Category: Politics

MIL-OSI: ASM announces third quarter 2024 results

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Almere, The Netherlands
October 29, 2024, 6 p.m. CET

AI-related demand drives robust growth in bookings and revenue

ASM International N.V. (Euronext Amsterdam: ASM) today reports its Q3 2024 results (unaudited).

Financial highlights

€ million	Q3 2023	Q2 2024	Q3 2024
New orders	627.4	755.4	815.3
yoy change % at constant currencies	0%	56%	30%

Revenue	622.3	706.1	778.6
yoy change % at constant currencies	9%	6%	26%

Gross profit margin %	48.1 %	49.8 %	49.4 %
Adjusted gross profit margin ¹	48.9 %	49.8 %	49.4 %

Operating result	147.3	177.6	215.2
Operating result margin %	23.7 %	25.1 %	27.6 %

Adjusted operating result ¹	157.2	182.3	219.9
Adjusted operating result margin ¹	25.3 %	25.8 %	28.2 %

Net earnings	129.6	159.0	127.9
Adjusted net earnings ¹	139.1	164.7	133.6

¹ Adjusted figures are non-IFRS performance measures (previously referred to as “normalized”). Refer to Annex 3 for a reconciliation of non-IFRS performance measures.

New orders of €815 million in Q3 2024 increased by 30% at constant currencies (also 30% as reported) mainly driven by strong demand for gate-all-around (GAA) and high-bandwidth memory (HBM).
Revenue of €779 million increased by 26% at constant currencies (increased by 25% as reported) from Q3 of last year and at the upper end of the guidance (€740-780 million).
YoY improvement in adjusted gross profit margin is due to mix including slightly stronger-than-expected sales to China.
Adjusted operating result margin increased to 28.2%, compared to 25.3% in Q3 last year and increased from 25.8% last quarter mainly due to higher revenue and a one-off positive result of €7 million related to the sale of a building.
Revenue for Q4 2024 is expected to be in the range of €770-810 million.

Comment

“ASM delivered strong results against a backdrop of continued mixed market conditions,” said Hichem M’Saad, CEO of ASM. “Revenue increased 26% at constant currencies to €779 million in the third quarter of 2024, which is a new quarterly high and at the upper end of our guidance of €740-780 million. With a gross margin of 49.4%, and ongoing focus on cost control, adjusted operating result increased by 40% to €220 million compared to Q3 2023.
Orders were up 30% to €815 million in Q3 2024 compared to last year’s Q3, driven by a further increase in orders for gate-all-around (GAA) technology and continued solid demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) DRAM applications. Total orders were ahead of our expectations at the start of the quarter due to some bookings that were pulled in from Q4.
AI continues to be the dominant semiconductor end market driver, while recovery in other markets such as PCs and smartphones is still sluggish, and the automotive/industrial segments remain in a cyclical downturn. AI is increasingly driving the demand for the most advanced devices, both in logic/foundry and HBM DRAM, and this plays to the strengths of ASM.
While recently announced capex reductions have somewhat impacted the outlook for advanced logic/foundry spending, we still project a substantial increase in our GAA-related sales in 2025. Leading customers have reiterated their plans to ramp the GAA node in high-volume manufacturing next year. With this transition we continue to expect meaningful increases in our served available market.
Sales and orders in China held up slightly better than expected in Q3. We still expect sales in China to be lower in the second half compared to the first half, and Q4 to be lower than Q3. While visibility for FY 2025 is still limited, we currently assume sales from Chinese customers to be moderately lower in the first half of 2025 compared to the second half of 2024.
For SiC Epi, we still expect a double-digit percentage increase in sales in FY 2024, despite the current market slowdown in this segment, and reflecting the contribution from previously won new customers. We believe that SiC Epi remains an attractive long-term growth market. ASM is well positioned, in particular on the back of our recently launched PE2O8 SiC Epi tool, which combines our proven best-in-class film performance with a new dual-chamber high-productivity platform for 200mm applications.”

Outlook

On a currency-comparable level, we project revenue of €770-810 million for Q4 2024. At constant currencies and taking into account the guidance for Q4, we project revenue in the second half of 2024 to increase by slightly more than 15% compared to the first half, and for FY 2024, we expect revenue to show a year-on-year increase of approximately 10%.
For WFE spending, a slight increase is expected in 2024, followed by continued growth in 2025. Based on this, we now expect revenue to be in the range of €3.2-3.6 billion for 2025, in particular driven by GAA related sales, and taking into account continued mixed end market conditions. This compares to our previous revenue target of €3.0-3.6 billion for 2025.
In terms of order intake we expect the level in Q4 to be again solid, albeit lower than in the third quarter. GAA related orders are expected to further increase, offset by a drop in China orders and the effect of aforementioned order pull-ins in Q3.

Share buyback program

On February 27, 2024, ASM announced the authorization of a new share buyback program of up to €150 million. The program started on May 15, 2024, and was completed on July 25, 2024. In total, we repurchased 228,389 shares at an average price of €656.77, under the 2024 program.

About ASM

ASM International N.V., headquartered in Almere, the Netherlands, and its subsidiaries design and manufacture equipment and process solutions to produce semiconductor devices for wafer processing, and have facilities in the United States, Europe, and Asia. ASM International’s common stock trades on the Euronext Amsterdam Stock Exchange (symbol: ASM). For more information, visit ASM’s website at www.asm.com.

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements: All matters discussed in this press release, except for any historical data, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. These include, but are not limited to, economic conditions and trends in the semiconductor industry generally and the timing of the industry cycles specifically, currency fluctuations, corporate transactions, financing and liquidity matters, the success of restructurings, the timing of significant orders, market acceptance of new products, competitive factors, litigation involving intellectual property, shareholders or other issues, commercial and economic disruption due to natural disasters, terrorist activity, armed conflict or political instability, changes in import/export regulations, epidemics, pandemics and other risks indicated in the company’s reports and financial statements. The company assumes no obligation nor intends to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect future developments or circumstances.

This press release contains inside information within the meaning of Article 7(1) of the EU Market Abuse Regulation.

Quarterly earnings conference call details

ASM will host the quarterly earnings conference call and webcast on Wednesday, October 30, 2024, at 3:00 p.m. CET.

Conference-call participants should pre-register using this link to receive the dial-in numbers, passcode and a personal PIN, which are required to access the conference call.

A simultaneous audio webcast and replay will be accessible at this link.

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: C&F Financial Corporation Announces Net Income for Third Quarter and First Nine Months

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

TOANO, Va., Oct. 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — C&F Financial Corporation (the Corporation) (NASDAQ: CFFI), the holding company for C&F Bank, today reported consolidated net income of $5.4 million for the third quarter of 2024, compared to $5.8 million for the third quarter of 2023. The Corporation reported consolidated net income of $13.9 million for the first nine months of 2024, compared to $18.7 million for the first nine months of 2023. The following table presents selected financial performance highlights for the periods indicated:


	For The Quarter Ended						For the Nine Months Ended
Consolidated Financial Highlights (unaudited)	9/30/2024			9/30/2023			9/30/2024			9/30/2023
Consolidated net income (000’s)	$	5,420		$	5,777		$	13,889		$	18,658

Earnings per share – basic and diluted	$	1.65		$	1.71		$	4.15		$	5.41

Annualized return on average equity		9.74	%		11.28	%		8.47	%		12.22	%
Annualized return on average tangible common equity¹		11.16	%		13.19	%		9.74	%		14.18	%
Annualized return on average assets		0.86	%		0.96	%		0.75	%		1.04	%

________________________
¹ For more information about these non-GAAP financial measures, which are not calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), please see “Use of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and “Reconciliation of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures,” below.

“We are pleased with our results from the third quarter,” commented Tom Cherry, President and Chief Executive Officer of C&F Financial Corporation. “Both loans and deposits demonstrated solid growth, and the community banking segment showed increased earnings when compared to the previous quarter. Despite market and industry challenges, the consumer finance and mortgage banking segments remained profitable. Our net interest margin was relatively flat when compared to the second quarter, which was expected, and asset quality, liquidity and capital all remain strong.”

Key highlights for the third quarter and first nine months of 2024 are as follows.

Community banking segment loans grew $158.5 million, or 16.6 percent annualized, and $185.6 million, or 14.9 percent, compared to December 31, 2023 and September 30, 2023, respectively;
Consumer finance segment loans grew $8.8 million, or 2.5 percent annualized, and $6.1 million, or 1.3 percent, compared to December 31, 2023 and September 30, 2023, respectively;
Deposits increased $69.8 million, or 4.5 percent annualized, and $107.5 million, or 5.3 percent, compared to December 31, 2023 and September 30, 2023, respectively;
Consolidated annualized net interest margin was 4.13 percent for the third quarter of 2024 compared to 4.29 percent for the third quarter of 2023 and 4.12 percent in the second quarter of 2024;
The community banking segment recorded provision for credit losses of $700,000 and $1.7 million for the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, respectively, compared to $500,000 and $1.6 million for the same periods in 2023;
The consumer finance segment recorded provision for credit losses of $3.0 million and $8.1 million for the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, respectively, compared to $1.6 million and $4.3 million for the same periods in 2023;
The consumer finance segment experienced net charge-offs at an annualized rate of 2.36 percent of average total loans for the first nine months of 2024, compared to 1.75 percent for the first nine months of 2023;
Mortgage banking segment loan originations were $157.0 million for the third quarter of 2024, an increase of $27.3 million, or 21.1 percent, and an increase of $11.0 million, or 7.5 percent, compared to the third quarter of 2023 and the second quarter of 2024, respectively;
During the third quarter of 2024, the community banking segment opened a new retail banking branch in Colonial Heights, Virginia and announced the closure of its Hampton, Virginia branch in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Community Banking Segment. The community banking segment reported net income of $5.3 million and $13.9 million for the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, respectively, compared to $5.7 million and $17.7 million for the same periods in 2023. The decreases in community banking segment net income were due primarily to:

higher interest expense due primarily to higher rates on deposits and higher balances of interest-bearing deposits, partially offset by lower balances of borrowings;
higher salaries and employee benefits expense for the first nine months of 2024, as compared to the same period in 2023, which have generally increased in line with market conditions. Salaries and employee benefits expense decreased to $8.9 million for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to $9.1 million and $9.4 million for the three months ended June 30, 2024 and March 31, 2024, respectively, due primarily to a reduction in headcount through attrition;
higher occupancy expense related to branch network improvements, including the relocation of a branch and the opening of a new branch; and
higher data processing and consulting costs related to investments in operational technology to improve resilience, efficiency and customer experience;

partially offset by:

higher interest income resulting from the effects of higher interest rates on asset yields and higher average balances of loans, offset in part by lower average balances of securities; and
higher wealth management services income as assets under management increased 19.0 percent for the first nine months of 2024, as compared to the same period in 2023.

Average loans increased $186.5 million, or 15.2 percent, for the third quarter of 2024 and increased $158.4 million, or 13.2 percent, for the first nine months of 2024, compared to the same periods in 2023, due primarily to growth in the construction, commercial real estate, and residential mortgage segments of the loan portfolio. Average deposits increased $135.8 million, or 6.8 percent, for the third quarter of 2024 and increased $101.2 million, or 5.1 percent, for the first nine months of 2024, compared to the same periods in 2023, due primarily to higher balance of time deposits, partially offset by decreases in savings and interest-bearing demand deposits and noninterest-bearing demand deposits.

Average loan yields and average costs of interest-bearing deposits were higher for the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, compared to the same periods of 2023, due primarily to the effects of the higher interest rate environment.

The community banking segment’s nonaccrual loans were $628,000 at September 30, 2024 compared to $406,000 at December 31, 2023. The community banking segment recorded provision for credit losses of $700,000 and $1.7 million for the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, respectively, compared to $500,000 and $1.6 million for the same periods of 2023. At September 30, 2024, the allowance for credit losses increased to $17.5 million, compared to $16.1 million at December 31, 2023. The allowance for credit losses as a percentage of total loans decreased to 1.22 percent at September 30, 2024 from 1.26 percent at December 31, 2023. The increases in provision and allowance for credit losses are due primarily to growth in the loan portfolio. Management believes that the level of the allowance for credit losses is adequate to reflect the net amount expected to be collected.

Mortgage Banking Segment. The mortgage banking segment reported net income of $351,000 for the third quarter of 2024, compared to a net loss of $5,000 for the same period of 2023, due primarily to:

higher gains on sales of loans due to higher volume of mortgage loan originations; and
higher mortgage banking fee income;

partially offset by:

higher variable expenses tied to mortgage loan origination volume such as commissions and bonuses, reported in salaries and employee benefits, and data processing expenses.

The mortgage banking segment reported net income of $1.0 million for the first nine months of 2024, compared to $568,000 for the same period of 2023, due primarily to:

lower variable expenses tied to mortgage loan origination volume such as commissions and bonuses, reported in salaries and employee benefits, as well as mortgage banking loan processing expenses and data processing expenses;
lower occupancy expense due to an effort to reduce overhead costs;
higher mortgage banking fee income; and
relatively unchanged gains on sales of loans and mortgage loan production volume;

partially offset by:

lower mortgage lender services income due lower mortgage loan production volume across the industry.

The sustained elevated level of mortgage interest rates, combined with higher home prices and lower levels of inventory, has led to a level of mortgage loan originations in 2024 and 2023 for the industry that is lower than recent historical averages. Mortgage loan originations for the mortgage banking segment were $157.0 million for the third quarter of 2024, comprised of $15.0 million refinancings and $142.0 million home purchases, compared to $129.7 million, comprised of $11.9 million refinancings and $117.8 million home purchases, for the same period in 2023. Mortgage loan originations for the mortgage banking segment were $397.3 million for the first nine months of 2024, comprised of $34.3 million refinancings and $363.0 million home purchases, compared to $400.6 million, comprised of $40.2 million refinancings and $360.4 million home purchases, for the same period in 2023. Mortgage loan originations in the third quarter of 2024 increased $11.0 million compared to the second quarter of 2024 due in part to normal industry seasonal fluctuations. Mortgage loan segment originations include originations of loans sold to the community banking segment, at prices similar to those paid by third-party investors. These transactions are eliminated to reach consolidated totals.

During the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, the mortgage banking segment recorded a reversal of provision for indemnification losses of $100,000 and $375,000, respectively, compared to a reversal of provision for indemnification losses of $200,000 and $435,000 in the same periods of 2023. The mortgage banking segment increased reserves for indemnification losses during 2020 based on widespread forbearance on mortgage loans and economic uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The release of indemnification reserves in 2024 and 2023 was due primarily to improvement in the mortgage banking segment’s assessment of borrower payment performance, lower volume of mortgage loan originations in recent years and other factors affecting expected losses on mortgage loans sold in the secondary market, such as time since origination. Management believes that the indemnification reserve is sufficient to absorb losses related to loans that have been sold in the secondary market.

Consumer Finance Segment. The consumer finance segment reported net income of $311,000 and $1.1 million for the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, respectively, compared to net income of $682,000 and $2.3 million for the same periods in 2023. The decreases in consumer finance segment net income were due primarily to:

higher provision for credit losses due primarily to increased net charge-offs and loan growth; and
higher interest expense on variable rate borrowings from the community banking segment as a result of higher interest rates and higher balances of borrowings;

partially offset by:

higher interest income resulting from the effects of higher interest rates on loan yields and higher average balances of loans;
lower salaries and employee benefits expense due to an effort to reduce overhead costs; and
lower loan recovery expense related to growth in loans with stronger credit quality and efficiency initiatives within the collections department.

Average loans increased $8.3 million, or 1.8 percent, for the third quarter of 2024 and increased $3.0 million, or less than one percent, for the first nine months of 2024, compared to the same periods in 2023. The consumer finance segment experienced net charge-offs at an annualized rate of 2.36 percent of average total loans for the first nine months of 2024, compared to 1.75 percent for the first nine months of 2023, due primarily to an increase in the number of delinquent loans and repossessions and a higher average charge-off per unit as a result of larger loan amounts due to higher automobile values during 2020 and 2021 and a decline in wholesale values of used automobiles since then. At September 30, 2024, total delinquent loans as a percentage of total loans was 3.49 percent, compared to 4.09 percent at December 31, 2023, 3.30 percent at September 30, 2023, and 3.51 percent at June 30, 2024. Delinquency and loss rates have generally returned to pre-pandemic levels due to the passage of time since the expiration of stimulus and enhanced unemployment benefits that benefitted borrowers.

The consumer finance segment, at times, offers payment deferrals as a portfolio management technique to achieve higher ultimate cash collections on select loan accounts. A significant reliance on deferrals as a means of managing collections may result in a lengthening of the loss confirmation period, which would increase expectations of credit losses inherent in the portfolio. The average amounts deferred on a monthly basis during the third quarter and first nine months of 2024 were 1.91 percent and 1.70 percent of average automobile loans outstanding compared to 2.20 percent and 1.83 percent during the same periods during 2023. The allowance for credit losses was $23.2 million at September 30, 2024 and $23.6 million at December 31, 2023. The allowance for credit losses as a percentage of total loans decreased to 4.87 percent at September 30, 2024 from 5.03 percent at December 31, 2023, primarily as a result of growth in loans with stronger credit quality while balances of loans with lower credit quality declined. Management believes that the level of the allowance for credit losses is adequate to reflect the net amount expected to be collected. If loan performance deteriorates resulting in further elevated delinquencies or net charge-offs, the provision for credit losses may increase in future periods.

Liquidity. The objective of the Corporation’s liquidity management is to ensure the continuous availability of funds to satisfy the credit needs of our customers and the demands of our depositors, creditors and investors. Uninsured deposits represent an estimate of amounts above the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insurance coverage limit of $250,000. As of September 30, 2024, the Corporation’s uninsured deposits were approximately $607.6 million, or 28.5 percent of total deposits. Excluding intercompany cash holdings and municipal deposits, which are secured with pledged securities, amounts uninsured were approximately $455.6 million, or 21.3 percent of total deposits as of September 30, 2024. The Corporation’s liquid assets, which include cash and due from banks, interest-bearing deposits at other banks and nonpledged securities available for sale, were $287.4 million and borrowing availability was $583.8 million as of September 30, 2024, which in total exceed uninsured deposits, excluding intercompany cash holdings and secured municipal deposits, by $415.6 million as of September 30, 2024.

In addition to deposits, the Corporation utilizes short-term and long-term borrowings as sources of funds. Short-term borrowings from the Federal Reserve Bank and the Federal Home loan Bank of Atlanta (FHLB) may be used to fund the Corporation’s day-to-day operations. Short-term borrowings also include securities sold under agreements to repurchase. Total borrowings increased to $142.3 million at September 30, 2024 from $109.5 million at December 31, 2023 due primarily to higher borrowings from the FHLB. Borrowings decreased $4.7 million from $147.0 million at September 30, 2023.

Additional sources of liquidity available to the Corporation include cash flows from operations, loan payments and payoffs, deposit growth, maturities, calls and sales of securities and the issuance of brokered certificates of deposit.

Capital and Dividends. The Corporation declared a quarterly cash dividend for the third quarter of 2024 of $0.44 per share, which was paid on October 1, 2024. This dividend represents a payout ratio of 26.7 percent of earnings per share for the third quarter of 2024. The Board of Directors of the Corporation continually reviews the amount of cash dividends per share and the resulting dividend payout ratio in light of changes in economic conditions, current and future capital requirements, and expected future earnings.

Total consolidated equity increased $10.4 million at September 30, 2024, compared to December 31, 2023, due primarily to net income and lower unrealized losses in the market value of securities available for sale, which are recognized as a component of other comprehensive income, partially offset by share repurchases and dividends paid on the Corporation’s common stock. The Corporation’s securities available for sale are fixed income debt securities and their unrealized loss position is a result of rising market interest rates since they were purchased. The Corporation expects to recover its investments in debt securities through scheduled payments of principal and interest and unrealized losses are not expected to affect the earnings or regulatory capital of the Corporation or C&F Bank. The accumulated other comprehensive loss related to the Corporation’s securities available for sale decreased to $17.2 million at September 30, 2024 compared to $25.0 million at December 31, 2023 due primarily to fluctuations in market interest rates of debt securities.

As of September 30, 2024, the most recent notification from the FDIC categorized the C&F Bank as well capitalized under the regulatory framework for prompt corrective action. To be categorized as well capitalized under regulations applicable at September 30, 2024, C&F Bank was required to maintain minimum total risk-based, Tier 1 risk-based, CET1 risk-based and Tier 1 leverage ratios. In addition to the regulatory risk-based capital requirements, C&F Bank must maintain a capital conservation buffer of additional capital of 2.5 percent of risk-weighted assets as required by the Basel III capital rules. The Corporation and C&F Bank exceeded these ratios at September 30, 2024. For additional information, see “Capital Ratios” below. The above mentioned ratios are not impacted by unrealized losses on securities available for sale. In the event that all of these unrealized losses became realized into earnings, the Corporation and C&F Bank would both continue to exceed minimum capital requirements, including the capital conservation buffer, and be considered well capitalized.

In December 2023, the Board of Directors authorized a program, effective January 1, 2024, to repurchase up to $10.0 million of the Corporation’s common stock through December 31, 2024. During the third quarter and first nine months of 2024, the Corporation repurchased 60,520 shares, or $3.2 million, and 149,594 shares, or $7.3 million, of its common stock under this share repurchase program, respectively.

About C&F Financial Corporation. The Corporation’s common stock is listed for trading on The Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol CFFI. The common stock closed at a price of $61.78 per share on October 28, 2024. At September 30, 2024, the book value per share of the Corporation was $70.29 and the tangible book value per share was $62.13. For more information about the Corporation’s tangible book value per share, which is not calculated in accordance with GAAP, please see “Use of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and “Reconciliation of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures,” below.

C&F Bank operates 32 banking offices and four commercial loan offices located throughout eastern and central Virginia and offers full wealth management services through its subsidiary C&F Wealth Management, Inc. C&F Mortgage Corporation and its subsidiary C&F Select LLC provide mortgage loan origination services through offices located in Virginia, North Carolina, and West Virginia. C&F Finance Company provides automobile, marine and recreational vehicle loans through indirect lending programs offered in Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia from its headquarters in Henrico, Virginia.

Additional information regarding the Corporation’s products and services, as well as access to its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), are available on the Corporation’s website at http://www.cffc.com.

Use of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures. The accounting and reporting policies of the Corporation conform to GAAP in the United States and prevailing practices in the banking industry. However, certain non-GAAP measures are used by management to supplement the evaluation of the Corporation’s performance. These include adjusted net income, adjusted earnings per share, adjusted return on average equity, adjusted return on average assets, return on average tangible common equity (ROTCE), adjusted ROTCE, tangible book value per share, price to tangible book value ratio, and the following fully-taxable equivalent (FTE) measures: interest income on loans-FTE, interest income on securities-FTE, total interest income-FTE and net interest income-FTE.

Management believes that the use of these non-GAAP measures provides meaningful information about operating performance by enhancing comparability with other financial periods, other financial institutions, and between different sources of interest income. The non-GAAP measures used by management enhance comparability by excluding the effects of balances of intangible assets, including goodwill, that vary significantly between institutions, and tax benefits that are not consistent across different opportunities for investment. These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered an alternative to GAAP-basis financial statements, and other bank holding companies may define or calculate these or similar measures differently. A reconciliation of the non-GAAP financial measures used by the Corporation to evaluate and measure the Corporation’s performance to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures is presented below.

Forward-Looking Statements. This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of the Corporation’s management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, the Corporation’s management, and reflect management’s current views with respect to certain events that could have an impact on the Corporation’s future financial performance. These statements, including without limitation statements made in Mr. Cherry’s quote and statements regarding future interest rates and conditions in the Corporation’s industries and markets, relate to expectations concerning matters that are not historical fact, may express “belief,” “intention,” “expectation,” “potential” and similar expressions, and may use the words “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “intend,” “target,” “should,” “could,” or similar expressions. These statements are inherently uncertain, and there can be no assurance that the underlying assumptions will prove to be accurate. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated or implied by such statements. Forward-looking statements in this release may include, without limitation, statements regarding expected future operations and financial performance, expected trends in yields on loans, expected future recovery of investments in debt securities, future dividend payments, deposit trends, charge-offs and delinquencies, changes in cost of funds and net interest margin and items affecting net interest margin, strategic business initiatives and the anticipated effects thereof, changes in interest rates and the effects thereof on net interest income, mortgage loan originations, expectations regarding C&F Bank’s regulatory risk-based capital requirement levels, technology initiatives, our diversified business strategy, asset quality, credit quality, adequacy of allowances for credit losses and the level of future charge-offs, market interest rates and housing inventory and resulting effects in mortgage loan origination volume, sources of liquidity, adequacy of the reserve for indemnification losses related to loans sold in the secondary market, the effect of future market and industry trends, the effects of future interest rate fluctuations, cybersecurity risks, and inflation. Factors that could have a material adverse effect on the operations and future prospects of the Corporation include, but are not limited to, changes in:

interest rates, such as volatility in short-term interest rates or yields on U.S. Treasury bonds, increases in interest rates following actions by the Federal Reserve and increases or volatility in mortgage interest rates
general business conditions, as well as conditions within the financial markets
general economic conditions, including unemployment levels, inflation rates, supply chain disruptions and slowdowns in economic growth
general market conditions, including disruptions due to pandemics or significant health hazards, severe weather conditions, natural disasters, terrorist activities, financial crises, political crises, war and other military conflicts (including the ongoing military conflicts between Russia and Ukraine and in the Middle East) or other major events, or the prospect of these events
average loan yields and average costs of interest-bearing deposits
financial services industry conditions, including bank failures or concerns involving liquidity
labor market conditions, including attracting, hiring, training, motivating and retaining qualified employees
the legislative/regulatory climate, regulatory initiatives with respect to financial institutions, products and services, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the CFPB) and the regulatory and enforcement activities of the CFPB
monetary and fiscal policies of the U.S. Government, including policies of the FDIC, U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, and the effect of these policies on interest rates and business in our markets
demand for financial services in the Corporation’s market area
the value of securities held in the Corporation’s investment portfolios
the quality or composition of the loan portfolios and the value of the collateral securing those loans
the inventory level, demand and fluctuations in the pricing of used automobiles, including sales prices of repossessed vehicles
the level of automobile loan delinquencies or defaults and our ability to repossess automobiles securing delinquent automobile finance installment contracts
the level of net charge-offs on loans and the adequacy of our allowance for credit losses
the level of indemnification losses related to mortgage loans sold
demand for loan products
deposit flows
the strength of the Corporation’s counterparties
the availability of lines of credit from the FHLB and other counterparties
the soundness of other financial institutions and any indirect exposure related to the closing of other financial institutions and their impact on the broader market through other customers, suppliers and partners, or that the conditions which resulted in the liquidity concerns experienced by closed financial institutions may also adversely impact, directly or indirectly, other financial institutions and market participants with which the Corporation has commercial or deposit relationships
competition from both banks and non-banks, including competition in the non-prime automobile finance markets and marine and recreational vehicle finance markets
services provided by, or the level of the Corporation’s reliance upon third parties for key services
the commercial and residential real estate markets, including changes in property values
the demand for residential mortgages and conditions in the secondary residential mortgage loan markets
the Corporation’s technology initiatives and other strategic initiatives
the Corporation’s branch expansions and consolidations plans
cyber threats, attacks or events
C&F Bank’s product offerings
accounting principles, policies and guidelines, and elections by the Corporation thereunder

These risks and uncertainties should be considered in evaluating the forward-looking statements contained herein, and readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. For additional information on risk factors that could affect the forward-looking statements contained herein, see the Corporation’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and other reports filed with the SEC. The Corporation undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.


C&F Financial CorporationSelected Financial Information (dollars in thousands, except for per share data) (unaudited)

Financial Condition	9/30/2024		12/31/2023		9/30/2023
Interest-bearing deposits in other banks	$	32,507	$	58,777	$	53,407
Investment securities – available for sale, at fair value		409,045		462,444		460,653
Loans held for sale, at fair value		44,677		14,176		25,469
Loans, net:
Community Banking segment		1,414,576		1,257,557		1,230,694
Consumer Finance segment		454,062		444,931		446,787
Total assets		2,550,904		2,438,498		2,421,705
Deposits		2,135,891		2,066,130		2,028,429
Repurchase agreements		28,643		30,705		28,660
Other borrowings		113,683		78,834		118,388
Total equity		227,958		217,516		200,380


	For The				For The
	Quarter Ended				Nine Months Ended
Results of Operations	9/30/2024		9/30/2023		9/30/2024		9/30/2023
Interest income	$	36,131	$	31,686	$	103,151	$	91,729
Interest expense		11,442		7,224		31,476		17,964
Provision for credit losses:
Community Banking segment		700		500		1,650		1,550
Consumer Finance segment		3,000		1,550		8,100		4,250
Noninterest income:
Gains on sales of loans		1,825		1,220		4,814		4,930
Other		6,947		4,994		18,774		16,882
Noninterest expenses:
Salaries and employee benefits		13,921		12,921		41,625		40,841
Other		9,170		8,605		26,989		25,969
Income tax expense		1,250		1,323		3,010		4,309
Net income		5,420		5,777		13,889		18,658

Fully-taxable equivalent (FTE) amounts¹
Interest income on loans-FTE		33,070		28,423		94,166		81,999
Interest income on securities-FTE		2,958		3,134		9,033		9,589
Total interest income-FTE		36,417		31,936		104,010		92,424
Net interest income-FTE		24,975		24,712		72,534		74,460

________________________
¹For more information about these non-GAAP financial measures, please see “Use of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and “Reconciliation of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”


	For the Quarter Ended
	9/30/2024							9/30/2023
	Average			Income/		Yield/		Average			Income/		Yield/
Yield Analysis	Balance			Expense		Rate		Balance			Expense		Rate
Assets
Securities:
Taxable	$	318,834		$	1,828	2.29	%	$	414,036		$	2,207	2.13	%
Tax-exempt		119,253			1,130	3.79			110,182			927	3.37
Total securities		438,087			2,958	2.70			524,218			3,134	2.39
Loans:
Community banking segment		1,411,337			19,797	5.58			1,224,791			15,887	5.15
Mortgage banking segment		40,232			597	5.90			30,210			517	6.79
Consumer finance segment		481,124			12,676	10.48			472,811			12,019	10.09
Total loans		1,932,693			33,070	6.81			1,727,812			28,423	6.53
Interest-bearing deposits in other banks		38,756			389	3.99			38,507			379	3.90
Total earning assets		2,409,536			36,417	6.02			2,290,537			31,936	5.54
Allowance for credit losses		(40,879	)						(41,014	)
Total non-earning assets		158,063							151,070
Total assets	$	2,526,720						$	2,400,593

Liabilities and Equity
Interest-bearing deposits:
Interest-bearing demand deposits	$	323,019			540	0.67		$	341,707			505	0.59
Money market deposit accounts		293,789			1,104	1.49			304,309			782	1.02
Savings accounts		178,417			23	0.05			204,042			29	0.06
Certificates of deposit		801,669			8,524	4.23			571,499			4,316	3.00
Total interest-bearing deposits		1,596,894			10,191	2.54			1,421,557			5,632	1.57
Borrowings:
Repurchase agreements		27,207			117	1.72			29,440			95	1.29
Other borrowings		93,961			1,134	4.83			122,250			1,497	4.90
Total borrowings		121,168			1,251	4.13			151,690			1,592	4.20
Total interest-bearing liabilities		1,718,062			11,442	2.65			1,573,247			7,224	1.83
Noninterest-bearing demand deposits		537,796							577,382
Other liabilities		48,330							45,124
Total liabilities		2,304,188							2,195,753
Equity		222,532							204,840
Total liabilities and equity	$	2,526,720						$	2,400,593
Net interest income				$	24,975						$	24,712
Interest rate spread						3.37	%						3.71	%
Interest expense to average earning assets						1.89	%						1.25	%
Net interest margin						4.13	%						4.29	%


	For the Nine Months Ended
	9/30/2024							9/30/2023
	Average			Income/		Yield/		Average			Income/		Yield/
Yield Analysis	Balance			Expense		Rate		Balance			Expense		Rate
Assets
Securities:
Taxable	$	340,297		$	5,665	2.22	%	$	441,204		$	7,017	2.12	%
Tax-exempt		119,931			3,368	3.74			104,549			2,572	3.28
Total securities		460,228			9,033	2.62			545,753			9,589	2.34
Loans:
Community banking segment		1,357,962			55,671	5.48			1,199,560			45,375	5.06
Mortgage banking segment		30,759			1,411	6.13			26,713			1,312	6.57
Consumer finance segment		477,768			37,084	10.37			474,738			35,312	9.94
Total loans		1,866,489			94,166	6.74			1,701,011			81,999	6.45
Interest-bearing deposits in other banks		30,197			811	3.59			33,072			836	3.38
Total earning assets		2,356,914			104,010	5.89			2,279,836			92,424	5.42
Allowance for loan losses		(40,670	)						(41,192	)
Total non-earning assets		155,935							150,826
Total assets	$	2,472,179						$	2,389,470

Liabilities and Equity
Interest-bearing deposits:
Interest-bearing demand deposits	$	326,540			1,569	0.64		$	359,157			1,578	0.59
Money market deposit accounts		295,257			3,177	1.44			323,630			2,121	0.88
Savings accounts		181,880			85	0.06			213,940			91	0.06
Certificates of deposit		753,114			23,140	4.10			509,424			9,447	2.48
Total interest-bearing deposits		1,556,791			27,971	2.40			1,406,151			13,237	1.26
Borrowings:
Repurchase agreements		26,774			325	1.62			32,048			273	1.14
Other borrowings		91,024			3,180	4.66			122,984			4,454	4.83
Total borrowings		117,798			3,505	3.97			155,032			4,727	4.07
Total interest-bearing liabilities		1,674,589			31,476	2.51			1,561,183			17,964	1.54
Noninterest-bearing demand deposits		533,113							582,573
Other liabilities		45,835							42,108
Total liabilities		2,253,537							2,185,864
Equity		218,642							203,606
Total liabilities and equity	$	2,472,179						$	2,389,470
Net interest income				$	72,534						$	74,460
Interest rate spread						3.38	%						3.88	%
Interest expense to average earning assets						1.78	%						1.05	%
Net interest margin						4.11	%						4.37	%


	9/30/2024
Funding Sources	Capacity		Outstanding		Available
Unsecured federal funds agreements	$	75,000	$	—	$	75,000
Borrowings from FHLB		254,445		60,000		194,445
Borrowings from Federal Reserve Bank		314,385		—		314,385
Total	$	643,830	$	60,000	$	583,830


Asset Quality	9/30/2024			12/31/2023
Community Banking
Total loans	$	1,432,109		$	1,273,629
Nonaccrual loans	$	628		$	406

Allowance for credit losses (ACL)	$	17,533		$	16,072
Nonaccrual loans to total loans		0.04	%		0.03	%
ACL to total loans		1.22	%		1.26	%
ACL to nonaccrual loans		2,791.88	%		3,958.62	%
Annualized year-to-date net charge-offs to average loans		0.01	%		0.01	%

Consumer Finance
Total loans	$	477,300		$	468,510
Nonaccrual loans	$	1,101		$	892
Repossessed assets	$	522		$	646
ACL	$	23,238		$	23,579
Nonaccrual loans to total loans		0.23	%		0.19	%
ACL to total loans		4.87	%		5.03	%
ACL to nonaccrual loans		2,110.63	%		2,643.39	%
Annualized year-to-date net charge-offs to average loans		2.36	%		1.99	%


	For The								For The
	Quarter Ended								Nine Months Ended
Other Performance Data	9/30/2024				9/30/2023				9/30/2024				9/30/2023
Net Income (Loss):
Community Banking	$	5,337			$	5,685			$	13,920			$	17,742
Mortgage Banking		351				(5	)			1,021				568
Consumer Finance		311				682				1,142				2,261
Other¹		(579	)			(585	)			(2,194	)			(1,913	)
Total	$	5,420			$	5,777			$	13,889			$	18,658

Net income attributable to C&F Financial Corporation	$	5,389			$	5,789			$	13,797			$	18,536

Earnings per share – basic and diluted	$	1.65			$	1.71			$	4.15			$	5.41
Weighted average shares outstanding – basic and diluted		3,258,420				3,391,624				3,323,942				3,426,845

Annualized return on average assets		0.86		%		0.96		%		0.75		%		1.04		%
Annualized return on average equity		9.74		%		11.28		%		8.47		%		12.22		%
Annualized return on average tangible common equity²		11.16		%		13.19		%		9.74		%		14.18		%
Dividends declared per share	$	0.44			$	0.44			$	1.32			$	1.32

Mortgage loan originations – Mortgage Banking	$	156,968			$	129,658			$	397,324			$	400,559
Mortgage loans sold – Mortgage Banking		146,143				140,214				367,449				389,465

________________________
¹ Includes results of the holding company that are not allocated to the business segments and elimination of inter-segment activity.
² For more information about these non-GAAP financial measures, please see “Use of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and “Reconciliation of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”


Market Ratios	9/30/2024		12/31/2023
Market value per share	$	58.35	$	68.19
Book value per share	$	70.29	$	64.28
Price to book value ratio		0.83		1.06
Tangible book value per share¹	$	62.13	$	56.40
Price to tangible book value ratio¹		0.94		1.21
Price to earnings ratio (ttm)		10.30		9.87

________________________
¹ For more information about these non-GAAP financial measures, please see “Use of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures” and “Reconciliation of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”



							Minimum Capital
Capital Ratios	9/30/2024			12/31/2023			Requirements³
C&F Financial Corporation¹
Total risk-based capital ratio		13.8	%		14.8	%		8.0	%
Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio		11.6	%		12.6	%		6.0	%
Common equity tier 1 capital ratio		10.5	%		11.3	%		4.5	%
Tier 1 leverage ratio		9.8	%		10.1	%		4.0	%

C&F Bank²
Total risk-based capital ratio		13.4	%		14.1	%		8.0	%
Tier 1 risk-based capital ratio		12.1	%		12.9	%		6.0	%
Common equity tier 1 capital ratio		12.1	%		12.9	%		4.5	%
Tier 1 leverage ratio		10.1	%		10.3	%		4.0	%

________________________
¹ The Corporation, a small bank holding company under applicable regulations and guidance, is not subject to the minimum regulatory capital regulations for bank holding companies. The regulatory requirements that apply to bank holding companies that are subject to regulatory capital requirements are presented above, along with the Corporation’s capital ratios as determined under those regulations.
² All ratios at September 30, 2024 are estimates and subject to change pending regulatory filings. All ratios at December 31, 2023 are presented as filed.
³ The ratios presented for minimum capital requirements are those to be considered adequately capitalized.


	For The Quarter Ended								For The Nine Months Ended
	9/30/2024				9/30/2023				9/30/2024				9/30/2023
Reconciliation of Certain Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Return on Average Tangible Common Equity
Average total equity, as reported	$	222,532			$	204,840			$	218,642			$	203,606
Average goodwill		(25,191	)			(25,191	)			(25,191	)			(25,191	)
Average other intangible assets		(1,242	)			(1,507	)			(1,303	)			(1,572	)
Average noncontrolling interest		(573	)			(484	)			(670	)			(668	)
Average tangible common equity	$	195,526			$	177,658			$	191,478			$	176,175

Net income	$	5,420			$	5,777			$	13,889			$	18,658
Amortization of intangibles		65				69				195				205
Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest		(31	)			12				(92	)			(122	)
Net tangible income attributable to C&F Financial Corporation	$	5,454			$	5,858			$	13,992			$	18,741

Annualized return on average equity, as reported		9.74		%		11.28		%		8.47		%		12.22		%
Annualized return on average tangible common equity		11.16		%		13.19		%		9.74		%		14.18		%


	For The Quarter Ended				For The Nine Months Ended
	9/30/2024		9/30/2023		9/30/2024		9/30/2023
Fully Taxable Equivalent Net Interest Income¹
Interest income on loans	$	33,021	$	28,369	$	94,014	$	81,845
FTE adjustment		49		54		152		154
FTE interest income on loans	$	33,070	$	28,423	$	94,166	$	81,999

Interest income on securities	$	2,721	$	2,938	$	8,326	$	9,048
FTE adjustment		237		196		707		541
FTE interest income on securities	$	2,958	$	3,134	$	9,033	$	9,589

Total interest income	$	36,131	$	31,686	$	103,151	$	91,729
FTE adjustment		286		250		859		695
FTE interest income	$	36,417	$	31,936	$	104,010	$	92,424

Net interest income	$	24,689	$	24,462	$	71,675	$	73,765
FTE adjustment		286		250		859		695
FTE net interest income	$	24,975	$	24,712	$	72,534	$	74,460

____________________
¹ Assuming a tax rate of 21%.


	9/30/2024			12/31/2023
Tangible Book Value Per Share
Equity attributable to C&F Financial Corporation	$	227,340		$	216,878
Goodwill		(25,191	)		(25,191	)
Other intangible assets		(1,211	)		(1,407	)
Tangible equity attributable to C&F Financial Corporation	$	200,938		$	190,280

Shares outstanding		3,234,363			3,374,098

Book value per share	$	70.29		$	64.28
Tangible book value per share	$	62.13		$	56.40


Contact:	Jason Long, CFO and Secretary
	(804) 843-2360

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI Canada: Accountability for Ottawa’s carbon tax double standard
Source: Government of Canada regional news

[embedded content]

Alberta’s government is standing up against the federal government’s carbon tax exemption for heating oil to protect Albertans from the double standard Ottawa has created with the carbon tax, which means Albertans continue to pay carbon taxes to stay warm in winter.

Last fall, after years of insisting that the carbon tax is applied equally across Canada, the federal government exempted the carbon tax for heating oils, which are used predominantly in Atlantic Canada and Quebec. Over the last year, the federal government has refused multiple requests to grant a similar carve-out on other heating methods from Alberta and others across the country who are also facing rising costs of living.

Alberta’s government will now take this fight to the courts. Alberta filed an application seeking judicial review of the exemption with the Federal Court on Oct. 29, asking the court to declare that the exemption is both unconstitutional and unlawful. The application argues that Ottawa’s carbon tax exemption for heating oil is unconstitutional and inconsistent with the Government of Canada’s stated purpose for enacting the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act.

“Last year, Ottawa decided Canadians in the East deserved a three-year break from paying the carbon tax on their home heating costs. While we’re happy for these Canadians, Alberta, Saskatchewan and other provinces who heat their homes with natural gas have been deliberately excluded from these savings. Albertans simply cannot stand by for another winter while the federal government picks and chooses who their carbon tax applies to. Since they won’t play fair, we’re going to take the federal government back to court.”

Danielle Smith, Premier

While the Supreme Court of Canada previously found the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act was constitutional, it found that Canada’s jurisdiction to regulate greenhouse gas emissions was limited to the ability to create minimum national standards for carbon pricing for the purpose of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Alberta strongly opposes the federal carbon tax exemption on heating oil, as the federal government is no longer creating minimum national standards that apply evenly across the country, and is instead creating a regime that favours one region and fuel type over others.

“This exemption is not only unfair to the vast majority of Canadians, but it is also unlawful as the federal government does not have the authority to make special exemptions for certain parts of the country under the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act. The federal government isn’t even following its own laws now. Someone needs to hold them accountable, and Alberta is stepping up to do just that.”

Mickey Amery, Minister of Justice and Attorney General

The federal carbon tax adds to the rising cost of living for all Canadians. By 2030, it will cost Canadians $25 billion every year, in addition to lowering the gross domestic product (GDP) by $9 billion. In addition, the Bank of Canada has estimated that the federal carbon tax increases inflation by 0.15 per cent year over year.

Quick facts
- Since Apr. 1, 2024, Albertans have been paying around 35 cents in federal taxes on every litre of fuel – along with the carbon tax, that also includes the federal excise tax and the GST.
- The following percentage of households use home heating oil by province:
  - Forty per cent in Prince Edward Island
  - Thirty-two per cent in Nova Scotia
  - Eighteen per cent in Newfoundland and Labrador
  - Seven per cent in New Brunswick
  - Four per cent in Quebec
  - Two per cent in Ontario
  - One per cent in British Columbia
  - Less than one per cent in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba
Related news
- Readout: Premier meets with Prime Minister (March 13, 2024)
- Rebranding the carbon tax won’t fix a failure: Statement (February 14, 2024)
Multimedia
- Watch the news conference
MIL OSI Canada News –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Governor Polis, Federal Delegation Celebrates $66.4 Million from U.S. Department of Transportation to Improve Safety and Expand Colorado Rail

Source: US State of Colorado

Total Funding of $94.3 million will help improve safety of freight operations today in Colorado by adding Positive Train Control and crossing improvements to the Front Range Rail Corridor preparing Colorado for fast, convenient, and safe passenger rail service

WESTMINSTER – Today, Governor Polis, Senator Michael Bennet, Congressman Joe Neguse, Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen, Colorado Department of Transportation Executive Director Lew, Longmont Mayor Joan Peck, Erik Davidson, RTD Board Chair and local officials celebrated funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation, to improve rail transportation and safety infrastructure in Colorado. Colorado received $66.4M in grant funding from the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), with the state matching almost $28 million from the State’s IIJA match fund to improve safety on the BNSF line north of Denver and helping to proactively prepare the state for fast, convenient, and safe passenger rail service.

“Today’s grant will make freight rail traffic in some of our busiest growing communities safer quickly while providing critical building blocks for Passenger Rail. This major funding will help achieve important priorities like complying with longstanding federal standards and improving the safety of rail crossings, which can be the sites of dangerous incidents. With more than $66 million in federal support from the Biden-Harris administration, the future of Colorado’s rail network is a clear priority for the federal government, as it should be. We thank Senators Hickenlooper and Bennet, Congressman Neguse and Congresswoman Pettersen, the BNSF Railway, and our communities for their support of this important project,” said Governor Jared Polis.

“A unified statewide effort with the Polis Administration has made this important milestone possible. We appreciate the unwavering support of our Congressional delegation, along with that of local partners in communities across the state. The Biden-Harris Administration has consistently recognized the state’s seriousness about freight safety and passenger rail, recognizing the Front Range Passenger Rail corridor for the National Corridor ID program, and now by providing this grant to improve the safety of freight operations while also opening doors for future passenger rail. We appreciate their efforts and the time that their leadership has consistently dedicated to our efforts,” said CDOT Executive Director Shoshana Lew.

“This is a major step forward for Colorado and the future of safe freight and passenger rail in our state. We are thankful to our federal partners, BNSF Railway, members of Congress and local leaders for their relentless efforts to secure this major funding from the Biden-Harris Administration,” said John Putnam, Senior Advisor, Colorado Department of Transportation.

This grant to improve the BNSF Front Range Subdivision is one of four Colorado projects to receive CRISI awards announced today. Colorado State University – Pueblo was awarded almost $12 million to enhance the ability to test hydrogen and compressed natural gas advanced technology trains at the FRA Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo. San Luis Central Railway and Omnitrax were awarded funds to replace ties to increase safety and reduce maintenance costs for short lines in rural Colorado.

“The Colorado Department of Transportation’s Modernizing Rail on the Front Range project will improve existing rail operations along the Front Range by delivering improvements to several highway grade crossings, constructing a new passing siding, and deploying the safety overlay of positive train control across a portion of the corridor,” said Jim Tylick, Assistant Vice President Passenger Operations at BNSF. “We appreciate the early collaboration with the Front Range Passenger Rail District, CDOT, and the FRA as intercity passenger rail is considered along the Front Range in Colorado. We know the projects identified in this grant will benefit the rail corridor today while also providing benefit in the future as passenger rail is explored.”

In April, Governor Polis joined U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to visit the Floyd Hill Project, a seven-mile stretch of I-70 from exit 248 northwest of Evergreen to exit 241 in eastern Idaho Springs that works to eliminate a bottleneck on one of the most congested stretches of the I-70 Mountain Corridor. This project was announced in October of 2022, and made possible by state and federal investments including a $100 million grant from the Biden administration.

In December 2023, Front Range Passenger Rail was included in the Federal Rail Administration’s Corridor Identification and Development program, which brought additional federal support for Colorado ahead of today’s grant award. Since the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Colorado has won more than $400 million in competitive grant awards to support key infrastructure projects across the state.

###

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Brothers From New York Arrested for Assaulting Law Enforcement with a Weapon and Other Charges During January 6 Capitol Breach

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime News

  WASHINGTON — Two brothers from New York were arrested today for allegedly assaulting law enforcement with a weapon and other charges related to their alleged conduct during the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol. Their alleged actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the 2020 presidential election.

  Reynold Robert Voisine, 47, of Nicholville, New York, and Roger Alyre Voisine, Jr., 48, of Canton, New York, are each charged in a criminal complaint filed in the District of Columbia with felony offenses of civil disorder; assaulting, resisting, or impeding certain officers with a deadly or dangerous weapon; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon; and engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon.

  In addition to the felonies, the two brothers are also charged with misdemeanor offenses of disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, impeding passage through the Capitol grounds or buildings, and act of physical violence in the Capitol grounds or buildings.

  The FBI arrested the two men today in Plattsburgh, New York, and they will make their initial appearance in the Northern District of New York.

  According to court documents, on Jan. 6, 2021, the Voisine brothers, Roger and Reynold, attended former President Trump’s rally in Washington, D.C., before marching toward the Capitol building and eventually arriving on the West Front of the Capitol grounds. Roger Voisine, distinguishable by a GoPro mounted on a stick, a tripod tucked in his jacket, and a camouflage-patterned backpack, donned a paintball mask as he approached the Lower West Plaza. Reynold Voisine, also present in the area, was seen wearing a paintball mask on his head during the riot.

  By the afternoon, the situation on Capitol grounds had escalated, and it is alleged that both brothers played active roles in the day’s violence. At approximately 3:20 p.m., Reynold Voisine was seen among the crowd as rioters viciously assaulted an officer, dragging the officer from the Lower West Terrace Tunnel and into a mob of rioters. As the attacks continued throughout the day, Reynold remained in the vicinity, using a handheld radio to communicate while the mob assaulted officers inside the Tunnel. The Tunnel was the site of some of the most violent attacks against law enforcement that day.

  By 4:25 p.m., Reynold Voisine made his way to the mouth of the Tunnel, where rioters were launching a variety of weapons at the police, including a crutch, a hockey stick, a baton, and multiple poles. It is alleged that Reynold participated in these attacks against officers, first by throwing a crutch at the officers and then by hurling a blue pole that struck police officers. After throwing the pole, he threw the crutch again, which ricocheted off another rioter and hit the officers. Later, Reynold used a stolen riot shield to ram into the police line.

  Around the same time, it is alleged that Roger Voisine was also engaged in direct assaults on police. Court documents say that Roger threw a length of pipe at the officers, pushed into their shields alongside other rioters, and attempted to drag one officer into the crowd. It is further alleged that Roger continued his violent actions by throwing a black rod at the police, hitting one officer’s shield, and later throwing three shoes at various officers. At one point, Roger picked up a wooden table leg with protruding nails, swung it twice at officers, and then aggressively threw it at another officer.

  In addition to these physical assaults, Roger allegedly used a spotlight to shine directly into the eyes of police officers, further hindering their ability to defend themselves against the mob. Throughout the chaos, Roger remained at the front lines of the mob, holding his GoPro in a manner that suggested he was documenting the event.

  This case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Department of Justice National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section. Valuable assistance was provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York.

  This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Albany and Washington Field Offices. Valuable assistance was provided by the Tampa FBI, U.S. Capitol Police, and the Metropolitan Police Department.

  In the 45 months since Jan. 6, 2021, more than 1,532 individuals have been charged in nearly all 50 states for crimes related to the breach of the U.S. Capitol, including more than 571 individuals charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, a felony. The investigation remains ongoing.

  Anyone with tips can call 1-800-CALL-FBI (800-225-5324) or visit tips.fbi.gov.

A complaint is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI Security: Peoria Man Sentenced to More Than 11 Years in Prison for Multi-Year Fraud Scheme

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime News

PEORIA, Ill. – A Peoria, Illinois, man, Chad Duane Campen, 35, was sentenced on October 24, 2024, to 135 months (11.3 years) following his convictions for bank fraud (one count), wire fraud (three counts), illegal monetary transaction (one count), bankruptcy fraud (one count), and false statements under oath (one count).

At the sentencing hearing before U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid, the government presented evidence that Campen successfully swindled dozens of individuals and financial institutions between 2013 and 2021. During the course of the sentencing, the court heard from several of Campen’s victims who described themselves as “survivors” of Campen’s crimes. Campen pretended to be engaged in various business ventures ranging from farming to the construction of a solar farm. Via this elaborate scheme, Campen obtained loans from multiple banks using each fraudulent loan to not only enrich himself but also to pay off his previous victim. By the time his scheme collapsed, the government showed that Campen had obtained more than $17 million from these banks, of which almost $5 million was still outstanding.

Campen, however, did not limit himself to stealing from banks, he also defrauded individuals. Witnesses, victim letters, and other evidence demonstrated how Campen would pretend to befriend people over the course of years and be welcomed into their families and homes only to steal from them. Campen caused a family farm to have its equipment repossessed after he claimed their equipment as his to secure one of his fraudulent loans. In another instance, Campen offered to assist an elderly man, gained access to his home, and stole more than $50,000 from him. And Campen convinced a family to invest in a purported farming opportunity. The family took out a loan using their own farm as collateral. When Campen’s fraud scheme collapsed, the family not only lost the money they had given Campen, but their farm—which had been in their family for more than 100 years—had to be sold.

Another victim of Campen’s fraud was the Village of Bartonville, Illinois. Campen with co-conspirator Richard Weiss, convinced the Village to extend loans and additional funds to tear down the old Bowen Building in Bartonville. Campen lied to the Village and made promises that he could recoup the Village’s loan and investments through the sale of materials from the building. Campen secured these funds by falsely claiming that he already had buyers lined up for the stone for the building. As a result of Campen’s fraud, the Village lost the equivalent of half of all its property tax revenue for an entire year.

Campen’s co-conspirator in certain acts connected with that fraud, the owner of the Bowen building, Richard Weiss, 62, of Pekin, Illinois, was charged in a separate case in February 2024 with bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, related to his and Campen’s receipt of funds from the Village. He pleaded guilty to both counts in February and was sentenced the same day as Campen to 15 months of imprisonment. Weiss’s sentence took into account his unique personal characteristics and significantly smaller role in the offense. In imposing the sentence, Judge Shadid noted that Weiss himself was a victim of Campen’s fraud.

As Campen’s scheme began to unravel, he tried to use the mechanisms of bankruptcy court to delay his creditors and prevent discovery of his fraud. Campen committed additional fraud in the bankruptcy court by filing counterfeit documents and making false statements in his pleadings and under oath. Campen’s fraud was quickly detected by the professionals with the Office of the United States Trustee for Region 10, who added to the growing investigation of Campen by providing a criminal referral to the United States Attorney’s Office.

A seventeen-count indictment was filed January 19, 2022, and Campen was arrested and detained five days later. Although he has filed several motions and appeals requesting bond, he has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest. Campen entered into a written plea agreement in March 2024, pleading guilty to seven of the seventeen counts.

The statutory penalties for the charges are:

Charge	Imprisonment Time	Supervised Release
Bank Fraud (Ct. 5)	Not more than 30 years	5 years
Wire Fraud (Cts. 6, 12, 13)	Not more than 20 years	3 years
Illegal Monetary Transaction (Ct. 14)	Not more than 10 years	3 years
Bankruptcy Fraud (Ct. 16)	Not more than 5 years	3 years
False Statements Under Oath (Ct. 17)	Not more than 5 years	3 years

During his term of supervised release, Campen is to refrain from engaging in any occupation, business or profession related to the banking industry, including, but not limited to, employment by a bank or any other financial institution.

“The defendant’s repeated acts of fraud caused great damage not only to financial institutions, but also to members of our community, including but not limited to the Village of Bartonville and its taxpayers,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Harris. “Our office is committed to protecting individuals and banks from predatory acts like those of the defendant and will vigorously pursue such cases. We are grateful to our federal law enforcement partners, the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as well as the Office of the United States Trustee for Region 10.”

“Today’s sentence will go a long way in protecting the integrity of the bankruptcy system,” said Nancy J. Gargula, United States Trustee for Indiana and the Central and Southern Districts of Illinois (Region 10). “We are grateful to U.S. Attorney Harris and our law enforcement partners for their commitment to protect the interests of creditors and the public.”

“Driven by an unquenchable thirst for ill-gotten gains, Chad Campen embarked on an eight-year fraud spree which led to devastating results for those who put their trust in him,” said FBI Springfield Special Agent in Charge Christopher Johnson. “This sentence sends a clear message about the consequences of greed and demonstrates the resolve of the FBI and our law enforcement partners to follow the money trail and ensure justice.”

“Over several years, Chad Campen defrauded dozens of victims, creating severe economic distress for families and straining resources for institutions that fell victim to his fraud scheme,” said Marta C. Grijalva, Assistant Special Agent in Charge, IRS Criminal Investigation, Chicago Field Office. “This sentencing reflects the consequences of actions that caused significant financial pain to not only institutions and communities, but also individual families. That is why IRS Criminal Investigation and its fellow law enforcement partners remain committed to safeguarding the financial security of our communities and holding accountable those who exploit the system for personal gain.”

The case investigation was conducted by the IRS Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Field Office. The bankruptcy fraud charge was referred for criminal prosecution by the Office of the United States Trustee for Region 10, Nancy J. Gargula. The U.S. Trustee Program is the component of the Justice Department that protects the integrity of the bankruptcy system by overseeing case administration and litigating to enforce the bankruptcy laws. Region 10 is headquartered in Indianapolis, with additional offices in South Bend, Indiana, and Peoria, Illinois. Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas F. McMeyer represented the government in the prosecution.

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: Anthem Citizen Real Estate Development Trust Raises C$82 Million Maximum Size Initial Public Offering and Acquires Interest in Citizen Project

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

/NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES/

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Anthem Citizen Real Estate Development Trust (the “REDT“) announced today that it has raised its maximum offering size of C$82 million and completed its initial public offering (the “Offering”). Pursuant to the Offering, the REDT issued C$82,000,000 of trust units, consisting of 5,658,870 Class A Units and 2,541,130 Class F Units (collectively, the “Units”) at a price of C$10.00 per Class A Unit and Class F Unit.

The REDT is a newly-created, unincorporated investment trust and was established for the primary purpose of indirectly owning an interest in a mixed-use, transit-oriented development project containing 372 condominium units, 200 market rental units, 73 non-market, affordable rental units, 176 hotel suites and 4,881 square feet of retail space located in the Metrotown neighbourhood in Burnaby, British Columbia (the “Project”). The Project is located directly across the Kingsway Boulevard from the Metropolis at Metrotown shopping centre and within close proximity to the Metrotown SkyTrain station.

Immediately following closing of the Offering, the REDT indirectly acquired an approximate 72.2% interest in the Project. The REDT is managed by Anthem Properties Group Ltd. (the “Manager”). The Manager has an indirect interest in the Project through its subsidiary, Anthem Metro King Developments GP Ltd.

The Units were offered to the public by CIBC World Markets Inc., the sole agent for the Offering.

The securities described herein have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”), and may not be offered or sold within the United States unless registered under the 1933 Act and applicable state securities laws or pursuant to exemptions from the registration requirements of the 1933 Act and applicable state securities laws.

Anthem Citizen Real Estate Development Trust

Anthem Citizen Real Estate Development Trust was formed for the primary purpose of indirectly owning an interest in the development of a mixed-used, transit-oriented development project in Burnaby, British Columbia expected to develop and operate a building containing 372 condominium units, 200 market rental units, 73 non-market, affordable rental units, 176 hotel suites and 4,881 square feet of retail space.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains statements that include forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. These forward-looking statements reflect the current expectations of the REDT regarding future events, including statements concerning the development of the Project and creating value for unitholders. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terms such as “may”, “might”, “will”, “could”, “should”, “would”, “occur”, “expect”, “plan”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “intend”, “seek”, “aim”, “estimate”, “target”, “project”, “predict”, “forecast”, “potential”, “continue”, “likely”, “schedule”, or the negative thereof or other similar expressions concerning matters that are not historical facts.

Material factors and assumptions used by management of the REDT to develop the forward-looking information include, but are not limited to, the REDT’s current expectations about: real property ownership and revenues; construction and development risk; obtaining necessary building permits for the Project; the realization of property value appreciation and timing thereof; the inventory of mixed-use properties; competition from developers of mixed-use properties; the Burnaby, British Columbia real estate market; government legal and regulatory changes; property encumbrances relating to the Project; significant fixed expenditures and fees in connection with the maintenance, operation and administration of the Project; closing and other transaction costs in connection with the acquisition and disposition of the Project; the availability of financing and current interest rates; revenue shortfalls; assumptions about rental growth rates, hotel occupancy and average daily rates in the Canadian mixed-use real estate market; demographic trends; fluctuations in interest rates; litigation risks; the relative illiquidity of real property investments; the Canadian economic environment; the geographic concentration of the REDT’s business; natural disasters and severe weather; demand levels for mixed-use properties in the metro Vancouver area and local economic conditions; negative geopolitical events; public health crises; the capital structure of the REDT; distributions; capital depletion; potential conflicts of interest; reliance on the good faith and ability of the Project’s project manager to manage and operate the Project; reliance on property management companies; the limited operating history of the REDT; the limited experience of management of the REDT with respect to managing a reporting issuer; the limited liquidity of the Class A Units and Class F Units; and tax laws. While management of the REDT considers these assumptions to be reasonable based on currently available information, they may prove to be incorrect.

Although management believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable and represent the REDT’s internal projections, expectations and beliefs at this time, such statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may be general or specific and which give rise to the possibility that expectations, forecasts, predictions, projections or conclusions will not prove to be accurate, that assumptions may not be correct and that objectives, strategic goals and priorities may not be achieved. A variety of factors, many of which are beyond the REDT’s control, could cause actual results in future periods to differ materially from current expectations of estimated or anticipated events or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include the risks identified in the REDT’s final prospectus, including under the heading “Risk Factors” therein. Readers are cautioned against placing undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Except as required by applicable Canadian securities laws, the REDT undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Additional information regarding Anthem Citizen Real Estate Development Trust is available at www.citizenbyanthemdevtrust.com and on www.sedarplus.com.

About Anthem Properties

Anthem is a real estate development, investment and management company that strives, solves and evolves to create better spaces and stronger communities, with more than 385 residential, commercial, and retail projects. Founded in 1991, Anthem is a team of 800 people, with a diverse portfolio consisting of 41,700 homes, 11.5 million square feet of retail, industrial and office space and has developed more than 60 communities across 9,800 acres of land across in Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and California. We are Growing Places.

Contact:

Elisha McCallum
Vice President, Communications
Phone: 604.488.3612 Mobile: 778.668.0185
Email: emccallum@anthemproperties.com

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Bennet, Hickenlooper, Bipartisan Colleagues Push for More Temporary Work Visas to Help Small Businesses in Colorado

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Colorado Michael Bennet
Denver — Colorado U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper joined U.S. Senators Angus King (I-Maine) and Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), alongside 37 of their bipartisan colleagues, to urge the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to release the maximum allowable number of additional temporary, non-agricultural (H-2B) visas for Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 to support local economies and fill needed roles for American small businesses.
“Many employers turn to the H-2B program to meet their workforce needs to not only sustain their businesses, but also support their American workers,” wrote Bennet, Hickenlooper, and the senators. “The H-2B program places requirements on employers to recruit U.S. workers, who are intentionally prioritized by the program and also receive demonstrated, positive impacts from their seasonal colleagues. In fact, a 2020 Government Accountability Office report concluded that ‘counties with H-2B employers generally had lower unemployment rates and higher average weekly wages than counties that do not have any H-2B employers.”
In Colorado, more than 8,400 temporary H-2B visas were requested by over 250 employers in Fiscal Year 2021 – reflecting a strong demand for H-2B workers in the state. In the letter, the senators highlight recent data from DOL’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Surveys illustrating the workforce struggles of seasonal businesses nationwide. The rate of job openings have increased annually for top five H-2B occupations. Landscaping, hospitality, and the ski industry – all key to Colorado’s economy – are among the industries with the highest share of certified H-2B workers.
“As you know, the FY 2025 H-2B first half fiscal year cap was met on September 18, 2024—roughly three weeks earlier than the cap was met in FY 2024. The result is that seasonal employers whose peak seasons are in late fall and winter are capped out before their period of seasonal need begins. Absent cap relief, these employers will be unable to receive temporary, U.S. government-vetted guest workers,” continued the senators.
In addition to Bennet, Hickenlooper, King, and Rounds, U.S. Senators John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Chris Coons (D-Del.), John Cornyn (R-Teas.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), John Fetterman (D-Penn.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), George Helmy (D-N.J.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Joe Manchin (I-W.V.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), John Thune (R-S.D.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.) also signed the letter.
Bennet and Hickenlooper have previously pushed DHS and DOL to increase the availability of H-2B visas and worked to ensure that the visa program is efficient and effective. In 2022, they welcomed an additional 35,000 H-2B temporary nonagricultural worker visas.
The text of the letter is available HERE and below.
Dear Secretaries Mayorkas and Su:
We write on behalf of seasonal businesses in our states—including employers of housekeepers in tourist destinations, landscapers with defined seasons, seafood processors with short harvesting windows, and fairs and carnivals—who are struggling to hire a sufficient number of temporary, seasonal laborers to support their operations.
In light of these labor shortages, we strongly urge the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in consultation with the Department of Labor (DOL), to utilize the authority provided by Congress in the FY2025 Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act to release the maximum allowable number of additional H-2B visas for Fiscal Year 2025, as you did for Fiscal Year 2024. These visas will help employers handle their labor challenges, and provide additional certainty regarding their workforce planning decisions in the coming months. We urge you to promptly publish a temporary rule implementing the release of these supplemental visas.
Many employers turn to the H-2B program to meet their workforce needs to not only sustain their businesses, but also support their American workers. The H-2B program places requirements on employers to recruit U.S. workers, who are intentionally prioritized by the program and also receive demonstrated, positive impacts from their seasonal colleagues. In fact, a 2020 Government Accountability Office report concluded that “counties with H-2B employers generally had lower unemployment rates and higher average weekly wages than counties that do not have any H-2B employers.”
The most current employment data illustrates the workforce struggles of seasonal businesses nationwide. The Department of Labor’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Surveys (JOLTS) show the rate of job openings have increased year over year for the industries that represent the top five H-2B occupations. As you know, the FY 2025 H-2B first half fiscal year cap was met on September 18, 2024—roughly three weeks earlier than the cap was met in FY 2024. The result is that seasonal employers whose peak seasons are in late fall and winter are capped out before their period of seasonal need begins. Absent cap relief, these employers will be unable to receive temporary, U.S. government-vetted guest workers.
Congress has acknowledged this seasonal labor shortage by providing DHS with the authority to lift the H-2B visa cap for each of the past eight fiscal years. Given the growing demand for H-2B workers as employers continue to struggle with staffing shortages, we encourage you to promptly promulgate a temporary final rule for FY 2025 along the same lines as the FY 2024 rule.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Warner and Kaine Announce Funding to Expand Rail Service Across Virginia
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Virginia Tim Kaine

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) announced $13,317,000 in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation to expand and secure rail service across Virginia. This funding was made possible by the bipartisan infrastructure law, landmark legislation championed by both senators.

“Thanks to the bipartisan infrastructure law, we’re unlocking investments in rail across the Commonwealth, which create jobs, cut costs, and give you the freedom to get where you need to go,” said the senators. “These investments will build on our work expanding funding for Amtrak and addressing rail bottlenecks across the country, creating a future where passenger rail is more affordable, reliable, and accessible for all Virginians, including folks in communities like Bedford.”

The funding is broken down as follows:
- $6,000,000 for the Buckingham Branch Railroad Company to replace old rail tracks and ties across central Virginia. The project will make freight rail service more resilient, efficient, and secure and reduce the risk of derailments by resurfacing approximately 83 miles of track and seven grade crossings.
- $5,836,000 for the Virginia Passenger Rail Authority to improve the Richmond Staples Mill Amtrak Station by upgrading two platforms, adding one platform canopy, and promoting accessibility. This will make the station ADA compliant and will create a better and safer passenger experience. It will also support Staples Mill’s addition of 10 Amtrak trains per day, rapidly scaling up the number of passenger rail options available to Richmonders.
- $1,481,000 for the Town of Bedford to develop plans for a new intercity passenger rail station. This funding will allow for initial engineering and environmental work on the proposed station, which could connect Bedford to passenger rail service for the first time in several decades.
The funding is made possible by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program, which is supported by several recent government spending bills and the bipartisan infrastructure law, all of which were strongly supported by the senators.

Warner and Kaine have consistently supported and led efforts to expand passenger rail across the Commonwealth. Sens. Warner and Kaine advocated directly for the funding for Staples Mill Station and Bedford. In 2021, Warner and Kaine wrote and passed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which has brought over $8.4 billion in federal funding to Virginia for hundreds of projects. In December 2023, Sens. Warner and Kaine announced $500,000, also courtesy of the infrastructure law, to explore the possibility of creating an infill stop in Bedford. Last week, the senators broke ground on the Long Bridge Project, a major effort to invest in rail in Virginia by easing one of the worst rail bottlenecks in America while creating 36,000 jobs.
MIL OSI USA News –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Protecting reproductive freedom by preventing abuse of charitable status
Source: Government of Canada News

Concerns have been raised that some registered charities that offer reproductive health services to women, including pregnancy options counselling, may be spreading misinformation by presenting themselves as neutral, full-service pregnancy support service organizations when they are in fact anti-choice organizations that push women away from accessing the reproductive care of their choice.
October 29, 2024

Registered charities are provided federal, as well as provincial or territorial, supports under the tax system that includes an exemption from income tax and the ability to issue official donation receipts for any gifts that they receive. In return, all registered charities are expected to follow the rules and principles set out in the Income Tax Act to ensure that they are operating for charitable purposes and providing activities for the benefit of the public.

Concerns have been raised that some registered charities that offer reproductive health services to women, including pregnancy options counselling, may be spreading misinformation by presenting themselves as neutral, full-service pregnancy support service organizations when they are in fact anti-choice organizations that push women away from accessing the reproductive care of their choice.

By concealing the true nature of their services, these anti-choice organizations are restricting the rights of vulnerable pregnant women to choose the reproductive care appropriate to them and their circumstances.

To address these concerns, the federal government intends to introduce legislation to amend the Income Tax Act and Income Tax Regulations to require registered charities that provide services, advice, or information in respect of the prevention, preservation, or termination of pregnancy to disclose where they do not provide specific services, including abortions or birth control. Disclosure of such information would be required in any form of public communication that advertises these services. This legislation would also require that reproductive health charities explicitly disclose this information on their annual information return, which is publicly available on the website of the Canada Revenue Agency.

In specific terms, if adopted by Parliament, the legislation would require that any registered charity whose purpose or main activity is to provide reproductive health services would be required to disclose where applicable:
- If it does not provide abortion services, it must disclose that it does not provide abortion services;
- If it does not provide abortion services and it does not provide information on abortion services, it must further disclose that it does not provide information on how to obtain such services;
- If it does not provide abortion services and it does not provide the contact information for a provider of such services, it must further disclose that it does not provide the contact information for a provider of such services;
- If it does not provide birth control services or does not provide a range of birth control services, it must disclose whichever case applies;
- If it does not provide birth control services or does not provide a range of birth control services, it must further disclose if it does not provide information on how to obtain a range of birth control services; and,
- If it does not provide birth control services or does not provide a range of birth control services, it must further disclose if it does not provide the contact information for a provider of a range of birth control services or providers that collectively provide such a range of services.
Birth control services in this context would mean services relating to the provision or prescription of medications, devices or medical procedures that aid in the prevention of conception and are recognized in Canada.

Under this legislation, a registered charity that provides reproductive health services would need to disclose if, at a minimum, it does not provide the contact information for an abortion services provider and a birth control service provider.

For the purposes of this legislation, a public communication would generally include any advertisement, such as bus ad, poster, billboard, social media posts, or websites, put out by the charity or on the charity’s behalf, or any other communication aimed at the public, that advertises the information, advice, or services that it provides relating to the prevention, preservation, or termination of pregnancy.

Where a charity fails to meet the requirements specified in the legislation, the Minister of National Revenue would be permitted to revoke its registration.

These changes would come into force 90 days after Royal Assent, with the new information disclosure requirements applying as of the 2025 taxation year.

Related product
MIL OSI Canada News –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Government of Canada protecting reproductive freedom and covering essential health care costs

Source: Government of Canada News

Every woman should be free to make her own decisions about her own body. Every woman in Canada should have access to the health care she needs.

October 29, 2024 – Ottawa, Ontario – Department of Finance Canada

Every woman should be free to make her own decisions about her own body. Every woman in Canada should have access to the health care she needs.

Today, however, concerns have been raised that some registered charities that offer reproductive health services to women, including pregnancy options counselling—and that are provided federal supports under the tax system—may be spreading misinformation by presenting themselves as a neutral, full-service pregnancy support service organization, when they are in fact anti-choice organizations that push women away from accessing the reproductive care of their choice. By concealing the true nature of their services, these organizations, known as crisis pregnancy centres, are restricting the rights of vulnerable pregnant women to choose the reproductive care appropriate to them and their circumstances.

The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, alongside the Honourable Marci Ien, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth, the Honourable Mark Holland, Minister of Health, and the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Quebec Lieutenant, today announced new action to protect reproductive freedom and updated on the government’s progress covering the costs of contraception, dental care, and diabetes medications for Canadians.

First, the federal government will introduce legislation to require more transparency from charities providing pregnancy counselling. Specifically, registered charities whose purpose or one of their main activities is to provide pregnancy and reproductive health supports and services, including pregnancy options counselling, would be required to explicitly disclose if they do not provide abortions, birth control, or referrals to these services. Organizations that do not clearly and prominently provide the required transparency risk losing charitable status.

This measure aims to improve the distribution of accurate information in reproductive health care and builds on other measures that the government is taking to improve health care for all Canadians.

Second, the Minister of Health announced that more than 2.7 million Canadians are now covered by the Canadian Dental Care Plan and nearly 1 million of them have already had their dental visits covered. Already, the Canadian Dental Care Plan has covered $732 million in dental expenses for Canadians, or about $730 per covered Canadian this year. The government is on track to cover 9 million Canadians, currently without dental insurance, in 2025.

Third, the Minister of Health highlighted that the Pharmacare Act has received Royal Assent on October 10, 2024. The passage of this legislation enables the federal government to reach agreements with provinces and territories to provide free contraception and diabetes medications. Once agreements are reached, coverage through existing provincial and territorial programs would be enhanced to provide free contraceptives and free life-saving diabetes medications, saving Canadians $300 per year and $1,700 per year, respectively.

Fourth, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance announced that in October, the federal government transferred $4.34 billion for health care to provinces and territories. In 2024-25, Canada Health Transfer payments will total $52.1 billion—equivalent to $1 billion every week. The federal government is providing $200 billion over 10 years for provinces and territories to increase access to family doctors, reduce wait times for surgery, and enable patients and their health care teams to share data.

Katherine Cuplinskas
Deputy Director of Communications
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance
Katherine.Cuplinskas@fin.gc.ca

MIL OSI Canada News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Congressman Matt Gaetz Introduces “JAIL for Alien Voters Act” to Punish Illegal Alien Voters with Felony Charges

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Matt Gaetz (1st District of Florida)

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Congressman Matt Gaetz (FL-01) will introduce the “Judicial Action to Impose Liability for Alien Voters Act,” also known as the JAIL for Alien Voters Act, following President Donald Trump’s warning to illegal aliens: “[i]f you vote illegally, you are going to jail!” The legislation, if enacted, would make voting by an illegal alien a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison or a $10,000 fine, which is in line with the criminal penalty for U.S. citizens unlawfully voting.

Earlier this month, in response to the Biden-Harris Department of Justice (DOJ) suing the Commonwealth of Virginia for removing illegal aliens from its voter rolls, Rep. Gaetz introduced the “National Motor Voter Clarification Act,” which would ensure that states can remove illegal aliens from their voter rolls at any time. These two pieces of legislation would help to secure U.S. elections against voting by the tens of millions of illegal aliens who have entered illegally through the U.S.-Mexico border during the Biden-Harris administration.

The legislation is cosponsored by Reps. Andy Ogles (TN-5), Andy Biggs (AZ-5), Mike Collins (GA-10), Claudia Tenney (NY-24), and Barry Moore (AL-02).

“President Donald Trump is right: illegal aliens who vote in our elections should be in jail. It is unacceptable that illegal aliens get lighter sentences for defrauding our elections than U.S. citizens. My legislation, the JAIL for Alien Voters Act, will create parity in punishment for those who commit voter fraud, regardless of immigration status. It’s common sense that U.S. citizens should be the only ones voting in U.S. elections.” said Congressman Gaetz.

Full text of Congressman Gaetz’s bill can be found HERE. Additionally, exclusive coverage of the bill by Fox News can be found HERE.

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For updates, subscribe to Congressman Gaetz’s newsletter here.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Mast Demands Answers on Pentagon’s Promotion of Iranian Influence Agent

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressmen Brian Mast (FL-18)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Brian Mast (FL-21) demanded Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin explain why the Pentagon has promoted an alleged member of a covert Iranian influence network to a senior post overseeing military training. Congressman Mast is further demanding the Pentagon open an investigation into the individual and other employees who may have lied about their ties to Iran to obtain a security clearance.

“Promoting an Iranian influence agent to a position that oversees the education and training of America’s elite warriors is the equivalent of giving the Ayatollah access to how we train our troops and what weapons systems they use,” said Congressman Mast. “This has grave national security implications given the Islamic Republic of Iran has sought to assassinate President Donald Trump and interfered in the 2024 elections to benefit President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.”

Congressman Mast raised those concerns in a letter to Secretary Austin amid news of Ariane Tabatabai’s promotion to deputy assistant secretary of defense for force education and training. In 2023, Semafor reported that Tabatabai was part of a long-running covert Iranian influence campaign within the United States.

The Biden administration appointed Tabatabai to work under Special Envoy for Iran Robert Malley — whose security clearance was revoked and is under investigation for leaking classified information to Tehran. Tabatabai, herself, has been investigated by the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency for her ties to Iran. The results of that investigation have not been made fully clear.

Tabatabai’s tenure in the Pentagon has coincided with the leak of U.S. intelligence and other security documents relating to Israel’s defense capabilities. In particular, U.S. intelligence about Israeli retaliatory strike plans on Iranian nuclear facilities were leaked on Telegram channels connected to Tehran.

Given the severity of that breach, Congressman Mast is demanding investigations into every individual employed by the Pentagon and other federal agencies that have ties to Iran — including Tabatabai. A copy of the letter can be found here.

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MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Pallone Delivers $54.9 Million Federal Boost for Zero-Emission Ferry Project, Driving Cleaner Transit Solutions for Highlands and Central New Jersey

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Frank Pallone (6th District of New Jersey)

Major Investment Made Possible Through Historic Inflation Reduction Act Championed by Pallone

Highlands, NJ – Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. has announced a major win for central New Jersey with $54.9 million in federal funding from the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Ports Program to advance zero-emission high-speed ferries through Seastreak, LLC. This award will support the deployment of zero-emission ferries and essential charging infrastructure, aimed at cutting dangerous pollution and easing travel between New Jersey and Manhattan. Pallone, who helped author the Inflation Reduction Act as the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, championed Seastreak’s proposal as a model for clean, efficient transit in coastal communities.

“Bringing these federal dollars back to New Jersey means cleaner air, less traffic on our busiest routes, and a long-term boost for communities like Highlands,” said Pallone. “This project is about more than cutting dangerous pollution; it’s about strengthening our local economy and supporting sustainable transit solutions that benefit residents and businesses alike. Projects like this put New Jersey on the cutting edge of homegrown, clean energy.”

Headquartered in Atlantic Highlands, Seastreak operates a vital ferry service for thousands of central New Jerseyans daily. This funding allows the company to take a critical first step in its fleet overhaul, advancing zero-emission technology and setting a national example in coastal air quality improvement. The project also includes workforce development initiatives, such as training partnerships with local schools and industry groups.

“Seastreak is committed to being the one of the most environmentally friendly passenger ferry operators in the country,” said James D. Barker, Seastreak Vice President. “High-speed electric ferry technology is a new and quickly evolving space. With this grant, we are excited to contribute to a new frontier in maritime technology while continuing our efforts to improve air quality within the communities we serve. We’re grateful for Congressman Pallone’s work in Congress to make this project possible.”

Additionally, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) will receive $344 million to expand zero-emission equipment across port operations. Programs like the ZE Equipment for Ports (ZEEP) Voucher Incentive Program and Green Drayage Accelerator (GDA) will help replace polluting cargo vehicles and install new charging stations to reduce harmful port emissions affecting neighboring communities.

EPA announced the selection of 55 applicants across 27 states and territories to receive nearly $3 billion nationwide through EPA’s Clean Ports Program.

“Our nation’s ports are critical to creating opportunity here in America, offering good-paying jobs, moving goods, and powering our economy,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Today’s historic $3 billion investment builds on President Biden’s vision of growing our economy while ensuring America leads in globally competitive solutions of the future. Delivering cleaner technologies and resources to U.S. ports will slash harmful air and climate pollution while protecting people who work in and live nearby ports communities.”

The EPA’s Clean Ports Program, funded by the Inflation Reduction Act, reduces climate pollution from our nation’s ports. It aims to cut harmful diesel pollution, including criteria pollutants, greenhouse gases, and air toxics, both at ports and in near-port communities by funding transformative infrastructure deployment and air quality planning. The EPA will work closely with Seastreak and PANYNJ to finalize agreements, ensuring these projects fulfill their commitment to cleaner, healthier communities across the New Jersey region.

MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Arrington Meets with Constituents Across West Texas

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Jodey Arrington (TX-19)

Lubbock, TX – House Budget Chairman Jodey Arrington (TX-19) recently concluded a West Texas Tour, during which he visited various areas of his Congressional District to tour hospitals, meet with small business owners and local leaders, and speak with constituents about their concerns.

Andrews County

“I had a great time in Andrews County visiting with local leaders discussing the economic hardships facing our communities,” said Chairman Arrington. “Biden and Harris have launched an all-out assault on Rural America – our agriculture and energy economy, our working families, and our values – and communities like Andrews are paying the price. We need to rein-in Washington, return to pro-energy policies, and put an end to the welfare state by unleashing the full potential of the American economy and, most importantly, the American people.”

Gaines County

“I had a great time meeting with friends and fellow West Texans at a townhall in Gaines County, answering questions and speaking about the direction of our country,” said Chairman Arrington. “We all agree, there needs to be a sense of urgency because our nation is at a historic inflection point: we will either renew our faith in God and freedom or submit to the rise of socialism and the tyranny of a woke and weaponized federal government.”

Martin County

“Our great nation does not reap the benefits of energy independence and food security without excellent rural health care keeping our hard-working, freedom-loving workers in Rural America healthy and taken care of, and nobody understands this better than the Martin County Medical Hospital District,” said Chairman Arrington. “Recognized as one of the Top 20 Critical Access Hospitals in 2023 and 2024, we take great pride in having one of the best hospitals in the country right in our backyard. Keep up the great work!”

Howard County

“I had the privilege of joining the Big Spring Economic Development Corp and Big Spring Chamber of Commerce for a Howard County Community Roundtable,” said Chairman Arrington. “Communities like Big Spring have suffered under the skyrocketing inflation, excessive regulation, and woke policies that have become the hallmark of the Biden-Harris administration. Fortunately, we have the opportunity to chart a new path and restore prosperity for hardworking families.”

Mitchell County

“I had the privilege of speaking to the Mitchell County Farm Bureau about the importance of supporting our cowboys and plowboys in West Texas and ensuring they have the resources they need to succeed,” said Chairman Arrington. “Unfortunately, in Washington, many politicians take Rural America and the men and women who feed, fuel, and clothe our nation for granted. That’s why I’ll never stop fighting for them and making sure our hardworking farmers and ranchers have a voice in our nation’s capital.”

Taylor County

“Great to join my friends at Hendrick Medical Center who recently celebrated their 100th year anniversary of faithful service to Abilene and the Big Country,” said Chairman Arrington. “Hendrick’s story is one of resilience and community support, and, since the beginning, Hendrick Health has always been driven by its Christian mission to provide compassionate care to all in need. I’m thankful for their commitment to providing healthcare to a growing region and delivering exceptional care to thousands of West Texans every year.”

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MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Assistant Leader Neguse and Local Leaders Celebrate $66.4 Million for Front Range Passenger Rail Project

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Joe Neguse (D-Co 2)

Lafayette, CO — In case you missed it, earlier today, U.S. House Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse celebrated the announcement that the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has awarded $66.4 million to the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) to help bring the Front Range Passenger Rail Project to life. The funding was allocated through the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Program, which invests in railroad infrastructure projects that improve safety and support economic vitality.

At a press conference in Westminster this morning, Congressman Neguse, Governor Polis, Senator Bennet, Congresswoman Pettersen, CDOT Executive Director Lew, and local leaders announced that four Colorado rail projects will receive a total of $129.5 million in federal funds. The CRISI grants were awarded to CDOT, Colorado State University Pueblo, San Luis Central Railroad Co., and OmniTRAX.

“After years of working to secure federal support for the Front Range Passenger Rail Project, I am excited to see the Department of Transportation heed our calls and commit to modernizing Colorado’s passenger rail system—not just for communities along the Front Range but for residents throughout the entire state. This is a once-in-a-generation investment in our passenger rail infrastructure, creating countless new opportunities for communities to connect, grow, and thrive—and we will continue to work together to ensure this momentum leads to lasting benefits for all Coloradans,” said Assistant Leader Joe Neguse.

“Today’s grant will make freight rail traffic in some of our busiest growing communities safer quickly while providing critical building blocks for Front Range Passenger Rail. This major funding will help achieve important priorities like complying with longstanding federal standards and improving the safety of rail crossings, which can be the sites of dangerous incidents. With more than $66 million in federal support from the Biden-Harris administration, the future of Colorado’s rail network is a clear priority for the federal government, as it should be. We thank Senators Hickenlooper and Bennet, Congressman Neguse and Congresswoman Pettersen, and our communities for their support of this important project,” said Governor Jared Polis.

This announcement is the result of the persistent advocacy from Neguse, members of Colorado’s federal delegation, and state officials who have long championed investments in the state’s transit infrastructure. Earlier this year, Rep. Neguse led his colleagues in a letter to House Appropriators, requesting full funding for the FRA’s passenger rail programs. This follows previous outreach to Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, urging the inclusion of the Front Range Passenger Rail in the FRA’s newly established Corridor Identification and Development Program (CDIP)—created as part of the historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help the federal government identify new passenger rail services.

Leaders across the Front Range joined in celebrating the news:

“The recent award by the Federal Rail Administration of $66.4 million dollars is a great big step in the right direction for Colorado to realize our front range passenger rail! Thank you Representative Neguse for leading the way, at the federal level, on this critical project,” said Jeni Arndt, Mayor of Fort Collins.

“The Front Range Passenger Rail District Board (FRPRD) is deeply grateful to Congressman Neguse, Senator Hickenlooper and the Secretary of Transportation for their advocacy with the FRA. Their support played a significant part in the $66.4 million award that the FRA awarded to the FRPRD, which will play a pivotal role in advancing rail transportation on Colorado’s front range. This support enables us to move forward with the construction, which will greatly enhance connectivity and improve accessibility for our community. Thank you for your commitment to our vision and for helping us make this important project a reality,” said Joan Peck, Longmont Mayor.

“This landmark grant from the Federal Railroad Administration is a huge step forward for passenger rail in Boulder and across the region. Front Range Passenger Rail will finally provide long-awaited train service from Boulder to Denver, Longmont and points beyond, and will make a transformative impact on mobility in our community for decades to come. We’re incredibly grateful to Congressman Neguse as well as Senators Bennet and Hickenlooper for their persistent advocacy for this project,” said Aaron Brockett, Mayor of Boulder.

Background on Project

The $66,400,000 for CDOT will go toward the project titled ‘Modernizing Rail on the Front Range: PTC Installation, Siding, & Grade Crossing Safety and Operational Improvements’ involves systems planning, project planning, project development, final design, and construction activities to for provide track improvement, siding installation, and PTC design/installation in northern Colorado. The project will design, install, and test positive train control with a complementary siding on a portion of the Front Range Subdivision, along with several railroad crossings that could benefit from operational and safety improvements. It will also evaluate, design, and construct site-specific crossing solutions at five high-priority locations along the Subdivision.

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MIL OSI USA News –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney Appoints Election Officer for the Eastern District of Kentucky

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)

LEXINGTON, Ky. – United States Attorney Carlton S. Shier, IV, announced today that Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Kate Smith will lead the efforts of his Office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 5, 2024, general election. AUSA Smith has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the Eastern District of Kentucky and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of election day complaints of voting rights concerns, threats of violence to election officials or staff, and election fraud, in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

United States Attorney Shier said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted in a fair and free election. Similarly, election officials and staff must be able to serve without being subject to unlawful threats of violence. The Department of Justice will always work tirelessly to protect the integrity of the election process.”

The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring and combatting discrimination and intimidation at the polls, threats of violence directed at election officials and poll workers, and election fraud. The Department will address these violations wherever they occur. The Department’s longstanding Election Day Program furthers these goals and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the electoral process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible federal election law violations.

Federal law protects against such crimes as threatening violence against election officials or staff, intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters, and provides that they can vote free from interference, including intimidation, and other acts designed to prevent or discourage people from voting or voting for the candidate of their choice. The Voting Rights Act protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice (where voters need assistance because of disability or inability to read or write in English).

United States Attorney Shier stated that: “The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise can exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice. In order to respond to complaints of voting rights concerns and election fraud during the upcoming election, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, AUSA/DEO Smith will be on duty in this District while the polls are open. She can be reached by the public at the following telephone number: 859-685-4884.”

In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day. The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at (502) 263-6000.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.

United States Attorney Shier said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the assistance of the American electorate. It is important that those who have specific information about voting rights concerns or election fraud make that information available to the Department of Justice.”

Please note, however, in the case of a crime of violence or intimidation, please call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities. State and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places, and almost always have faster reaction capacity in an emergency.

— END —

MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: USAO-KS Announces Election Day Program

Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – United States Attorney Kate E. Brubacher announced that Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Jared Maag will lead the efforts of his Office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 5, 2024, general election. AUSA Maag has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the U.S. Attorney’s Office District of Kansas, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of election day complaints of voting rights concerns, threats of violence to election officials or staff, and election fraud, in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

U.S. Attorney Brubacher said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted in a fair and free election. Similarly, election officials and staff must be able to serve without being subject to unlawful threats of violence. The Department of Justice will always work tirelessly to protect the integrity of the election process.”

The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring and combatting discrimination and intimidation at the polls, threats of violence directed at election officials and poll workers, and election fraud. The Department will address these violations wherever they occur. The Department’s longstanding Election Day Program furthers these goals and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the electoral process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible federal election law violations.

Federal law protects against such crimes as threatening violence against election officials or staff, intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input. It also contains special protections for the rights of voters, and provides that they can vote free from interference, including intimidation, and other acts designed to prevent or discourage people from voting or voting for the candidate of their choice. The Voting Rights Act protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice (where voters need assistance because of disability or inability to read or write in English).

U.S. Attorney Brubacher stated that: “The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy. We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise can exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice. In order to respond to complaints of voting rights concerns and election fraud during the upcoming election, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, AUSA/DEO Maag will be on duty in this District while the polls are open. He can be reached by the public at the following telephone number: (785) 295-2850.

In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day. The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at 816-512-8200.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/ or by phone at 800-253-3931.

U.S. Attorney Brubacher said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the assistance of the American electorate. It is important that those who have specific information about voting rights concerns or election fraud make that information available to the Department of Justice.”

Please note, however, in the case of a crime of violence or intimidation, please call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities. State and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places, and almost always have faster reaction capacity in an emergency.

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MIL Security OSI –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: For many Venezuelan migrants in the US, working all hours means hope for a life back home

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Matt Wilde, Lecturer in Human Geography, University of Leicester

Migrants seeking asylum at El Paso, Texas, on the US-Mexico border. Ruben2533 / Shutterstock

Donald Trump and his followers have eagerly whipped up anti-immigrant sentiment throughout the US presidential campaign, as a growing number of migrants from Haiti and Venezuela arrive due to continuing crises at home.

Stories about Haitians eating pets in Springfield, Ohio, have ultimately been proven to be false. And accounts of Venezuelan gangs taking over apartment blocks in Aurora, Colorado, have been called “an incredible exaggeration” by the city’s mayor.

Progressives have rightly challenged such accounts. But the absence of an effective counter-narrative about migration cedes ground to regressive messaging that reduces the complexities of human mobility to a zero-sum game between national populations and migrant-others.

As an anthropologist conducting research with Venezuelan migrants in Chicago, two points strike me as vital to changing the terms of this debate.

The first is that among the Venezuelans I work with – most of whom hold what’s known as temporary protected status – the US isn’t a place they ultimately plan to settle. Their overwhelming focus is on earning enough money to build a life back home. The second is that to truly understand migration, we need to place migrant experiences and motivations in historical context.

Working all hours

Two days after the televised presidential debate in September where Trump made repeated references to immigrants, I shared cold beers with eight young Venezuelan men in the backyard of a rented house on Chicago’s South Side.

Each had his own story of the journey to the US, with most making the perilous walk through the Darién Gap – or la selva (“the jungle”), as they call it – before claiming asylum at the Mexico-US border.

Having eventually been granted the right to work, the men are now employed on the same assembly line in a Chicago factory. Many of them also work as delivery drivers after hours.

“I don’t have to defend myself with words or argue with people,” says Hector, a 24-year-old from San Cristóbal in western Venezuela. “I just need to show that my work is good. In that way, I’m contributing to the better image of Venezuelans.”

Read more:
Venezuelan migrants are boosting economic growth in South America, says research

Guillermo, a 38-year-old from Venezuela’s third-largest city, Valencia, works 12 to 14 hours a day, seven days a week. When he isn’t working or resting, he’s on WhatsApp talking to friends and family, many of whom are among the estimated 8 million Venezuelans who now live abroad due to the country’s economic and political crisis.

Each week, Guillermo sends several hundred dollars home to his father, wife and daughter. He’s also been slowly working towards buying a house in his home city, a goal that motivates him amid the many hardships he’s endured abroad.

“I’m a guerrero [warrior],” he jokes as he recounts his journey since he left Venezuela in 2017. In that time, Guillermo has worked as a street vender in Colombia, a taxi driver under precarious conditions in Chile, and has crossed borders from Bolivia to Mexico on foot.

This determination to return is shared by Guillermo’s Venezuelan friends in Chicago, all of whom hope to go home despite recent allegations of electoral fraud against the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro. “With Maduro, without Maduro, with whoever is there … eventually we want to return to our country,” Guillermo explains.

Read more:
Venezuela: Maduro’s declaration of victory isn’t fooling anyone

Guerrilla redistribution

The reasons for Venezuela’s present situation are complex. Few would dispute the claim that Maduro has grossly mismanaged the economy. But there’s a longer backstory rooted in the deep inequalities between the global north and the global south, as well as the country’s vulnerability as a postcolonial petrostate that has repeatedly experienced cycles of boom and bust.

And then there are the sanctions that were levelled against the country by the Trump administration. According to researchers Benedicte Bull and Antulio Rosales, the sanctions have accelerated Maduro’s transformation of Venezuela into what they term “authoritarian capitalism”.

The bitter irony for the young people I work with is that all of this means they have had to travel thousands of miles to have a chance of building a better life at home. For Hector and Guillermo, the biggest difference between the US and countries like Chile or Colombia is the US dollar, the strength of which means their labour goes much further when it’s sent home in the form of remittances.

In this sense, perhaps a better way of understanding these recent arrivals to the US is that, against all the odds, they’re enacting a form of “guerrilla redistribution” in a profoundly unequal world. For progressives, the urgent political challenge is to widen the terms in which we understand what migration is and what it could be on a more just planet.

The research for this article was funded by the British Academy (SRG2324240415). The author thanks Ana Mattioli for support with interview transcriptions.

– ref. For many Venezuelan migrants in the US, working all hours means hope for a life back home – https://theconversation.com/for-many-venezuelan-migrants-in-the-us-working-all-hours-means-hope-for-a-life-back-home-241648

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Chris Kaba’s criminal history shouldn’t change how we think about the Martyn Blake trial – but it could affect future cases

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Tara Lai Quinlan, Associate Professor in Law and Criminal Justice, University of Birmingham

Members of Chris Kaba’s family at a march on the anniversary of his death. Shutterstock

Two years after fatally shooting 24-year-old Chris Kaba in the head, the London Met Police firearms officer Martyn Blake was acquitted of Kaba’s murder.

As soon as the trial concluded, newspapers published information about Kaba that they were barred from reporting during the proceedings. Chief among the details was the news that Kaba had allegedly shot a man in both legs at a nightclub days before his own death, although he was never prosecuted for or convicted of the crime.

The post-trial publication of details of Kaba’s alleged criminal history should not affect how we view Blake’s prosecution and acquittal. But it will have implications for future cases where black men are killed by police. It will also further damage already-strained relationships between black communities and police.

Kaba was shot by Blake after police stopped the car he was driving in south London. Kaba was unarmed. Police did not know that Kaba was driving, but believed the car had been connected to a shooting the night before. Blake told the court he fired his weapon because he believed his colleagues’ lives were at risk.

The jury was not told of Kaba’s prior convictions during the trial, nor should they have been. Kaba was not on trial – Martyn Blake was. So this information did not play a role in their decision to acquit. Because Kaba was killed by Blake, Kaba’s prior convictions were not relevant in Blake’s trial. We correctly shun victim-blaming when it comes to other victims: it should be no different in this case, in which Kaba was the victim.

Had Kaba been alive and testified for the prosecution against Blake, the judge could have considered whether his prior criminal convictions were relevant to his testimony and credibility. But disclosure of a witness’s previous convictions is rightfully very narrowly construed by the courts, and would have to meet a specific legal standard.

Racial stereotypes

The research is clear that when a person of colour is killed by police and posthumous information about the victim is released to the public, it has an impact on public perceptions of blame, sympathy and empathy for the black victim and police shooter, and perpetuates racial stereotypes. And this seems to be what is occurring here.

Studies have shown for decades that black people, men in particular, are first and foremost viewed as perpetrators by police and members of the public, not as crime victims. We have seen the impact of this in the many killings of unarmed black men by police in the US, from Michael Brown to Eric Garner to George Floyd.

These stereotypes have also played a role in cases in the UK. Black men and boys are often treated by the criminal justice system and the media as somehow responsible for their own deaths. For instance, Stephen Lawrence, who was killed in 1993 by a group of white men while waiting at a London bus stop, was regarded by police for a long time as a suspect, not a victim.

Or Dea-John Reid, a 14-year-old black boy who was chased and killed by a group of white teens and adults in Birmingham in 2021. After his death, police initially doubted racism played a role in the killing, and it was suggested at the trial that Reid was involved in instigating events leading to his killing. While multiple defendants were brought to trial, only a 15-year-old boy was convicted of manslaughter for Reid’s death. Two adults, aged 36 and 39, and two other teenagers were acquitted of his murder.

Police chiefs are asking the government to make it harder for the Crown Prosecution Service to charge officers.
Svet foto/Shutterstock

For decades, scholars have tracked how black men are viewed through the lens of the myth of criminality. This view, rooted in slavery and colonialism, erroneously suggests black men have a propensity for criminality. It persists today in crime figures that show minority ethnic people disproportionately represented in every stage of the criminal justice process.

Yet the reality from government offending surveys is that black and white people commit crimes at the same rates. The myth is reinforced through the criminal justice system, which focuses on some crimes (and alleged criminals) more than others through decisions around deployment of personnel and resources, and decisions to arrest, charge, prosecute and sentence in disproportionate ways.

For example, police stop and search rates for decades have been disproportionately shown to target black men. Arrest rates show similar disproportionate outcomes. These disparities are not due to a propensity for criminal offending, but rather the implicit and explicit stereotypes of the justice system.

Read more:
Stop and search disproportionately affects black communities – yet police powers are being extended

These stereotypes mean that people of colour, and black men in particular, are not seen as deserving victims when they are the victims of crime or police wrongdoing.

Academic research, as well as government inquiries by Lord Macpherson and Baroness Casey, have observed how policing culture is embedded with these stereotypes.

Future of policing

Following the Blake verdict, police leaders have called for further protections for officers who use force while on duty (even if not deadly force). The government has said that officers charged in future cases will stay anonymous unless convicted.

The UK legal system already has rigorous standards for investigating, charging and convicting individuals, including police officers, of wrongdoing. Moreover, is it important to bear in mind that misconduct prosecutions in court against police officers are already very rare.

Blake was the first officer in England ever charged with murder for killing someone on duty, and therefore none have ever been convicted of murdering a member of the public while on duty. There are therefore already sufficiently robust due process protections in place for officers charged with a crime and they do not require further enhancing.

At a time when police have lost the trust of many of the communities they are meant to protect, particularly ethnic minority Britons, this sends the wrong message to the public that police can act without accountability.

“We went two steps forward in terms of building relationships and it just feels like we’ve taken a step back,” said Anthony King, who runs a youth crime reduction organisation in London, of the Blake verdict.

The persistence of negative racial stereotypes of people of colour generally, and black men in particular, continues to put black communities in a position of being overpoliced and yet underprotected. Treating Chris Kaba as a suspected criminal ahead of seeing him as a victim will only further this inequality.

Tara Lai Quinlan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Chris Kaba’s criminal history shouldn’t change how we think about the Martyn Blake trial – but it could affect future cases – https://theconversation.com/chris-kabas-criminal-history-shouldnt-change-how-we-think-about-the-martyn-blake-trial-but-it-could-affect-future-cases-242051

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: From a scream to a whisper – ‘quiet horror’ novels are making a comeback

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Nick Freeman, Reader in Late Victorian Literature, Loughborough University

Readers need to be imaginative rather than being startled by jump scares. zef art/Shutterstock

Ever since its inception with Horace Walpole’s novel The Castle of Otranto (1764), a delirious mixture of violent death and familial conspiracy, gothic literature has been a restless cultural form, constantly mutating and assuming new guises but always exploring the darker side of life. Sometimes, its fashions are those of the historical moment. Sometimes they are initiated by a book enjoying unprecedented commercial success.

One of these was Thomas Harris’s The Silence of the Lambs (1988). After the film adaptation scooped five Oscars in 1991, the deviant genius became the villain of choice for gothic films and novels. For a time, the violent merging of the crime thriller with the “body horror” of 1980s cinema ensured that the genre was dominated by such characters. Usually (though not always) men with high IQs, elevated artistic taste and ingenious ways of torturing and killing their fellow human beings, Hannibal Lecter and his ilk became modern icons.

In the wake of such influences, crime novels (and films) got bloodier and horror novels grew longer. John Connolly’s first novel, EveryDeadThing (1999), for example, spent 470 pages documenting the murderous activities of a serial killer who mutilated his victims in the style of Renaissance anatomical drawings.

In recent years however, there has been a reaction against these excesses. So-called “quiet horror” has become increasingly popular on both sides of the Atlantic. Perhaps taking its name from a 1965 collection of short stories by Stanley Ellin, which was literally called “quiet horror”, this is a genre that prizes suspense and subtlety over graphic bodily violence.

The novelist Selena Chambers characterises quiet horror as exploring “the unexplained, the suppressed, the supernal [otherworldly], the material, the cosmic, and the secular … everything we cannot see, or verbalise and fail to feel concretely”. As she implies, suggestion is crucial.

Readers need to be patient and imaginative, sensitive to the nuances and implications of language and willing to respond to spooky ambiguities rather than being startled by jump scares or “gross out” imagery.

Slasher movies usually treat their characters as no more than fodder for the next brutal killing. Quiet horror, by contrast, takes character development far more seriously and imbues its stories with greater psychological depth. This in turn can enhance readers’ involvement. Put simply, those who dislike “splatter fiction” are more likely to care what happens to a well-rounded, sympathetic character than a stereotypical US teenager about to be put under a steam hammer.

Women and quiet horror

Female novelists have been at the forefront of this style of writing since the Victorian period. Elizabeth Gaskell’s tales, including The Old Nurse’s Story (1852), a chilling tale of a family curse, are foundational works.

A long line of women writers have explored how the familiar, the domestic, the marital and the homely can be imbued with subtle terrors, from loneliness and isolation to paranoia, alienation, captivity and psychological trauma.

The haunted house does not need to contain a typical ghost. From Elizabeth Bowen’s The Demon Lover (1945) to Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House (1959), to Sarah Waters’ The Little Stranger (2009) and beyond, the complex and fraught relationships between a dwelling and its occupants have frequently engaged women writers’ imaginations.

The continuing success of Susan Hill’s The Woman in Black (1983) in its literary, theatrical and cinematic incarnations has helped ensure that quiet horror, particularly tales which recall the golden age of the ghost story a century or so ago, are once again much in vogue. This can be seen in the bestselling novels of Michelle Paver, such as Dark Matter (2010) and in anthologies such as The Haunting Season (2021).

At the same time, readers are increasingly rediscovering forgotten practitioners of the genre. One such figure is Elizabeth Walter (1927-2006). As a writer (and the editor of Collins Crime Club for 30 years from the mid-1960s) Walter recoiled from sadistic violence, cardboard characterisation and haphazard plotting.

Shirley Jackson was a master of ‘quiet horror’.
Wiki Commons, CC BY

After five collections of stories, beginning with Snowfall and Other Chilling Events (1965), she retired from writing supernatural fiction in the mid-1970s as the traits she didn’t like were becoming dominant within Anglo-American gothic. Many of her stories are set in the border country between England and Wales and draw upon folklore and a sensitivity to landscape to create creepily unnerving works such as The Sin Eater (1967) and Telling the Bees (1975).

I edited a collection of Walter’s writing titled Let a Sleeping Witch Lie (2024). Spanning the ten years from Snowfall to her final collection, Dead Woman and Other Haunting Experiences (1975), the stories within anticipate some elements of Phil Rickman’s Merrily Watkins novels which also involve Welsh border settings, supernatural elements, and police procedural, though they lack Rickman’s religious dimension.

There is no sense of providence at work in Walter’s borderlands, only ancient and mysterious menace. Marriages tend to be unhappy, families harbour terrible secrets, and the old ways continue to overshadow the present. Fifty years since her final collection, Walter’s work might be more relevant than ever before.

Quiet horror has never really been away, but it seems to finding a new audience, one which both looks to its past and relishes its present.

Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

Nick Freeman does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. From a scream to a whisper – ‘quiet horror’ novels are making a comeback – https://theconversation.com/from-a-scream-to-a-whisper-quiet-horror-novels-are-making-a-comeback-241945

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Trump accused of ‘malignant narcissism’ – but how accurately can you diagnose someone you’ve never met?

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Ava Green, Lecturer in Forensic Psychology, City St George’s, University of London

Jonah Elkowitz/Shutterstock

Self-absorbed. Arrogant. Boastful. It does not take a mental health professional to recognise these features as narcissistic. Most of us, regardless of our educational background, are confident to label someone we’ve never met as narcissistic.

Other behavioural features associated with narcissism can be similarly obvious, including a grandiose sense of self, an excessive need for attention and admiration, a lack of empathy and lashing out when criticised.

Public figures have often been subject to speculations as to whether their behaviour meets a mental health diagnosis. Ahead of the US presidential elections, Donald Trump’s mental fitness has, once again, been called into question. This time, 200 mental health professionals have signed an open letter warning the public of Trump’s “malignant narcissism”.

The letter, organised by an anti-Trump political group, argues that Trump poses “an existential threat to democracy” in the US. Citing the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the mental health professionals argue that Trump meets the diagnostic criteria for narcissistic, antisocial and paranoid personality disorder. These are “all made worse by his intense sadism, which is a symptom of malignant narcissism,” they claim.

Malignant narcissism is considered a combination of the above personality disorders, in addition to the sadistic urge to inflict pain towards others while gaining pleasure from doing so. For instance, the letter states: “According to first-hand accounts, Trump watched the violence he unleashed on January 6 for three hours on TV with ‘glee’, watching his favorite parts ‘over and over’ on ‘rewind’.”

Even though Trump has not been formally assessed by a psychologist as having any of the diagnoses put forward in the letter, it argues that it is “easy to see that Trump meets the behavioral criteria for antisocial personality disorder”.

The signatories argue that thousands of hours of media coverage of Trump’s behaviour have demonstrated a lifetime pattern of “failure to conform to social norms and laws, repeated lying, reckless disregard for the safety of others, irritability, impulsivity, irresponsibility and lack of remorse”. Other psychologists have come to similar conclusions.

The Goldwater rule

A rule set forth by the American Psychiatric Association, known as the Goldwater rule, considers it unethical to diagnose people a psychiatrist has not personally assessed.

The rule is named after Barry Goldwater, a former US senator and 1964 Republican presidential candidate who was labelled “psychotic” and “schizophrenic” by psychiatrists who responded to a survey from Fact magazine. Goldwater successfully sued the magazine for libel and won a $75,000 punitive settlement (£57,779).

The 200 signatures on the open letter about Trump believe they can justify overriding this ethical duty on the grounds that the public should be warned about Trump’s behaviour.

However, it can be argued that clinicians do not need to render a diagnosis to warn us that a public figure poses a risk to our safety. Media coverage about Trump’s danger is abound and people can draw their own conclusions without the need to put a label on it.

This is because speculative diagnoses can do more harm than good. The casual use of mental health terminology can quickly become pejorative, as the press has demonstrated in relation to Trump but also other celebrities.

Speculative diagnoses about Trump’s mental illness on social media have ranged from obsessive–compulsive disorder to delusional disorder, with little consideration that these conditions are merely conjecture. And more importantly, they shame and belittle people who are, in fact, diagnosed with these conditions.

Accuracy

But how accurately can a mental health professional diagnose someone who isn’t their patient? Would you trust a diagnosis from a doctor you had never met? Probably not.

That said, there are some benefits to external perspectives when it comes to psychiatric evaluations. Studies show that other people (spouses, close friends, neighbours) often provide a more reliable assessment of someone’s personality than self-assessments, especially in relation to narcissistic features.

Research using self-report measures show that narcissistic people tend to distort their responses to enhance themselves. For studies of personality, self-reported answers along with a psychologist’s evaluation and assessments by friends and family would give the best insight.

You can learn a lot from someone’s social media posts.
Nicoleta Ionescu/Shutterstock

Social media offers yet another layer. A study in 2015 showed that a computer model could more accurately assess someone’s personality based on their Facebook posts than their closest friends – or even a spouse. And for Trump, there are thousands of social media posts to draw on.

But regardless of how accurate these observations may be, making public speculations about someone’s mental health and labelling them with a personality disorder diagnosis at a distance is unethical and, at worst, may have legal implications.

Ava Green does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Trump accused of ‘malignant narcissism’ – but how accurately can you diagnose someone you’ve never met? – https://theconversation.com/trump-accused-of-malignant-narcissism-but-how-accurately-can-you-diagnose-someone-youve-never-met-242277

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Plans to cool the Earth by blocking sunlight are gaining momentum but critical voices risk being excluded

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Albert Van Wijngaarden, Phd Candidate, Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge

Muratart / shutterstock

Solar geoengineering research is advancing fast, after a recent flurry of funding announcements. Yet these technologies are still speculative and have many critics, and we worry their concerns won’t be heard. If geoengineering is essentially allowed to self-regulate, with no effective global governance, future research could easily take us down a dangerous path.

Solar geoengineering refers to proposals to reduce global warming by reflecting a portion of sunlight back into space before it reaches the Earth’s surface. In its best-known form, this means using high-flying aircraft to inject tiny reflective particles into the upper atmosphere.

This so-called “stratospheric aerosol injection” hasn’t actually happened yet, beyond a few very small experiments with balloons. Yet for a long time, such ideas remained fringe and too controversial to even consider – and for some academics they still are.

The academic discussion was highly polarised from the start. Opponents, mainly governance scholars and social scientists, stood firmly entrenched against assumed proponents, mainly natural scientists and engineers. Both sides had their champions, arguments, assumptions, key publications and meetings, generally working on the topic without proper engagement with the other side.

This polarisation is still visible in publishing today. Take, for example, articles on The Conversation. Critics focus on potential negatives such as altered rainfall patterns, the infringement of human rights, or even a catastrophic “termination shock”. Advocates highlight potential benefits such as reducing extreme heat and preserving ice caps, while others suggest we may soon be forced to try it.

The authors of these articles are all academic experts. Yet they come from different disciplines and use different arguments.

A public and private funding boom

Though the two camps have not resolved their arguments, geoengineering research funding is suddenly booming. There are major philanthropic pledges of US$50 million (£38 million) and US$30 million from the Simons and Quadrature Climate foundations, which are vying for the title of biggest donor with the £10.5 million and £56.8 million of the UK government’s UKRI and Advanced Research and Innovation Agency programs.

The 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines blocked so much sunlight the world temporarily cooled by a few tenths of a degree. Solar geoengineering works on a similar principle.
Dave Harlow / USGS

Other key organisations speaking about the need for more research include the European Commission, the US government and the World Climate Research Programme. This comes on top of the shock of controversial private enterprises pushing for solar geoengineering, most notoriously the US-based start-up Make Sunsets.

Support is certainly not unanimous. Many prominent scholars have signed up to a call for a moratorium, for instance. And at a recent UN Environment Assembly session in Kenya many climate-vulnerable nations mobilised against calls for further research into what they see as a highly risky technology that would enable big emitters to carry on emitting.

However, many powerful interests are seemingly in favour of more research, while the 1.5°C global warming target is moving ever further out of sight. In the near future, we can therefore expect further research, perhaps including including small-scale outdoor experiments.

As PhD students working on geoengineering, situated somewhere between both camps, we have found this polarisation deeply unproductive and difficult to deal with. Our own research sometimes feels like wandering through a minefield of opinions and perspectives. Yet we can also see the valuable concerns and hopes of both sides.

That’s why we believe that upcoming research projects must factor in the concerns of opponents, and not represent only supporters of geoengineering or those who have not been explicitly against it. Excluding critical voices would directly impact the scientific process, for one thing.

But this exclusion is especially worrying as there are currently no governance structures for solar geoengineering. If efforts to develop such governance only involve supportive researchers, they could lack the critical capacity to prevent risks or undesired effects. Disasters in the financial sector and the chemical industry warn us of the perils of self-regulation without critical voices.

Learn from the critics

There are other critiques that ought to be factored into any major research project. They include concerns that simply researching the technology will create a slippery slope towards it being deployed, or worries that geoengineering ignores the social and political dynamics behind climate change and addresses only its outcomes. There are also major governance concerns over issues such as the role of the military (could geoengineering be deployed for security reasons in contested regions like the Arctic?), or the concentration of research at influential institutions in the US and Europe.

Over time, geoengineering researchers have become more aware of such arguments and some are explicitly trying to include them in their work. The American Geophysical Union has recently published an ethical framework for geoengineering, which should provide valuable guidance for any research project. But without active dialogue with critical scholars, their arguments will likely only echo faintly in the pro-research space.

In practice, more engagement between the two camps would come with many difficulties. For advocates, it can be tempting to avoid such debates and exclude those who disagree with the very foundations on which their research is built. On the flip side, some scholars who have already explicitly argued against the continuation of solar geoengineering research would nevertheless have to participate in it.

The practical implications will therefore need to be carefully worked out. However, a more productive dialogue might still shape a future that can be acceptable to all sides.

Albert Van Wijngaarden receives PhD funding from Gates Cambridge. He is involved in UArctic’s Frozen Arctic Conservation project, and was an advisory board member of Ocean Vision’s Sea Ice Roadmap.

Adrian Hindes is also an analyst for Civilization Research Institute which does work pertaining to global catastrophic risks, including those related to emerging technologies such as solar geoengineering.

Chloe Colomer receives PhD funding from the UK Research Institute (UKRI) Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) with the grants EP/R513143/1 and EP/T517793/1.

– ref. Plans to cool the Earth by blocking sunlight are gaining momentum but critical voices risk being excluded – https://theconversation.com/plans-to-cool-the-earth-by-blocking-sunlight-are-gaining-momentum-but-critical-voices-risk-being-excluded-236882

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Norman coin hoard becomes England’s most valuable treasure – it could have been worth a lot more

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Chloe Duckworth, Reader in Archaeological Science & Public Engagement, Newcastle University

There is clearly giddy excitement in the shaky footage showing hands scrabbling in the soil in the Chew Valley in south-west England. A close-up shot captures someone pulling silver coin after silver coin from the churned earth as a woman laughs “there’s pennies everywhere.” The video accompanied news reports in 2019 of the monumental find by seven detectorists of a hoard of silver coins dating from the time of the Norman conquest in the 11th century.

The hoard has just been purchased for a whopping £4.3 million by the South West Heritage Trust. While this might be the largest amount ever paid for such a discovery, as an archaeological scientist I can tell you that much of its historical value was lost the moment it was pulled from the ground.

Such stories of amateur finds are easy to get behind. Detectorists are the underdogs – amateurs who are driven by their passion for the past to spend their free time diligently searching for hidden treasures.

The nation’s love of such stories was seized upon in Mackenzie Crook’s gently hilarious television show, Detectorists (2014). As reflected in the series, however, metal detecting has a fraught relationship with archaeology.

The videos showing the detectorists scrambling excitedly in the dirt.

While both involve digging up remains of the past, the two groups have different opinions on what is most important when it comes to such finds. For archaeologists, the finds themselves are often less important than the context in which they were discovered – the opposite is true for detectorists.

The detectorists in the Chew Valley were acting within the law. They first sought permission from the landowner, and ensured the find was reported to the authorities. However, as the video of the discovery shows, the coins were dug out haphazardly.

Archaeologists would have gone about this in a different way, following a scientific process of excavation and recording. This is because once excavated the contextual information is destroyed forever.

For instance, when speaking about the Chew Valley Hoard on Radio 4’s PM programme, Professor Michael Lewis, head of the Portable Antiquities Scheme (a voluntary government-run programme that records small finds of archaeological interest by members of the public), struggled to answer any specific questions about the circumstances in which the hoard had originally been interred. This is because of the way it had been dug up.

To dig or not to dig?

Archaeology today employs a unique system of excavation, a sort of reverse engineering of the sequence of past events. This comes complete with intensive recording, sampling of soils and other processes designed to minimise the loss of information.

In the case of hoards – deliberately buried caches of valuables from a time before banks and safes – this method of recovery can preserve information about the date of burial and whether the items were deposited in a single episode or over time. It can also help ascertain what organic materials were originally present and even provide insights into the meaning of the objects for those who deposited them.

We saw this sort of process able to take place in 2014 after detectorists found the Galloway Hoard – more than 100 gold, silver, glass, crystal, stone and earthen objects from the Viking age. These amateurs contacted the relevant authorities before digging it up, which meant it was possible, through expert recovery, to reconstruct the precious textiles and other containers in which the objects were originally buried.

Many countries, including Greece, strictly outlaw the use of metal detectors for treasure hunting, although many people continue to do so in secret. In the UK, the hope is that by legalising reporting and offering purchase of treasure, the finds can at least be preserved for research and for public viewing.

However, there isn’t anything in this approach to stop the unscientific method of recovery, which will continue to rob us of much more that we might have known. This leaves the question of whether such finds should even be dug up at all.

Archaeology is a relatively young discipline, but the surviving remains of the distant past are a finite resource. Land development, climate change, mechanised agriculture, population growth, war, looting and desecration are threats facing archaeological sites the world over.

In recent years professional archaeologists have responded by excavating the bare minimum. We might dig ahead of construction works and large infrastructure projects such as HS2. Sometimes we excavate because a site is threatened by coastal erosion or other environmental changes. When we dig purely for the sake of research, or as part of a community project, we focus on partial recovery, prioritising survey, geophysics and “test-pitting” (a sort of archaeological keyhole surgery).

In all cases we must also ensure that there is enough money to cover the conservation and protection of the things we dig up, and, crucially, publish the reports of their excavation, with all its insight into the context of the finds.

Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

Chloe Duckworth does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Norman coin hoard becomes England’s most valuable treasure – it could have been worth a lot more – https://theconversation.com/norman-coin-hoard-becomes-englands-most-valuable-treasure-it-could-have-been-worth-a-lot-more-242359

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Medieval Women: In Their Own Words at the British Library is unmissable

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Diane Watt, Professor of English, University of Surrey

The British Library’s breathtaking new exhibition, Medieval Women: In Their Own Words, brings to life the experiences, stories and voices of women from the distant past.

The show covers the period from 1100 to 1500, and a range of mainly western countries and cultures. Many of the women featured are from the elite ranks of society: queens, princesses, noblewomen and nuns.

On first entering the gallery, visitors encounter a striking late 13th-century carved stone figure of Eleanor of Castile, who was queen of England from 1274 until her death in 1290. It’s one of a series of 12 memorials commissioned by her bereft husband, Edward I, to mark the sites where her body was temporarily set down on its funeral procession from Lincolnshire to Westminster.

Also on display near the entrance are examples of the work of Hildegard of Bingen and Christine de Pizan. Hildegard was a German abbess, mystic, composer and scholar, and de Pizan was the first professional woman writer in France.

Both were exceptional, highly educated and privileged women, but the exhibition doesn’t limit itself only to the most famous medieval women.

These lovely illuminated manuscripts contrast with the next item, a much more mundane – if touching – missive from a woman named Alice Crane. Crane is only known to historians because she corresponded with her friend Margaret Paston during the 15th century. Paston was a Norfolk gentry woman and prolific letter writer. This is one of the few letters we have from the time that testifies to friendship between women. Alice writes: “Thanking you for the great cheer that I had of you when I was last with you with all my heart.”

This first part of the exhibition is titled “Private Lives” and explores topics such as cosmetics and perfume and women’s medicines and healthcare. Visitors are introduced to women medical practitioners and wet-nurses and find out about education and domestic piety.

There are displays about pregnancy and pregnancy loss, love and marriage, adultery and divorce and property ownership and inheritance. Margery Brews’s Valentine letter (believed to be the oldest example of a Valentine’s day note) and Gwerful Mechain’s poem in praise of the “cunt” are both displayed – and recited.

One of the most striking items on display is a birthing girdle – a parchment covered in prayers and illustrations that was believed to have talismanic properties. Birthing girdles were intended to protect both mother and baby during labour.

The public lives of medieval women

Powerful women visually dominate the second part, “Public Lives”. It includes an arresting portrait of Henry VIII’s grandmother, Lady Margaret Beaufort, founder of two Cambridge University colleges, and the skull of a lion thought to have been owned by the Margaret of Anjou, leader of the Lancastrians in the Wars of the Roses.

Read more:
How Henry VIII’s grandmother used a palace in Northamptonshire to build the mighty Tudor dynasty

Military conflict is an important theme – there is a book chronicling the history of Shajar al-Durr, Sultana of Egypt, who defeated a crusader army. Nevertheless, several documents provide insight into lives less known.

There’s the chancery bill of Maria Moriana, whose name suggests she was a woman of colour. A record of a debt owed to the Jewish businesswoman Licoricia of Winchester who was subsequently murdered in what was very likely a hate crime is displayed. As is a Venetian contract for the sale of an enslaved Russian called Marta. And the record of the interrogation of Eleanor Rykener – a sex worker we would likely recognise today as a trans woman.

Books produced or sold by women scribes, notaries, printers and booksellers lead the visitor into the main display of manuscripts of works by women writers, from Marie de France, a secular poet in the court of Henry II, to Juliana Berners, the probable author of a treatise on hunting, fishing and heraldry.

“Spiritual Lives” introduces nuns, mystics and heretics. There are records relating to Joan of Arc, the peasant French military leader of the hundred years war, who was captured and executed by the English. A letter bearing Joan’s signature is exhibited for the first time outside her mother country (in the land of her persecutors, to boot).

Here visitors also encounter the manuscripts of The Revelations of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich and The Book of Margery Kempe. These are two of the earliest works by women to have been written in English and have been brought to life by the artist Tasha Marks in an arresting scent installation. Julian’s satanic torments are conjured up by the stink of sulphur. Kempe’s scent of angels is evoked by notes of honey, strawberry and caramel.

The curators have done an extraordinary job in making this material accessible to a wide audience. Information panels provide context and correctives. They reveal that the gender pay gap was around 25% at the end of the 15th century, and that only around 1% of women became nuns.

There are interactive displays that can tell you if you would have grounds for medieval divorce, or if you’d have been vulnerable to witchcraft charges (warning: don’t keep a box of stolen penises).

The exhibition draws attention to the sheer diversity of the lives and experiences of medieval women in England and beyond, from the quotidian to the sublime. Providing abundant evidence of their learning and scholarship, skills and ingenuity and creativity and artistry, it is, quite simply, unmissable.

Medieval Women: In Their Own Words is at the British Museum from October 25 2024 to March 5 2025.

Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

Diane Watt has received funding from the AHRC, British Academy and Leverhulme Trust.

– ref. Medieval Women: In Their Own Words at the British Library is unmissable – https://theconversation.com/medieval-women-in-their-own-words-at-the-british-library-is-unmissable-242258

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Dahomey: timely repatriation documentary gives a literal voice to Benin’s stolen objects

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Njabulo Chipangura, Anthropologist and Curator of Living Cultures at Manchester Museum, University of Manchester

Dahomey, a new documentary film from the award-winning French director Mati Diop, follows the unconditional restitution process of 26 cultural heritage objects in 2021. The items were looted by French troops during an invasion and subsequent colonial occupation of the kingdom of Dahomey, now the present-day Republic of Benin, in November 1892.

Prior to its return, the collection was kept in the basement at Quai Branly Museum in Paris. Stored under lock and key, they existed as static and lifeless anthropological objects, that only served as war “trophies” and representations of the cultures of the vanquished and colonised. They had once been exhibited under the classification of “devil, idol, fetish, kaffir, charm, evil spirit and amulet” objects.

Dahomey is timely. It comes as debates rage on the urgent necessity of repatriating the African cultural heritage objects that were appropriated by French, British, Germans, Portuguese, Spanish and Belgian forces during 18th and 19th century colonial conquest and expansion projects.

In her film, Diop has managed to restore the agency of the objects at the heart of the Dahomey restitution case by transforming them into living cultures. She gives a literal voice, for example, to object number 26 – a human-sized wooden statue that is an allegorical portrait of King Ghezo, depicting him as half bird, half man. The real King Ghezo ruled Dahomey from 1818 until 1958. In the documentary, the statue recounts his “loss of life” when he was dislocated from his place of birth by French troops in 1892.

Read more:
Why stolen objects being returned to Africa don’t belong just in museums – podcast

The trailer for Dahomey.

Just as King Ghezo was depicted as his symbol – half man, half-bird – two other royal statues that feature prominently in the documentary are also kings of Dahomey sculpted as their symbols: King Béhanzin who ruled from 1890 to 1894 is a shark-man and King Glele who ruled from 1858 until 1889 is a lion-man. Each of these kings reigned over Dahomey and resided at Abomey, which was the kingdom’s capital.

I see the choice to give voice to these objects as a call for museums to rehumanise collections that were acquired as a result of colonial violence. This would mean taking a proactive approach to acknowledge how both objects and ancestors from the colonised country were dehumanised by different colonial collecting practices, from looting to grave robbing.

King Ghezo’s journey

Dahmoey follows the statue of King Ghezo as he journeys back home from France’s Jacques Chirac Museum of Branly Quay to the Republic of Benin. He wonders what his new life will be like in the country he was ripped from 129 years ago.

Upon the collection’s arrival in Benin, there was pomp and jubilation in the modern capital city of Cotonou, but the critical question remained – who now owns this heritage? Is it the state, the community or direct descendants of King Ghezo?

The staging of the return was well-choreographed, and its politicisation clearly visible. The 26 objects lay in state, heavily guarded and protected as national heroes. However, in Diop’s film, King Ghezo reflects that he felt like a foreigner, far removed and detached from the country he imagined when he was still an ethnographic museum object in Paris.

This crisis of belonging and identity can be interpreted as a consequence of how African museums were established during the colonial period. Their history mirrored the colonial practices of ordering, categorisation and classification of objects of the western museums where King Ghezo was imprisoned for more than a century. African museums are by products of colonisation and are, in many ways, still exclusionary and elitist.

Therefore, placing King Ghezo in a museum in Benin can end up reinforcing ideals similar to colonial classifications. Instead, King Ghezo needs to have his life restored by giving agency to community ways of doing and knowing, and to the heritage management systems established in Benin long before colonisation.

Repatriation debates

The film also shows students at the University of Abomey-Calavi in the south of Benin debating the repatriation. Many express dissatisfaction in view of the fact that only 26 objects were returned out of the 7,000 which were looted by the French at Abomey in 1892.

Many students dismiss the return as a non-event, without any historical significance. They see it, instead, as a charade for political mileage by the president of the Republic of Benin, Patrice Talon. Listening to the students made me reflect on the political nature of restitution, and how most European museums still hold power and authority in setting the conditions for or against returning.

These 26 objects were returned to Benin unconditionally, meaning France no longer has any claims to ownership. In conditional repatriation, however, European museums decide which objects should be given back to their countries of origin, and in most cases within the premises of short to long-term loans

For example, in June 2024, the Cambridge University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology conditionally returned 39 objects to Uganda on three-year negotiated loan deal. Ownership of these objects is still in the hands of Cambridge University. On the contrary Manchester Museum, where I work, unconditionally returned 174 objects to the Anindilyakwa people of Groote Eylandt in northern Australia in September 2023.

As a practical decolonial strategy, unconditional repatriation means that museums must not prescribe conditions of caring for cultural heritage objects to communities of origin upon their return. This is part of the process of giving communities agency to use their own heritage objects in ways that they deem necessary.

The 26 objects at the heart of Dahomey were not made to be imprisoned in museum storage. They still have potency and can be viewed by communities as living beings which they can use, touch, smell and taste. Although these “objects” may appear stagnant within ethnographic classifications in museums, they have individual biographies and carry with them important meanings connected to their ritual and cultural functions located in societies of origin.

One student succinctly captures this sentiment in the film by recounting how she cried for 15 minutes on seeing the returned sculpture of King Ghezo, who she considered her ancestor. In the end, the restitution of cultural heritage objects by European museums back to Africa must not regarded as loss but rather as a means towards building practical relationships of care with their communities of origin.

Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.

Njabulo Chipangura does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Dahomey: timely repatriation documentary gives a literal voice to Benin’s stolen objects – https://theconversation.com/dahomey-timely-repatriation-documentary-gives-a-literal-voice-to-benins-stolen-objects-242324

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Government appoints Judicial Member for the Senior Salaries Review Body
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

Appointment of Mark Emerton as Judicial Member for the Senior Salaries Review Body.
The Government has appointed Mark Emerton as the Judicial Member for the Senior Salaries Review Body.

This role is responsible for supporting the delivery of the annual reporting cycle for the remit of the Judiciary and the Major Judicial Review. Mark Emerton will work with the Senior Salaries Review Body, which provides independent advice to the Prime Minister and senior ministers on the pay of many of the nation’s top public servants.

The SSRB’s remit covers senior civil servants, the judiciary, the senior military, certain senior managers in the NHS, Police and Crime Commissioners and chief police officers.

Mark is a retired employment judge and former member of the Judicial College Board. He is an experienced judicial trainer, and has previously served as Chair of Havant Judicial Standing Committee and as a Diversity and Community Relations Judge.

The appointment process for this role was in full accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ Code of Practice.

Mark will start his role in October. He takes over from Sharon Witherspoon, a former judicial member, who in April 2024 was appointed interim judicial member to the SSRB for a period of six months.

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Published 29 October 2024
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
January 25, 2025
MIL-OSI United Nations: Secretary-General’s Remarks at the High-Level Segment of COP16 on Biodiversity [trilingual, as delivered; scroll down for all-English]

Source: United Nations secretary general

Presidente Petro,

Gracias por acoger esta importante sesión, aquí en Cali – un microcosmos de la rica biodiversidad de nuestro planeta.

Excelencias, queridos amigos,

La naturaleza es vida.

Y, sin embargo, estamos librando una guerra contra ella.

Una guerra donde no puede haber vencedores.

Cada año, vemos las temperaturas subir más y más.

Cada día, perdemos más especies.

Cada minuto, vertemos un camión de basura de desechos plásticos en nuestros océanos, ríos y lagos.

No se equivoquen.

Así es como se ve una crisis existencial.

Ningún país, rico o pobre, es inmune a la devastación provocada por el cambio climático, la pérdida de biodiversidad, la degradación de la tierra y la contaminación.

Estas crisis ambientales están entrelazadas. No conocen fronteras.

Y están devastando ecosistemas y medios de vida, amenazando la salud humana y socavando el desarrollo sostenible.

Los motores de esta destrucción están arraigados en modelos económicos obsoletos, que alimentan patrones insostenibles de producción y consumo.

Y se ven multiplicados por las desigualdades – en riqueza y poder.

Cada día que pasa, nos acercamos más a puntos de inflexión que podrían alimentar más hambre, desplazamientos y incluso conflictos armados.

Ya hemos alterado el 75% de la superficie terrestre y el 66% de los océanos.

Queridas amigas y queridos amigos,

La biodiversidad es aliada de la humanidad.

Debemos pasar de saquearla a preservarla.

Como he dicho una y otra vez, hacer las paces con la naturaleza es la tarea definitoria del siglo XXI.

Ese es el espíritu de la Declaración de hoy de la Coalición Mundial por la Paz con la Naturaleza:

Un llamado a la acción para mejorar los esfuerzos nacionales e internacionales hacia una relación equilibrada y armoniosa con la naturaleza – protegiendo la naturaleza y conservando, restaurando, utilizando y compartiendo de manera sostenible nuestra biodiversidad global.

Un llamado a reconocer el conocimiento vital, las innovaciones y las prácticas de los Pueblos indígenas y afrodescendientes, los agricultores y las comunidades locales.

Un llamado por la vida.

Excellencies, Dear friends,

Last month, UN Member States adopted the Pact for the Future.

The Pact recognizes the need to accelerate efforts to restore, protect, conserve and sustainably use the environment.

It emphasizes the importance of halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030, and other terrestrial and marine ecosystems that act as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases.

This means conserving biodiversity, while ensuring social and environmental safeguards – in line with the Paris Climate Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

When the Framework was adopted two years ago in Montreal, the world made bold commitments to living in harmony with nature by mid-century.

Its goals and targets require robust monitoring, reporting, and review arrangements to track progress, as well as a resource mobilisation package to increase finance for biodiversity from all sources – mobilizing at least USD 200 billion per year by 2030.

But we must now turn these promises into action in four vital ways.

First – at the national level, all countries must finally present clear, ambitious and detailed plans to align with the Framework’s targets.

These national plans should be developed in coordination with Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans – with positive outcomes in the Sustainable Development Goals.

We must shift to nature-positive business models and production: renewable energies and sustainable supply chains… zero-waste policies and circular economies… regenerative agriculture and sustainable farming practices…

These must become the default for governments and businesses alike.

Second – we must agree on a strengthened monitoring and transparency framework.

This is not only vital for accountability but also about enabling course corrections and driving ambition.

Third – finance promises must be kept and support to developing countries accelerated.

We cannot afford to leave Cali without new pledges to adequately capitalize the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, and without commitments to mobilize other sources of public and private finance to deliver the Framework – in full.

And we must bring the private sector on board.

Those profiting from nature cannot treat it like a free, infinite resource.

They must step up and contribute to its protection and restoration.

By operationalizing the mechanism on the sharing of benefits from the use of Digital Sequence Information on Genetic Resources, we will give them one clear avenue to do so, bringing more equity and inclusivity.

Finally – in the spirit of this “COP de la gente”, we must engage all parts of society, in particular Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities.

Too often, they have been on the sidelines of global environmental policy.

Too often, environmental defenders have been threatened and killed.

Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities are guardians of our nature.

Their traditional knowledge is a living library of biodiversity conservation.

They must be protected.

And they must be part of every biodiversity conversation.

The establishment of a permanent subsidiary body within the Convention on Biological Diversity would mark a significant step forward, ensuring Indigenous voices are heard at every stage of the process.

Peace with nature means peace with those who protect it.

We must defend the people who defend nature.

Excellencies,

Across all these areas, we know progress is possible.

Many countries around the world are stepping up to lead the way.

Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia and Malaysia are leading by example by ramping up efforts to curb deforestation.

The Congo Basin is intensifying efforts to increase protected area coverage.

The European Union’s Nature Restoration Law is a step toward halting and reversing biodiversity loss.

Mobilizing all countries – each with different levels of wealth and capacities – is challenging.

But swift global cooperation can provide the defense we so desperately need – against wildfires, floods, extreme weather, and pandemics.

Last year’s Agreement on Marine Biodiversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction demonstrated our determination for every hectare of the planet.

We need the same determination later in the year as countries come together to conclude negotiations on a landmark treaty to tackle plastic pollution.

Let us be inspired and lifted by these examples.

Excellences, Chers amis,

Notre mission à Cali est claire : accélérer le progrès pour la biodiversité ; mobiliser les ressources nécessaires ; et renforcer le rôle des peuples autochtones, des personnes d’ascendance africaine et des communautés locales.

Nous pouvons – et nous devons – sauvegarder les écosystèmes qui nous font vivre et maintenir les objectifs climatiques à notre portée.

Tout autre chemin est impensable.

Il en va de la survie de la planète – et de la [nôtre].

Choisissons avec sagesse.

Choisissons la vie.

Faisons la paix avec la nature.

Je vous remercie.

****

[All-English]

President Petro,

Thank you for hosting this important session, here in Cali – a microcosm of our planet’s rich biodiversity.

Excellencies, dear friends,

Nature is life.

And yet we are waging a war against it.

A war where there can be no winner.

Every year, we see temperatures climbing higher.

Every day, we lose more species.

Every minute, we dump a garbage truck of plastic waste into our oceans, rivers and lakes.

Make no mistake.

This is what an existential crisis looks like.

No country, rich or poor, is immune to the devastation inflicted by climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation and pollution.

These environmental crises are intertwined. They know no borders.

And they are devastating ecosystems and livelihoods, threatening human health and undermining sustainable development.

The drivers of this destruction are embedded in outdated economic models, fueling unsustainable production and consumption patterns.

They are multiplied by inequalities – in wealth and power.

And with each passing day, we are edging closer to tipping points that could fuel further hunger, displacement, and even armed conflicts.

We have already altered 75% of the Earth’s land surface and 66% of its ocean environments.

Dear friends,

Biodiversity is humanity’s ally.

We must move from plundering it to preserving it.

As I have said time and again, making peace with nature is the defining task of the 21st century.

That is the spirit of today’s Declaration of the World Coalition for Peace with Nature:

A call for action to enhance national and international efforts towards a balanced and harmonious relationship with nature – protecting nature and conserving, restoring and sustainably using and sharing our global biodiversity.

A call to recognize the vital knowledge, innovations and practices of Indigenous people, people of African descent, farmers and local communities.

A call for life.

Excellencies,

Last month, UN Member States adopted the Pact for the Future.

The Pact recognizes the need to accelerate efforts to restore, protect, conserve and sustainably use the environment.

It emphasizes the importance of halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030, and other terrestrial and marine ecosystems that act as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases.

This means conserving biodiversity, while ensuring social and environmental safeguards – in line with the Paris Climate Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

When the Framework was adopted two years ago in Montreal, the world made bold commitments to living in harmony with nature by mid-century.

Its goals and targets require robust monitoring, reporting, and review arrangements to track progress, as well as a resource mobilisation package to increase finance for biodiversity from all sources – mobilizing at least USD 200 billion per year by 2030.

But we must now turn these promises into action in four vital ways.

First – at the national level, all countries must finally present clear, ambitious and detailed plans to align with the Framework’s targets.

These national plans should be developed in coordination with Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans – with positive outcomes in the Sustainable Development Goals.

We must shift to nature-positive business models and production: renewable energies and sustainable supply chains… zero-waste policies and circular economies… regenerative agriculture and sustainable farming practices…

These must become the default for governments and businesses alike.

Second – we must agree on a strengthened monitoring and transparency framework.

This is not only vital for accountability but also about enabling course corrections and driving ambition.

Third – finance promises must be kept and support to developing countries accelerated.

We cannot afford to leave Cali without new pledges to adequately capitalize the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, and without commitments to mobilize other sources of public and private finance to deliver the Framework – in full.

And we must bring the private sector on board.

Those profiting from nature cannot treat it like a free, infinite resource.

They must step up and contribute to its protection and restoration.

By operationalizing the mechanism on the sharing of benefits from the use of Digital Sequence Information on Genetic Resources, we will give them one clear avenue to do so, bringing more equity and inclusivity.

Finally – in the spirit of this “COP de la gente”, we must engage all parts of society, in particular Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities.

Too often, they have been on the sidelines of global environmental policy.

Too often, environmental defenders have been threatened and killed.

Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities are guardians of our nature.

Their traditional knowledge is a living library of biodiversity conservation.

They must be protected.

And they must be part of every biodiversity conversation.

The establishment of a permanent subsidiary body within the Convention on Biological Diversity would mark a significant step forward, ensuring Indigenous voices are heard at every stage of the process.

Peace with nature means peace for those who protect it.

We must defend the people who defend nature.

Excellencies,

Across all these areas, we know progress is possible.

Many countries around the world are stepping up to lead the way.

Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia and Malaysia are leading by example by ramping up efforts to curb deforestation.

The Congo Basin is intensifying efforts to increase protected area coverage.

The European Union’s Nature Restoration Law is a step toward halting and reversing biodiversity loss.

Mobilizing all countries – each with different levels of wealth and capacities – is challenging.

But swift global cooperation can provide the defense we so desperately need – against wildfires, floods, extreme weather, and pandemics.

Last year’s Agreement on Marine Biodiversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction demonstrated our determination for every hectare of the planet.

We need the same determination later in the year as countries come together to conclude negotiations on a landmark treaty to tackle plastic pollution.

Let us be inspired and lifted by these examples.

Excellencies, Dear friends,

We are in Cali to accelerate progress, commit resources, and elevate the role of Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities.

We can – and we must – save the ecosystems that sustain us and keep our climate goals within reach.

The alternative is unthinkable.

The survival of our planet — and our own — is on the line.

Let us choose wisely.

Let us choose life.

Let us make peace with nature.

Thank you.

MIL OSI United Nations News –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI: Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis Announces Third Quarter 2024 Dividends, Reports Earnings

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

INDIANAPOLIS, Oct. 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today the Board of Directors of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Indianapolis (“FHLBank Indianapolis” or “Bank”) declared its third quarter 2024 dividends on Class B-2 activity-based capital stock and Class B-1 non-activity-based stock at annualized rates of 9.50% and 4.50%, respectively. The higher dividend rate on activity-based stock reflects the Board’s discretion under the Bank’s capital plan to reward members that use FHLBank Indianapolis in support of their liquidity needs.

The dividends will be paid in cash on October 30, 2024.

Earnings Highlights

Net income, for the third quarter of 2024, was $91 million, a net increase of $214,000 compared to the corresponding quarter in the prior year. The increase was primarily due to net changes in gains (losses) on investments, substantially offset by an increase in voluntary allocations to affordable housing, small business and community investment programs.

Net income, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, was $275 million, a net increase of $1 million compared to the corresponding period in the prior year. The increase was primarily due to higher earnings on the portion of the Bank’s assets funded by its capital.¹ However, such increase was substantially offset by net gains on the extinguishment of consolidated obligations in the corresponding period that did not occur in the current period and an increase in voluntary allocations to affordable housing, small business and community investment programs.

__________________¹ FHLBank Indianapolis earns interest income on advances to and mortgage loans purchased from its Michigan and Indiana member financial institutions, as well as on long- and short-term investments. Net interest income is primarily determined by the size of the Bank’s balance sheet and the spread between the interest earned on its assets and the interest cost of funding with consolidated obligations. Because of the Bank’s inherent relatively low interest-rate spread, it has historically derived a substantial portion of its net interest income from deploying its interest-free capital in floating-rate assets.

Affordable Housing Program Allocation

The Bank’s Affordable Housing Program (“AHP”) provides grant funding to support housing for low- and moderate-income families in communities served by its Michigan and Indiana members. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, AHP assessments² totaled $32 million. Full-year 2024 required allocations will be available to the Bank’s members in 2025 to help address their communities’ affordable housing needs, including construction, rehabilitation, accessibility improvements and homebuyer down-payment assistance.

In addition, as part of the Bank’s commitment to further support its AHP and additional affordable housing, small business and community investment programs, the Bank voluntarily allocated additional funding in 2024 totaling $23 million, based on 5% of its net earnings for 2023. During the third quarter of 2024, the Bank also committed additional voluntary funding of $10 million, raising the total voluntary allocation for 2024 to $33 million, of which $17 million has been recognized in the nine-month period and is reported in other expenses. The timing of the recognition of such allocations in other expenses can vary due to the application of the related accounting requirements.

As a result, the Bank’s combined required and voluntary allocation recognized in the nine-month period totaled $49 million, an increase of $11 million, or 30%, compared to the corresponding period in the prior year.

Condensed Statements of Income

The following table presents unaudited condensed statements of income ($ amounts in millions):

	Three Months Ended September 30,				Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2024		2023		2024		2023
Interest income ^(a)	$	1,090	$	974	$	3,140	$	2,743
Interest expense ^(a)		960		846		2,756		2,388
Provision for credit losses		—		—		—		—
Net interest income after provision for credit losses		130		128		384		355
Other income ^(b)		9		—		26		39
Other expenses ^(c)		37		27		103		89
AHP assessments		11		10		32		31

Net income	$	91	$	91	$	275	$	274

^(a)		Includes hedging gains (losses) and net interest settlements on fair-value hedge relationships. The Bank uses derivatives, specifically interest-rate swaps, to hedge the risk of changes in the fair value of certain of its advances, available-for-sale securities and consolidated obligations. These derivatives are designated as fair-value hedges and, therefore, changes in the estimated fair value of the derivative, and changes in the fair value of the hedged item that are attributable to the hedged risk, are recorded in net interest income.
^(b)		Includes impact of purchase discount (premium) recorded through mark-to-market gains (losses) on trading securities and net interest settlements on derivatives hedging trading securities, while generally offsetting interest income on trading securities is included in interest income.
^(c)		Includes voluntary allocations to the Bank’s AHP and other affordable housing, small business and community investment programs.

__________________
² Each year, Federal Home Loan Banks are required to allocate to the AHP 10% of earnings, defined for this purpose as income before assessments plus interest expense on mandatorily redeemable capital stock.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Total assets, at September 30, 2024, were $81.1 billion, a net increase of $4.5 billion, or 6%, from December 31, 2023, primarily due to an increase in advances outstanding.

Advances ³

Advances outstanding, at September 30, 2024, at carrying value, totaled $38.6 billion, a net increase of $3.0 billion, or 9%, from December 31, 2023. The par value of advances outstanding increased by 7% to $38.5 billion, which included a net increase in short-term advances of 31% and a net decrease in long-term advances of 2%. At September 30, 2024, based on contractual maturities, long-term advances composed 67% of advances outstanding, while short-term advances composed 33%.

The par value of advances outstanding to depository institutions — comprising commercial banks, savings institutions and credit unions — increased by 11%, while advances outstanding to insurance companies increased by 1%. As a percent of total advances outstanding at par value, at September 30, 2024, advances to commercial banks and savings institutions were 50% and advances to credit unions were 15%, resulting in total advances to depository institutions of 65%, while advances to insurance companies were 35%.

Mortgage Loans Held for Portfolio ⁴

Mortgage loans held for portfolio, at September 30, 2024, totaled $10.0 billion, a net increase of $1.3 billion, or 16%, from December 31, 2023, as the Bank’s purchases from its members exceeded principal repayments by borrowers. Purchases of mortgage loans from members, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, totaled $2.0 billion.

Liquidity Investments ⁵

Liquidity investments, at September 30, 2024, totaled $11.3 billion, a net decrease of $874 million, or 7%, from December 31, 2023. The Bank’s liquidity remained well above regulatory requirements and continues to enable the Bank to be a reliable liquidity provider to its members.

Cash and short-term investments decreased by $1.4 billion, or 12%, to $10.2 billion. The portion of U.S. Treasury obligations classified as trading securities increased by $501 million, or 84%, to $1.1 billion. As a result of this activity, cash and short-term investments represented 90% of the total liquidity investments at September 30, 2024, while U.S. Treasury obligations represented 10%.

The total outstanding balance and composition of the Bank’s liquidity investments are influenced by its liquidity needs, regulatory requirements, actual and anticipated member advance activity, market conditions, and the availability of short-term investments at attractive interest rates, relative to the cost of funds.

Other Investment Securities

Other investment securities, which consist substantially of mortgage-backed securities and U.S. Treasury obligations classified as held-to-maturity or available-for-sale, at September 30, 2024, totaled $20.3 billion, a net increase of $881 million, or 5%, from December 31, 2023.

__________________
³ Advances are secured loans that the Bank provides to its member institutions.
⁴ The Bank purchases mortgage loans from its members to support its housing mission, provide an additional source of liquidity to its members, and diversify its investments.
⁵ The Bank’s liquidity investments consist of cash, interest-bearing deposits, securities purchased under agreements to resell, federal funds sold and U.S. Treasury obligations.

Consolidated Obligations ⁶

FHLBank Indianapolis’ consolidated obligations outstanding, at September 30, 2024, totaled $75.0 billion, a net increase of $3.9 billion, or 6%, from December 31, 2023, which reflected increased funding needs associated with the net increase in the Bank’s total assets.

Capital ⁷

Total capital, at September 30, 2024, was $4.1 billion, a net increase of $383 million, or 10%, from December 31, 2023. The net increase resulted from issuances of capital stock to support advance activity, the growth in retained earnings and an increase in accumulated other comprehensive income.

The Bank’s regulatory capital-to-assets ratio⁸, at September 30, 2024, was 5.56%, which exceeds all applicable regulatory capital requirements.

__________________
⁶ The primary source of funds for FHLBank Indianapolis, and for the other FHLBanks, is the sale of FHLBanks’ consolidated obligations in the capital markets. FHLBank Indianapolis is the primary obligor for the payment of the principal and interest on the consolidated obligations issued on its behalf; additionally, it is jointly and severally liable with each of the other FHLBanks for all of the FHLBanks’ consolidated obligations outstanding.
⁷ FHLBank Indianapolis is a cooperative whose member financial institutions and former members own all of its capital stock as a condition of membership and to support outstanding credit products.
⁸ Total regulatory capital, which consists of capital stock, mandatorily redeemable capital stock and retained earnings, as a percentage of total assets.

Condensed Statements of Condition

The following table presents unaudited condensed statements of condition ($ amounts in millions):

	September 30, 2024			December 31, 2023
Advances	$	38,600		$	35,562
Mortgage loans held for portfolio, net		9,955			8,614
Liquidity investments		11,278			12,152
Other investment securities ^(a)		20,332			19,451
Other assets		894			829

Total assets	$	81,059		$	76,608

Consolidated obligations	$	74,989		$	71,053
MRCS		363			369
Other liabilities		1,580			1,442
Total liabilities		76,932			72,864

Capital stock ^(b)		2,476			2,285
Retained earnings ^(c)		1,668			1,532
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)		(17	)		(73	)
Total capital		4,127			3,744

Total liabilities and capital	$	81,059		$	76,608

Total regulatory capital ^(d)	$	4,507		$	4,186

Regulatory capital-to-assets ratio		5.56	%		5.46	%

^(a)		Includes held-to-maturity and available-for-sale securities.
^(b)		Putable by members at par value.
^(c)		Includes restricted retained earnings, at September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, of $453 million and $398 million, respectively.
(d)		Consists of total capital less accumulated other comprehensive income plus mandatorily redeemable capital stock.

All amounts referenced above are unaudited. More detailed information about FHLBank Indianapolis’ financial condition as of September 30, 2024, and its results for the three and nine months then ended, will be included in Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in the Bank’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

Safe Harbor Statement

This news release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events and performance. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as “will,” “believes,” “may,” “temporary,” “estimates,” and “expects” or the negative of these words or comparable terminology. Each forward-looking statement contained in this news release reflects FHLBank Indianapolis’ current beliefs and expectations. Actual results or performance may differ materially from what is expressed in any forward-looking statements.

Any forward-looking statement contained in this news release speaks only as of the date on which it was made. FHLBank Indianapolis undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, except as may be required by law. Readers are referred to the documents filed by the Bank with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, specifically reports on Form 10-K and Form 10-Q, which include factors that could cause actual results to differ from forward-looking statements. These reports are available at www.sec.gov.

Media Contact:
Scott Thien
Sr. Communications Lead
317-902-3103
sthien@fhlbi.com

Building Partnerships. Serving Communities.
FHLBank Indianapolis is a regional bank included in the Federal Home Loan Bank System. FHLBanks are government-sponsored enterprises created by Congress to provide access to low-cost funding for their member financial institutions, with particular attention paid to providing solutions that support the housing and small business needs of members’ customers. FHLBanks are privately capitalized and funded, and receive no Congressional appropriations. FHLBank Indianapolis is owned by its Indiana and Michigan financial institution members, including commercial banks, credit unions, insurance companies, savings institutions and community development financial institutions. For more information about FHLBank Indianapolis, visit www.fhlbi.com. Also, follow the Bank on LinkedIn, as well as Instagram and X at @FHLBankIndy.

The MIL Network –

January 25, 2025

MIL-OSI Africa: Secretary-General’s Remarks at the High-Level Segment of COP16 on Biodiversity [trilingual, as delivered; scroll down for all-English]

Source: United Nations – English

residente Petro,

Gracias por acoger esta importante sesión, aquí en Cali – un microcosmos de la rica biodiversidad de nuestro planeta.

Excelencias, queridos amigos,

La naturaleza es vida.

Y, sin embargo, estamos librando una guerra contra ella.

Una guerra donde no puede haber vencedores.

Cada año, vemos las temperaturas subir más y más.

Cada día, perdemos más especies.

Cada minuto, vertemos un camión de basura de desechos plásticos en nuestros océanos, ríos y lagos.

No se equivoquen.

Así es como se ve una crisis existencial.

Ningún país, rico o pobre, es inmune a la devastación provocada por el cambio climático, la pérdida de biodiversidad, la degradación de la tierra y la contaminación.

Estas crisis ambientales están entrelazadas. No conocen fronteras.

Y están devastando ecosistemas y medios de vida, amenazando la salud humana y socavando el desarrollo sostenible.

Los motores de esta destrucción están arraigados en modelos económicos obsoletos, que alimentan patrones insostenibles de producción y consumo.

Y se ven multiplicados por las desigualdades – en riqueza y poder.

Cada día que pasa, nos acercamos más a puntos de inflexión que podrían alimentar más hambre, desplazamientos y incluso conflictos armados.

Ya hemos alterado el 75% de la superficie terrestre y el 66% de los océanos.

Queridas amigas y queridos amigos,

La biodiversidad es aliada de la humanidad.

Debemos pasar de saquearla a preservarla.

Como he dicho una y otra vez, hacer las paces con la naturaleza es la tarea definitoria del siglo XXI.

Ese es el espíritu de la Declaración de hoy de la Coalición Mundial por la Paz con la Naturaleza:

Un llamado a la acción para mejorar los esfuerzos nacionales e internacionales hacia una relación equilibrada y armoniosa con la naturaleza – protegiendo la naturaleza y conservando, restaurando, utilizando y compartiendo de manera sostenible nuestra biodiversidad global.

Un llamado a reconocer el conocimiento vital, las innovaciones y las prácticas de los Pueblos indígenas y afrodescendientes, los agricultores y las comunidades locales.

Un llamado por la vida.

Excellencies, Dear friends,

Last month, UN Member States adopted the Pact for the Future.

The Pact recognizes the need to accelerate efforts to restore, protect, conserve and sustainably use the environment.

It emphasizes the importance of halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030, and other terrestrial and marine ecosystems that act as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases.

This means conserving biodiversity, while ensuring social and environmental safeguards – in line with the Paris Climate Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

When the Framework was adopted two years ago in Montreal, the world made bold commitments to living in harmony with nature by mid-century.

Its goals and targets require robust monitoring, reporting, and review arrangements to track progress, as well as a resource mobilisation package to increase finance for biodiversity from all sources – mobilizing at least USD 200 billion per year by 2030.

But we must now turn these promises into action in four vital ways.

First – at the national level, all countries must finally present clear, ambitious and detailed plans to align with the Framework’s targets.

These national plans should be developed in coordination with Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans – with positive outcomes in the Sustainable Development Goals.

We must shift to nature-positive business models and production: renewable energies and sustainable supply chains… zero-waste policies and circular economies… regenerative agriculture and sustainable farming practices…

These must become the default for governments and businesses alike.

Second – we must agree on a strengthened monitoring and transparency framework.

This is not only vital for accountability but also about enabling course corrections and driving ambition.

Third – finance promises must be kept and support to developing countries accelerated.

We cannot afford to leave Cali without new pledges to adequately capitalize the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, and without commitments to mobilize other sources of public and private finance to deliver the Framework – in full.

And we must bring the private sector on board.

Those profiting from nature cannot treat it like a free, infinite resource.

They must step up and contribute to its protection and restoration.

By operationalizing the mechanism on the sharing of benefits from the use of Digital Sequence Information on Genetic Resources, we will give them one clear avenue to do so, bringing more equity and inclusivity.

Finally – in the spirit of this “COP de la gente”, we must engage all parts of society, in particular Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities.

Too often, they have been on the sidelines of global environmental policy.

Too often, environmental defenders have been threatened and killed.

Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities are guardians of our nature.

Their traditional knowledge is a living library of biodiversity conservation.

They must be protected.

And they must be part of every biodiversity conversation.

The establishment of a permanent subsidiary body within the Convention on Biological Diversity would mark a significant step forward, ensuring Indigenous voices are heard at every stage of the process.

Peace with nature means peace with those who protect it.

We must defend the people who defend nature.

Excellencies,

Across all these areas, we know progress is possible.

Many countries around the world are stepping up to lead the way.

Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia and Malaysia are leading by example by ramping up efforts to curb deforestation.

The Congo Basin is intensifying efforts to increase protected area coverage.

The European Union’s Nature Restoration Law is a step toward halting and reversing biodiversity loss.

Mobilizing all countries – each with different levels of wealth and capacities – is challenging.

But swift global cooperation can provide the defense we so desperately need – against wildfires, floods, extreme weather, and pandemics.

Last year’s Agreement on Marine Biodiversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction demonstrated our determination for every hectare of the planet.

We need the same determination later in the year as countries come together to conclude negotiations on a landmark treaty to tackle plastic pollution.

Let us be inspired and lifted by these examples.

Excellences, Chers amis,

Notre mission à Cali est claire : accélérer le progrès pour la biodiversité ; mobiliser les ressources nécessaires ; et renforcer le rôle des peuples autochtones, des personnes d’ascendance africaine et des communautés locales.

Nous pouvons – et nous devons – sauvegarder les écosystèmes qui nous font vivre et maintenir les objectifs climatiques à notre portée.

Tout autre chemin est impensable.

Il en va de la survie de la planète – et de la [nôtre].

Choisissons avec sagesse.

Choisissons la vie.

Faisons la paix avec la nature.

Je vous remercie.

****

[All-English]

President Petro,

Thank you for hosting this important session, here in Cali – a microcosm of our planet’s rich biodiversity.

Excellencies, dear friends,

Nature is life.

And yet we are waging a war against it.

A war where there can be no winner.

Every year, we see temperatures climbing higher.

Every day, we lose more species.

Every minute, we dump a garbage truck of plastic waste into our oceans, rivers and lakes.

Make no mistake.

This is what an existential crisis looks like.

No country, rich or poor, is immune to the devastation inflicted by climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation and pollution.

These environmental crises are intertwined. They know no borders.

And they are devastating ecosystems and livelihoods, threatening human health and undermining sustainable development.

The drivers of this destruction are embedded in outdated economic models, fueling unsustainable production and consumption patterns.

They are multiplied by inequalities – in wealth and power.

And with each passing day, we are edging closer to tipping points that could fuel further hunger, displacement, and even armed conflicts.

We have already altered 75% of the Earth’s land surface and 66% of its ocean environments.

Dear friends,

Biodiversity is humanity’s ally.

We must move from plundering it to preserving it.

As I have said time and again, making peace with nature is the defining task of the 21st century.

That is the spirit of today’s Declaration of the World Coalition for Peace with Nature:

A call for action to enhance national and international efforts towards a balanced and harmonious relationship with nature – protecting nature and conserving, restoring and sustainably using and sharing our global biodiversity.

A call to recognize the vital knowledge, innovations and practices of Indigenous people, people of African descent, farmers and local communities.

A call for life.

Excellencies,

Last month, UN Member States adopted the Pact for the Future.

The Pact recognizes the need to accelerate efforts to restore, protect, conserve and sustainably use the environment.

It emphasizes the importance of halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030, and other terrestrial and marine ecosystems that act as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases.

This means conserving biodiversity, while ensuring social and environmental safeguards – in line with the Paris Climate Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

When the Framework was adopted two years ago in Montreal, the world made bold commitments to living in harmony with nature by mid-century.

Its goals and targets require robust monitoring, reporting, and review arrangements to track progress, as well as a resource mobilisation package to increase finance for biodiversity from all sources – mobilizing at least USD 200 billion per year by 2030.

But we must now turn these promises into action in four vital ways.

First – at the national level, all countries must finally present clear, ambitious and detailed plans to align with the Framework’s targets.

These national plans should be developed in coordination with Nationally Determined Contributions and National Adaptation Plans – with positive outcomes in the Sustainable Development Goals.

We must shift to nature-positive business models and production: renewable energies and sustainable supply chains… zero-waste policies and circular economies… regenerative agriculture and sustainable farming practices…

These must become the default for governments and businesses alike.

Second – we must agree on a strengthened monitoring and transparency framework.

This is not only vital for accountability but also about enabling course corrections and driving ambition.

Third – finance promises must be kept and support to developing countries accelerated.

We cannot afford to leave Cali without new pledges to adequately capitalize the Global Biodiversity Framework Fund, and without commitments to mobilize other sources of public and private finance to deliver the Framework – in full.

And we must bring the private sector on board.

Those profiting from nature cannot treat it like a free, infinite resource.

They must step up and contribute to its protection and restoration.

By operationalizing the mechanism on the sharing of benefits from the use of Digital Sequence Information on Genetic Resources, we will give them one clear avenue to do so, bringing more equity and inclusivity.

Finally – in the spirit of this “COP de la gente”, we must engage all parts of society, in particular Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities.

Too often, they have been on the sidelines of global environmental policy.

Too often, environmental defenders have been threatened and killed.

Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities are guardians of our nature.

Their traditional knowledge is a living library of biodiversity conservation.

They must be protected.

And they must be part of every biodiversity conversation.

The establishment of a permanent subsidiary body within the Convention on Biological Diversity would mark a significant step forward, ensuring Indigenous voices are heard at every stage of the process.

Peace with nature means peace for those who protect it.

We must defend the people who defend nature.

Excellencies,

Across all these areas, we know progress is possible.

Many countries around the world are stepping up to lead the way.

Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia and Malaysia are leading by example by ramping up efforts to curb deforestation.

The Congo Basin is intensifying efforts to increase protected area coverage.

The European Union’s Nature Restoration Law is a step toward halting and reversing biodiversity loss.

Mobilizing all countries – each with different levels of wealth and capacities – is challenging.

But swift global cooperation can provide the defense we so desperately need – against wildfires, floods, extreme weather, and pandemics.

Last year’s Agreement on Marine Biodiversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction demonstrated our determination for every hectare of the planet.

We need the same determination later in the year as countries come together to conclude negotiations on a landmark treaty to tackle plastic pollution.

Let us be inspired and lifted by these examples.

Excellencies, Dear friends,

We are in Cali to accelerate progress, commit resources, and elevate the role of Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent, and local communities.

We can – and we must – save the ecosystems that sustain us and keep our climate goals within reach.

The alternative is unthinkable.

The survival of our planet — and our own — is on the line.

Let us choose wisely.

Let us choose life.

Let us make peace with nature.

Thank you.

MIL OSI Africa –

January 25, 2025

Category: Politics

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