Caterpillar Foundation Announces Commitment to Help Fight Racism and Social Injustice

Rhea-AI Summary

The Caterpillar Foundation has pledged $1 million to combat racism and social injustice, donating $500,000 each to the Equal Justice Initiative and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund. CEO Jim Umpleby expressed the company's commitment to supporting these organizations. The foundation will also continue to fund community programs addressing racism. Caterpillar reported $53.8 billion in sales and revenues for 2019, focusing on sustainable progress and community resilience.

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• Caterpillar Foundation pledged $1 million to fight racism, enhancing corporate social responsibility.
• Funding includes $500,000 each to the Equal Justice Initiative and NAACP Legal Defense Fund, supporting social equity causes.
• Continued investment in community programs that address racism and social injustice.

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• None.

DEERFIELD, Ill., June 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The Caterpillar Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT), today announced a commitment to help fight racism and social injustice.

To honor the lives lost and keep with its mission, the Caterpillar Foundation is donating $1 million split between the following two organizations ($500,000 each):

• The Equal Justice Initiative is committed to ending mass incarceration and excessive punishment, challenging racial and economic injustice, and protecting fundamental human rights for the most vulnerable in our society.
• The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. seeks structural changes to expand democracy, eliminate disparities and achieve racial justice in a society that fulfills the promise of equity for all Americans.

"Caterpillar supports the fight against racism and injustice," said Chairman and CEO Jim Umpleby. "Caterpillar and the Caterpillar Foundation look forward to working with the Equal Justice Initiative and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund to help build a better world."

The Foundation will continue investing in community programs that address the destructive effects of racism and the fight for equal justice.

Through its existing U.S. Matching Gifts Program, the Caterpillar Foundation is also matching employee and retiree donations to eligible organizations that are most important to them, their families and the communities in which we live and work in the fight against racism and social injustice.

About Caterpillar

Since 1925, Caterpillar Inc. has been helping our customers build a better world – making sustainable progress possible and driving positive change on every continent. With 2019 sales and revenues of $53.8 billion, Caterpillar is the world's leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and diesel-electric locomotives. Services offered throughout the product life cycle, cutting-edge technology and decades of product expertise set Caterpillar apart, providing exceptional value to help our customers succeed. The company principally operates through three primary segments – Construction Industries, Resource Industries and Energy & Transportation – and provides financing and related services through its Financial Products segment. For more information, visit caterpillar.com. To connect on social media, visit caterpillar.com/social-media.

About Caterpillar Foundation

Founded in 1952, Caterpillar's philanthropic organization, the Caterpillar Foundation, has contributed about $770 million to help make sustainable progress possible around the world by building resilient communities that thrive in a rapidly changing world. To learn more about the global impact of the Caterpillar Foundation, visit caterpillar.com/foundation. To connect with us on social media, visit caterpillar.com/social-media.

Forward-looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release relate to future events and expectations and are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "believe," "estimate," "will be," "will," " would," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "forecast," "target," "guide," "project," "intend," "could," "should" or other similar words or expressions often identify forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding our outlook, projections, forecasts or trend descriptions. These statements do not guarantee future performance and speak only as of the date they are made, and we do not undertake to update our forward-looking statements.

Caterpillar's actual results may differ materially from those described or implied in our forward-looking statements based on a number of factors, including, but not limited to: (i) global and regional economic conditions and economic conditions in the industries we serve; (ii) commodity price changes, material price increases, fluctuations in demand for our products or significant shortages of material; (iii) government monetary or fiscal policies; (iv) political and economic risks, commercial instability and events beyond our control in the countries in which we operate; (v) international trade policies and their impact on demand for our products and our competitive position, including the imposition of new tariffs or changes in existing tariff rates; (vi) our ability to develop, produce and market quality products that meet our customers' needs; (vii) the impact of the highly competitive environment in which we operate on our sales and pricing; (viii) information technology security threats and computer crime; (ix) inventory management decisions and sourcing practices of our dealers and our OEM customers; (x) a failure to realize, or a delay in realizing, all of the anticipated benefits of our acquisitions, joint ventures or divestitures; (xi) union disputes or other employee relations issues; (xii) adverse effects of unexpected events; (xiii) disruptions or volatility in global financial markets limiting our sources of liquidity or the liquidity of our customers, dealers and suppliers; (xiv) failure to maintain our credit ratings and potential resulting increases to our cost of borrowing and adverse effects on our cost of funds, liquidity, competitive position and access to capital markets; (xv) our Financial Products segment's risks associated with the financial services industry; (xvi) changes in interest rates or market liquidity conditions; (xvii) an increase in delinquencies, repossessions or net losses of Cat Financial's customers; (xviii) currency fluctuations; (xix) our or Cat Financial's compliance with financial and other restrictive covenants in debt agreements; (xx) increased pension plan funding obligations; (xxi) alleged or actual violations of trade or anti-corruption laws and regulations; (xxii) additional tax expense or exposure, including the impact of U.S. tax reform; (xxiii) significant legal proceedings, claims, lawsuits or government investigations; (xxiv) new regulations or changes in financial services regulations; (xxv) compliance with environmental laws and regulations; and (xxvi) other factors described in more detail in Caterpillar's Forms 10-Q, 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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SOURCE Caterpillar Inc.