Latest news with #CUI
Hamilton Spectator
a day ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
New report suggests opening churches to the masses as attendance dwindles
When Rev. Kevin George first arrived at St. Paul's Cathedral, congregants accused him of coming to rip out the pews. 'I was like, 'OK, everybody take a breath. I don't have my chainsaw with me,'' he said Friday, a day after welcoming the public into the newly renovated building in downtown London, Ont. It's been 18 months since he started working at the church, and the pews are indeed gone. After much prayer and consideration, the change came with the blessing of the congregation. George is leading the adaptive redevelopment of St. Paul's in an effort to keep the Anglican church building alive in a model not unlike the one endorsed by a new report from the Canadian Urban Institute. It argues churches must change their approach to managing their buildings because declining attendance is putting their longevity at risk. The institute fears the loss of physical buildings could spell the end for the churches' civic function. The non-profit's report says that in addition to their spiritual role, church buildings have long been places where people go for social services, from food pantries to foot clinics and charity bingo to child care. It was that same argument that got members of St. Paul's onside, George said. They asked themselves, 'What are we doing with the space and what does that space do for us to allow us to be the church that we need to be today, tomorrow and for generations to come?' George recalled. 'And when we did that work, the barriers began to fall.' Without the pews, which seated 700, the space can be used in any manner of ways — as a concert venue, a conference hall, and, of course, a space for worship. The renovations, which also included making the space wheelchair accessible and installing much-needed air conditioning, have cost $1.9 million. The congregation and Anglican Diocese of Huron have together raised $1.1 million, and they're now looking to external sources to cover the balance. They're hoping some funds could come from the City of London, which has endorsed the space as a new creative hub. The church will also expand its civic role, George said. 'When I moved downtown in January of 2024, one of the overwhelming narratives about St. Paul's was, 'I can never get in there. The doors are locked,'' he said. 'Well, that's changed dramatically and will continue to change because our attitude now is 'doors open.'' If churches don't adapt, CUI President Mary Rowe said, they face two major threats: development and decay. 'As urban environments kinds of civic spaces that provide this kind of opportunity for informal, casual social interaction, they get encroached upon because the market pressure is such that that building starts to become more desirable for high-end housing,' Rowe said. 'And in small communities where there may not be the same kind of pressure for real estate development, there's no money or resources to shore up the civic functions of these places.' The report contends church spaces, which for decades have benefited from tax exemptions, have a duty to continue offering civic services. But a 2019 study by the National Trust for Canada predicted that one-third of Canada's 27,000 faith buildings, most of which are Christian, would likely close permanently in the next 10 years. 'What we need are new models that get new resources into these places so that you can actually evolve in a way that serves the community around it,' Rowe said. The report attempts to 'unravel the Gordian knot' of how at-risk, faith-built assets like churches should be managed going forward. That's a question Rev. Graham Singh has spent more than a decade working to answer. He's the senior pastor at St. Jax Church in Montreal and CEO of the charity Releven, which works to preserve and repurpose underused churches. St. Jax, formerly called St. James the Apostle Anglican Church, is a sort of prototype for the Releven model. The grand cathedral on Rue Sainte-Catherine ceased operations in 2015. It was in disrepair and maintenance was extremely expensive because of its heritage designation. It reopened the following year under the new name. 'A challenge is the building itself,' Singh said. 'Raising money to repair the roof, which is this heritage-listed slate roof that has to be repaired with like-for-like materials. And then the same thing with the masonry, which is a very expensive 150-year-old stone construction.' But now, the building is home to four separate congregations and a non-religious non-profit, which will soon handle management of the building. Secular tenants of St. Jax include organizations that work in refugee resettlement, food security and youth employment. Meanwhile, the City of Montreal is in the final stages of a process to acquire the green space outside St. Jax with the goal of turning it into a park. Singh also knows about the complexity of working with the municipal government. In order to make all the changes to how the St. Jax building operates, his organization had to prove they had the historic right to change the site's purpose and use. That heritage impact assessment has become part of the Ville-Marie Pilot Project, which opens the door for other churches in the city to share their space with non-religious groups, he said. 'The city has indeed been updating their zoning and urban planning framework to allow more of that to be happening in other locations in the future,' Singh said. Through Releven, he's taking that experience and helping other churches leverage it. The CUI report found one of the barriers for churches looking to change their business model is a lack of knowledge on the part of local leadership. 'There's very few examples of a congregation or a diocese or an owner of a faith building that have been able to do it by themselves because of the complexity of these buildings and the regulatory environment,' said Jennifer Barrett, managing director of programs, planning and policy at CUI. Some churches have partnered with real estate developers. Among them is All Saints' Anglican Church in Winnipeg, whose lands are now home to West Broadway Commons, a 110-unit housing project. Fifty-six of those units are affordable. But in many cases, Barrett said, churches are resistant to that sort of change and fearful of giving up control. 'It is challenging for faith communities to let go of their buildings,' she said. George said that was true for the congregation at St. Paul's. Ultimately, they decided that they should retain ownership of the property. 'We would have become sort of a tenant in our own space, and the Diocesan structure of the Anglican Church doesn't work well for that,' George said. 'We're working on what we believe will be a public-private partnership to administer this going forward because we know we're going to get very busy. I mean, we've only just moved in yesterday, and we're already receiving calls. There's a demand here for a space like this.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
a day ago
- Business
- Winnipeg Free Press
New report suggests opening churches to the masses as attendance dwindles
When Rev. Kevin George first arrived at St. Paul's Cathedral, congregants accused him of coming to rip out the pews. 'I was like, 'OK, everybody take a breath. I don't have my chainsaw with me,'' he said Friday, a day after welcoming the public into the newly renovated building in downtown London, Ont. It's been 18 months since he started working at the church, and the pews are indeed gone. After much prayer and consideration, the change came with the blessing of the congregation. George is leading the adaptive redevelopment of St. Paul's in an effort to keep the Anglican church building alive in a model not unlike the one endorsed by a new report from the Canadian Urban Institute. It argues churches must change their approach to managing their buildings because declining attendance is putting their longevity at risk. The institute fears the loss of physical buildings could spell the end for the churches' civic function. The non-profit's report says that in addition to their spiritual role, church buildings have long been places where people go for social services, from food pantries to foot clinics and charity bingo to child care. It was that same argument that got members of St. Paul's onside, George said. They asked themselves, 'What are we doing with the space and what does that space do for us to allow us to be the church that we need to be today, tomorrow and for generations to come?' George recalled. 'And when we did that work, the barriers began to fall.' Without the pews, which seated 700, the space can be used in any manner of ways — as a concert venue, a conference hall, and, of course, a space for worship. The renovations, which also included making the space wheelchair accessible and installing much-needed air conditioning, have cost $1.9 million. The congregation and Anglican Diocese of Huron have together raised $1.1 million, and they're now looking to external sources to cover the balance. They're hoping some funds could come from the City of London, which has endorsed the space as a new creative hub. The church will also expand its civic role, George said. 'When I moved downtown in January of 2024, one of the overwhelming narratives about St. Paul's was, 'I can never get in there. The doors are locked,'' he said. 'Well, that's changed dramatically and will continue to change because our attitude now is 'doors open.'' If churches don't adapt, CUI President Mary Rowe said, they face two major threats: development and decay. 'As urban environments intensify…those kinds of civic spaces that provide this kind of opportunity for informal, casual social interaction, they get encroached upon because the market pressure is such that that building starts to become more desirable for high-end housing,' Rowe said. 'And in small communities where there may not be the same kind of pressure for real estate development, there's no money or resources to shore up the civic functions of these places.' The report contends church spaces, which for decades have benefited from tax exemptions, have a duty to continue offering civic services. But a 2019 study by the National Trust for Canada predicted that one-third of Canada's 27,000 faith buildings, most of which are Christian, would likely close permanently in the next 10 years. 'What we need are new models that get new resources into these places so that you can actually evolve in a way that serves the community around it,' Rowe said. The report attempts to 'unravel the Gordian knot' of how at-risk, faith-built assets like churches should be managed going forward. That's a question Rev. Graham Singh has spent more than a decade working to answer. He's the senior pastor at St. Jax Church in Montreal and CEO of the charity Releven, which works to preserve and repurpose underused churches. St. Jax, formerly called St. James the Apostle Anglican Church, is a sort of prototype for the Releven model. The grand cathedral on Rue Sainte-Catherine ceased operations in 2015. It was in disrepair and maintenance was extremely expensive because of its heritage designation. It reopened the following year under the new name. 'A challenge is the building itself,' Singh said. 'Raising money to repair the roof, which is this heritage-listed slate roof that has to be repaired with like-for-like materials. And then the same thing with the masonry, which is a very expensive 150-year-old stone construction.' But now, the building is home to four separate congregations and a non-religious non-profit, which will soon handle management of the building. Secular tenants of St. Jax include organizations that work in refugee resettlement, food security and youth employment. Meanwhile, the City of Montreal is in the final stages of a process to acquire the green space outside St. Jax with the goal of turning it into a park. Singh also knows about the complexity of working with the municipal government. In order to make all the changes to how the St. Jax building operates, his organization had to prove they had the historic right to change the site's purpose and use. That heritage impact assessment has become part of the Ville-Marie Pilot Project, which opens the door for other churches in the city to share their space with non-religious groups, he said. 'The city has indeed been updating their zoning and urban planning framework to allow more of that to be happening in other locations in the future,' Singh said. Through Releven, he's taking that experience and helping other churches leverage it. The CUI report found one of the barriers for churches looking to change their business model is a lack of knowledge on the part of local leadership. 'There's very few examples of a congregation or a diocese or an owner of a faith building that have been able to do it by themselves because of the complexity of these buildings and the regulatory environment,' said Jennifer Barrett, managing director of programs, planning and policy at CUI. Some churches have partnered with real estate developers. Among them is All Saints' Anglican Church in Winnipeg, whose lands are now home to West Broadway Commons, a 110-unit housing project. Fifty-six of those units are affordable. But in many cases, Barrett said, churches are resistant to that sort of change and fearful of giving up control. Wednesdays Columnist Jen Zoratti looks at what's next in arts, life and pop culture. 'It is challenging for faith communities to let go of their buildings,' she said. George said that was true for the congregation at St. Paul's. Ultimately, they decided that they should retain ownership of the property. 'We would have become sort of a tenant in our own space, and the Diocesan structure of the Anglican Church doesn't work well for that,' George said. 'We're working on what we believe will be a public-private partnership to administer this going forward because we know we're going to get very busy. I mean, we've only just moved in yesterday, and we're already receiving calls. There's a demand here for a space like this.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 22, 2025.
Business Wire
14-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Cuick Trac Enclave Powers Beryllium InfoSec to CMMC Level 2 Certification
DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Beryllium InfoSec, Inc., a cybersecurity and compliance firm serving the Defense Industrial Base (DIB), has officially achieved Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Level 2 using its flagship solution, Cuick Trac, a FedRAMP Moderate Equivalent, fully managed enclave-as-a-service. This milestone demonstrates that Beryllium's internal information system, powered by Cuick Trac, meets the Department of Defense's rigorous standards for protecting Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). The certification was granted following a formal third-party assessment. A Certified Environment, Not Just a Product CMMC Level 2 certifies an organization's information system, not a standalone tool or platform. Cuick Trac provides the secure foundation, architecture, and documentation necessary for assessment readiness. It is the complete integration of people, process, and technology that achieves certification. By undergoing its own full CMMC Level 2 assessment, Beryllium validated that Cuick Trac can serve as the cornerstone of a certifiable environment. In addition to supporting CMMC certification, Cuick Trac has achieved FedRAMP Ready status, a designation reviewed and approved by the FedRAMP Program Management Office. This distinction reflects the platform's maturity and readiness for organizations requiring cloud solutions that meet federal security standards. Why This Matters to Contractors Contractors handling or pursuing CUI-related contracts must prove they meet CMMC Level 2 standards. Cuick Trac helps them do so faster and with less complexity by providing a managed, assessment-ready platform. Organizations using Cuick Trac inherit key elements of a certified environment, reducing the burden of configuring and maintaining multiple disjointed tools. Both FedRAMP Moderate Equivalency and CMMC Level 2 readiness are embedded into the Cuick Trac experience. How Cuick Trac Helps Organizations Align with CMMC Level 2 Secure enclave mapped to NIST SP 800-171 and DFARS 252.204-7012 Inherited controls with a clearly defined customer responsibility matrix Red team-tested, STIG-hardened, FedRAMP Moderate Equivalent architecture Advisory services to support POA&M development, SSP documentation, and audit readiness Endpoint security guidance, including strategies for VDI scoping and risk reduction From the Leadership Team 'Cuick Trac has been penetration tested, red-teamed, and assessed by both FedRAMP and CMMC auditors with perfect scores. That is the kind of environment you want protecting your CUI.' — Jeff Baldwin, Chief Information Security Officer 'This is what it means to lead by example. To go above and beyond the mission. To make 'CMMC-ready' more than a slogan.' — George Perezdiaz, Director of Compliance Advisory "Our mission at Beryllium is to empower the companies that help keep us safe. One of the main ways we do this is by simplifying cybersecurity and compliance for hundreds of federal contractors with our Cuick Trac Managed Enclave. Achieving CMMC Level 2 marks a massive milestone in our journey since launching Cuick Trac over seven years ago. I could not be prouder of our team – this achievement reflects thousands of hours of dedication, precision, and deep expertise in cybersecurity and compliance. Achieving FedRAMP Moderate and now CMMC Level 2 was not just about checking boxes. It was about proving that our team, our solution, and our process meet and exceed the rigorous standards we support our customers through every day." — Lincoln Neely, CEO Ongoing Commitment This achievement underscores Cuick Trac's broader mission: to simplify compliance without oversimplifying what real security requires. Cuick Trac will continue to evolve in response to Department of Defense expectations, including support for emerging frameworks such as SBOM management, Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA) principles, and NIST 800-160 Volume 2. About Beryllium InfoSec Beryllium InfoSec, Inc., headquartered in Dallas, Texas, is a cybersecurity and compliance firm specializing in helping organizations navigate and satisfy complex security frameworks. Since 2017, Beryllium has delivered expert guidance and tailored solutions, including its flagship platform Cuick Trac, to help organizations achieve and maintain compliance with CMMC, NIST SP 800-171, DFARS, and FedRAMP requirements. About the Cuick Trac Solution Cuick Trac is a fully managed CUI enclave and compliance platform built for defense contractors, primes, and suppliers in the Defense Industrial Base. With built-in controls, expert advisory services, and a FedRAMP Moderate Equivalent foundation, Cuick Trac enables faster and more confident alignment with DFARS, NIST, and CMMC frameworks.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Defense Unicorns Crushes CMMC Level 2 Certification with Zero Findings
Defense Unicorns Crushes CMMC Level 2 Certification with Zero POA&MsOperating The Way They Preserve Speed, Delivery, and Mission Impact COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., May 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Defense Unicorns, a veteran-owned defense tech startup focused on making software a strategic deterrent, announced it has earned final CMMC Level 2 certification, with zero Plans of Action and Milestones (POA&Ms). This milestone authorizes the company to manage Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) under 32 CFR and prepares it for forthcoming 48 CFR enforcement. More significantly, it demonstrates Defense Unicorns' commitment to protecting the nation by securing mission-critical data and ensuring secure operations across all mission environments. "Achieving our certification with modern tools and a good unicorn experience is massive and puts us at the forefront of defense companies," said Jeff McCoy, CTO of Defense Unicorns. "There have only been about 130 CMMC assessments across the DIB this year, and they have a 50 percent pass rate. The DoD estimates there are 76,000 companies that need to attain CMMC, and many 3PAOs are booked for a year. Getting certified today isn't just practical, it's essential for mission success." CMMC Level 2 is poised to become the baseline for thousands of defense contractors handling sensitive data. With certification capacity constrained and enforcement deadlines fast approaching, Defense Unicorns' early achievement underscores a mission-first ethos—embedding robust cybersecurity now so critical software can deploy without delay when warfighters need it most. Security by Design, Not as an Afterthought Defense Unicorns treated CMMC as a strategic investment in mission assurance rather than a compliance hurdle. From day one, the company built a security framework tailored to real-world DoD environments by integrating continuous monitoring, strict access controls, and human-factor safeguards. This ensures that secure software delivery happens seamlessly, without sacrificing speed or operational impact. "At Defense Unicorns, security isn't something we bolt on at the end," said Alexis Gerst, Lead of Security Vanguard at Defense Unicorns. "It's woven into everything we do. We don't just meet cybersecurity standards; we operationalize them in a way that preserves speed, delivery, and mission impact." Built for Partnership and Compliance Flow-Down As CMMC requirements begin to cascade through the supply chain, Defense Unicorns' certified posture and secure-by-design UDS platform make it a reliable partner for any program handling CUI. Early certification demonstrates both operational maturity and alignment with evolving DoD cybersecurity expectations, ensuring mission-critical collaboration moves forward without compromise. To learn how Defense Unicorns and UDS can safeguard your mission data, contact us at hello@ About Defense UnicornsDefense Unicorns is a veteran-owned defense tech startup founded in 2021 to make software a strategic deterrent for the U.S. Department of Defense. We build innovative technical solutions to securely develop and deploy mission software across cloud, on-premises, and tactical edge environments. Defense Unicorns is trusted by the most critical systems in the world, including the U.S. Navy, Army, Air Force, and Space Force. For more information, visit View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Defense Unicorns Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Zawya
03-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
OQGN firms up planning for Oman's H2 pipeline network
MUSCAT: OQ Gas Networks (OQGN), Oman's National Infrastructure Provider for hydrogen pipelines, has committed to leveraging its expertise as the country's sole gas transportation operator to drive down the Levelized Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH) production—an essential factor in advancing Oman's green hydrogen economy. Majority state-owned OQGN – part of OQ Group – also announced that it is collaborating with various government and public sector stakeholders in the development of hydrogen pipeline infrastructure that will support the growth of the green hydrogen industry in Oman. The revelations came during a discussion session hosted recently by publicly-listed OQGN with a focus on its financial and operational performance during 2024. 'OQGN has been one of the leading companies working with the government and other main stakeholders to grow and enable the energy transition, and specifically to enable the green hydrogen economy in Oman,' an official said. 'Oman has strong ambitions to be an exporter of green energy, whether as green hydrogen or its derivatives. We have positioned ourselves to enable this to happen, and to be the infrastructure provider for transportation of hydrogen.' In its capacity as National Infrastructure Provider for hydrogen pipelines, OQGN has been liaising with Hydrom – the orchestrator of Oman's green hydrogen industry – on the master-planning of the pipeline network. 'OQGN is actively involved in Hydrom's feasibility study, aligning on technical, commercial, financial and legal considerations,' the company noted in a presentation. 'We are one of the first companies to sign an MoU with (Hydrom) and we've been working very diligently with them in support of the (national) goal to produce and export about 1 million tonnes per annum of green hydrogen by 2030, rising to 8 million tonnes by 2050 – quantities that mean potential pipeline volumes for us at OQGN,' an official explained. 'In addition, we have conducted a techno-commercial strategic study to look at how we can position ourselves, the business models we can employ here, the potential impacts on us, and obviously what are the revenues we can see from this very attractive business opportunity.' Furthermore, OQGN is working with Hydrom to finalize its pre-FEED study for a Common Use Infrastructure (CUI) system, which will support green hydrogen projects across allocated and future government-awarded land blocks. OQGN's role is to develop and operate pipeline networks that will transport green hydrogen from these land blocks to a dedicated zone planned near the Port of Duqm for the further processing of these green molecules into derivatives like green ammonia and green methanol, among other commodities for export. Part of these green molecules will be used as fuel to power a number of hard-to-abate industries like steel and aluminium. 'OQGN is planning to develop an optimal hydrogen pipeline network to cater to announced and future blocks, taking advantage of economies of scale, and Right of Way (ROW) efficiencies to lower transportation costs,' the company added. OQGN currently owns and operates Oman's 4,235km-long gas transportation network, delivering natural gas as fuel and feedstock to 130 major customers, including Power & Desalination plants, Refineries and Petrochemicals projects, Fertilizers and Chemicals manufacturers, Steel and Cement plants, and assorted industrial parks – distributed across the country. 2022 © All right reserved for Oman Establishment for Press, Publication and Advertising (OEPPA) Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
