Climate and National Security Forum 2018: A Responsibility to Prepare
Channel: eesionline
Date: 2018-02-26

Learn more at: http://www.eesi.org/briefings/view/022618security

The Center for Climate and Security, in partnership with the Environmental and Energy Study Institute and the Henry M. Jackson Foundation, held the 2018 Climate and National Security Forum: A Responsibility to Prepare. This year’s forum panels focused on the risks that climate change presents to national security on an operational and strategic level, and the challenges and opportunities in preparing to counter and manage those risks.

Panel One: What Impacts Do Climate Change Have on U.S. National Security?

As global sea levels rise and extreme weather events become more frequent and more intense, what is the impact on our nation’s military readiness and the capabilities of its forces to carry out their missions? Our distinguished panelists discussed the findings of a newly updated report by the Center for Climate and Security: Sea Level Rise, and the U.S. Military’s Mission.

    Brigadier General Gerald Galloway, U.S. Army (Ret); Former Dean of the Academic Board, U.S. Military Academy at West Point
    General Ron Keys, U.S. Air Force (Ret); Former Commander, Air Combat Command
    Vice Admiral Robert Parker, U.S. Coast Guard (Ret); Former Commander, U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area
    Joan VanDervort, Former Deputy Director for Ranges, Sea and Airspace
    Rear Admiral Jonathan White, U.S. Navy (Ret); President of the Ocean Leadership Consortium
    Hon. John Conger (Moderator), Former Principal Deputy Undersecretary of Defense (Comptroller); Senior Policy Advisor, Center for Climate and Security

Panel Two: What Actions Must the National Security Community Take to Prepare?

The climate change risks identified by our national security and intelligence communities, and the rise in destructive climate-driven impacts on the United States, are not abating. The Climate and Security Advisory Group (CSAG) has concluded that the U.S. Government has a “Responsibility to Prepare” to meet future challenges at home and abroad—to save lives and money, strengthen security, and advance U.S. interests worldwide. Our distinguished panel discussed the recommendations put forth by the CSAG, which detail how the Administration must expand efforts to reduce and manage the security risks of climate change and seize strategic opportunities presented by such efforts.

    Hon. John Conger, Former Principal Deputy Undersecretary of Defense (Comptroller); Senior Policy Advisor, Center for Climate and Security
    Hon. Sherri Goodman, Former Deputy Undersecretary of Defense (Environmental Security); Senior Fellow, Wilson Center
    Rear Admiral Ann C. Phillips, U.S. Navy (Ret); Former Commander, Expeditionary Strike Group TWO
    Rear Admiral David Titley, U.S. Navy (Ret); Director of the Center for Solutions to Weather and Climate Risk at Penn State University, Former Oceanographer of the Navy
    Heather L. Messera (Moderator), Senior Fellow for Government Affairs, Center for Climate and Security

We thank the David Rockefeller Fund and the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for their support of this event.