Video: Hill Briefing on Climate Change and the U.S. Military’s Mission

On June 5, The Center for Climate and Security (CCS), the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and the Henry M. Jackson Foundation (HMJ) hosted a briefing on Capitol Hill exploring climate change risks to U.S. national security – particularly, the effect on Department of Defense (DoD) force readiness, missions and infrastructure. The discussion ranged from prospective impacts on overseas missions, to the current effects of sea level rise and increased flooding on the daily lives of service members and their families on military bases and surrounding communities throughout the United States. Speakers included EESI Executive Director Carol Werner, CCS Director of Government Affairs Colonel Tom Watson, USAF (Ret), and the following distinguished members of the CCS Advisory Board:

• John Conger, Former Principal Deputy Undersecretary of Defense (Comptroller)
• Sherri Goodman, Former Deputy Undersecretary of Defense (Environmental Security)
• General Ron Keys, United States Air Force (Ret); Former Commander, Air Combatant Command
• Brigadier General Gerald Galloway, United States Army (Ret); Former Dean of the Academic Board, U.S. Military Academy at West Point
• Rear Admiral Ann C. Phillips, United States Navy (Ret); Former Commander, Expeditionary Strike Group TWO

See highlights from the briefing here.

You can watch a full video of the briefing, including the Q&A session, below (provided by EESI):

You can also watch just the discussion at the C-SPAN website.

Materials:

• “Fact Sheet: Climate as a Security Risk According to Secretary of Defense, General James Mattis, USMC (Ret),” Center for Climate and Security
• “Military Expert Panel Report: Sea Level Rise and the U.S. Military’s Mission [Full Report],” Center for Climate and Security
• “Military Expert Panel Report: Sea Level Rise and the U.S. Military’s Mission [Summary],” Center for Climate and Security
• “One Pager for Congress (May 2017), Center for Climate and Security