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Data Wizards: The Heroes of the 21st Century?
The difference between data and practical data can be vast – and can mean the difference between lives lost and lives saved. Indeed, a lot of the data that is used, analyzed and discussed in the academic research worlds rarely finds its way to either policy-makers or practitioners. And if it does, it is often misunderstood, not understood at all, or met with ambivalence. That’s why effective data presentation is so important – especially in the context of increased climate-related risks. But access to raw data sets is also important, as it gives different institutions (and people) with different mandates, missions and needs the flexibility to utilize and interpret data in a way that is most useful for advancing their work, or meeting their specific needs. A few recent articles tackle these two separate but interrelated issues. (more…)
Marqusee and Titley: Learning Security Lessons from Hurricane Sandy
There is a lot we can learn from what went right and what went wrong in our preparation and response to Hurricane Sandy. Two former Department of Defense officials, Jeff Marqusee, former executive director of the DOD’s Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program, and retired Navy Rear Admiral David Titley, director of the Center for Solutions to Weather and Climate Risk at Penn State, recently penned an op-ed for the Virginian-Pilot highlighting what we can learn from the military. Their points are specifically in regards to Hurricane Sandy, but the lessons they draw demonstrate how the “military planning community” is and will be a vital actor in preparing and responding to climate change-associated risks of all kinds. (more…)
A Marshall Plan to Combat Climate Change in the Asia-Pacific: The Missing Piece of the New U.S. Security Strategy
This article is cross-posted from e-International Relations
For the first time since the days of William Howard Taft, the United States is officially reorienting its security and defense strategy to the Asia-Pacific region, closing down military bases in Europe, redeploying soldiers to bases in Australia, and placing the region front and center in its strategic documents. As stated in the U.S. Department of Defense’s 2012 Defense Strategic Guidance note, “while the U.S. military will continue to contribute to security globally, we will of necessity re-balance toward the Asia-Pacific region.” But if this shift is to translate into leadership, the United States needs a complementary investment agenda for building the region’s resilience to key emerging threats – including climate change. (more…)
New Report: The United States, the South China Sea, Natural Resources and Climate Change
After a long transition, and winter break (a strange one, to be sure – the daffodils here in DC started to emerge yesterday, and today it’s snowing…), we’re back.
And what better post-break gift than a new report from the Center for a New American Security? “Cooperation from Strength: The United States, China and the South China Sea” is a good one. You should read the whole thing. But given our focus on climate and security, we’re going to briefly highlight the section on climate change in Will Rogers’ chapter “The Role of Natural Resources in the South China Sea.” (more…)