner on The Line, but they have not received a letter of urgent appeal.

In the letter, reference is made to an earlier one about the killing of Abdul Rahim Al-Huwaiti (https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=25483). The UN accompanied that letter a week later with a summary for the public: https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/05/1136322.

In tying up loose ends, I observed that another recipient of such a letter was Solar Water. They announced in 2019 what they were doing for NEOM: https://www.solarwaterplc.com/company-news/green-technology-in-the-neom-project-and-others-how-will-it-change-the-rules-of-the-game-in-the-gulf/. Five years later, however, after receiving the letter (https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=28049), they gave up $100 million by cancelling the project: https://www.businessinsider.com/malcolm-aw-canceled-100m-neom-contract-human-rights-abuse-saudi-2024-5.

AECOM has done no such thing. They could not even bear to respond to the letter. Despite being a signatory to the UN Global Compact (https://unglobalcompact.org/what-is-gc/participants/17780-AECOM-Technology-Corporation).

AECOM is in the Consultancy vertical of the World Model 500. The podcast remains faithful to its 5 topics. Topic 5, human rights, is always number 1. Please accept, dear Mr. Rudd, the assurances of my highest consideration.

UN Letter of Urgent Appeal to AECOM about NEOM