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Event Summary: Implications for NATO of Climate Security Scenarios in the Balkans
An exercise conducted with the Halifax Peace with Women Fellowship 2023
By Lily Boland
On October 30, the Center for Climate and Security (CCS) led a scenario exercise on climate security for the new class of the Halifax Peace with Women Fellowship, which convenes senior female military leaders from NATO and partner countries for a 3-week executive tour of the political and technological capitals of the United States and Canada. The exercise sought to socialize a better understanding of how climate change hazards shape security risks in a region of importance to the NATO alliance (in this case, the Balkans) and help identify ways in which NATO, partner countries, and their militaries can better prepare for and prevent these risks. Participants included the fellows class along with officials from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Office of Force Education & Training and Office of Arctic and Global Resilience.
September/October 2023 Update: Military Responses to Climate Hazards (MiRCH) Tracker
By Tom Ellison and Ethan Wong
In September and October 2023, the Military Responses to Climate Hazards (MiRCH) documented 19 militaries that deployed in response to floods, hurricanes, droughts, and wildfires in 14 countries, including Libya, Mexico, India, Ghana, the United States, Brazil, and elsewhere.
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New Journal Article: Climate Change Has Awakened the Polar Dragon
By John Conger & Erin Sikorsky
The inaugural edition of the Journal of Arctic and Climate Security Studies, a new publication from the Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies, features the following article from CCS leadership:
Climate Change Has Awakened the Polar Dragon
By John Conger & Erin Sikorsky
Three Climate Issues to Watch in Defense Bills this Fall
by John Conger
For many years, a bipartisan consensus has been built in Washington around the risks that climate change poses to U.S. national security priorities. Congress has passed pragmatic legislation to assess the vulnerability of military infrastructure and forces; to expand U.S. military authorities and capabilities for resilience; and to increase emphasis on the melting Arctic and new tensions between the United States and both Russia and China.
This year, however, climate issues have been drawn into tense and partisan political debates, which at the time of this publication, look like they will lead to a government shutdown. As the overarching government funding issues take center stage, here are three climate issues to keep an eye on as Congress moves defense legislation this Fall.
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