The Center for Climate and Security convenes regular policy dialogues in critical areas of the climate and security field, such as the role of national and international security institutions in addressing climate change. Currently, these forums involve a range of institutions and individuals, including leaders in the military, national security, homeland security, intelligence and foreign policy communities. The forums are aimed at both information-sharing and developing best practices for addressing the security risks of a changing climate. These include:
The Center for Climate and Security/ American Security Project Partnership
The Center for Climate and Security partners with the American Security Project on a range of projects, particularly on the intersection of climate change and the U.S. national security enterprise. This includes collaborating on analysis, policy development and communications, including joint public letters and statements.
Letter to the President of the United States, March 5, 2019
The International Military Council on Climate and Security (IMCCS)
The International Military Council on Climate and Security (IMCCS) is an umbrella “standing” network of senior military leaders across the globe that is organized by the Center for Climate and Security in concert with international partners. The IMCCS will meet regularly, produce an annual World Climate and Security Report, drive communications and policy in support of international actions on the security implications of a changing climate, and amplify existing climate and security networks.
The Center for Climate and Security Advisory Board (CCS Advisory Board)
The CCS Advisory Board is a group of military, national security and foreign policy experts committed to addressing the security implications of a changing climate. The CCS Advisory Board issues press releases and letters to bring attention to the ways in which climate change affects national and international security, as well as practical solutions for addressing those risks.
Letter to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, May 8, 2017
Letter to Secretary of Defense James Mattis, May 8, 2017
The Climate and Security Advisory Group (CSAG)
The CSAG is a voluntary, non-partisan group of U.S.-based military, national security, homeland security, intelligence and foreign policy experts from a broad range of institutions, focused on developing policies for addressing the security implications of climate change. The CSAG is chaired by the Center for Climate and Security in partnership with the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs.
Products:
CSAG: “Challenge Accepted: A Progress Report on the Climate Security Plan for America and Recommendations for the Way Ahead,” March 31, 2022
Release event video.
CSAG: “A Climate Security Plan for America: A Presidential Plan for Combating the Security Risks of Climate Change,” September 24, 2019
Release event details and video
Edited by John Conger, Francesco Femia and Caitlin Werrell
Release event video.
CSAG Briefer: “The U.S. Department of Defense’s Forthcoming Climate Change Vulnerability Report: What to Expect and How Congress Should Use It”
November 2018
The CSAG Roadmap and Recommendations for the U.S. Government, “A Responsibility to Prepare: Strengthening National and Homeland Security in the Face of a Changing Climate,” February 2018
Release event video.
The CSAG Briefing Book for a New Administration, September 2016
Release event with Hon. Sherri Goodman; Rear Admiral David Titley, USN (ret); Brigadier General Bob Barnes; Dr. Marcus King; Captain James Goudreau, SC, USN (ret)
Climate Security Consensus Project
The Climate Security Consensus Project is a bipartisan group of national security and military leaders that made the following determination in 2016: “Climate change present a strategically-significant risk to U.S. national security and international security, and…the U.S. must advance a comprehensive policy for addressing this risk.”
Products:
Climate Security Consensus Project Statement, September 2016
Release event with Admiral Samuel Locklear, III, USN (ret); General Ronald Keys, USAF (ret); Hon. Dov Zakheim; Dr. Geoffrey Kemp; Commander David “Deke” Slayon, USN (ret); Hon. Sherri Goodman
The Climate and Security Working Group International (CSWG-I)
The CSWG-I is an international forum of security experts and professionals focused on sharing information and best practices regarding the international security risks of climate change, and developing policies for addressing those risks
Products:
International Climate and Security Consensus Statement, November 2016
The Climate and Security Working Group (CSWG)
The CSWG is a forum of U.S.-based security experts and professionals focused on sharing information and best practices regarding the security risks of climate change.
The Planetary Security Initiative
The Planetary Security Initiative (PSI) is a multi-year initiative run by a consortium of leading think tanks, including the Center for Climate and Security, which includes annual Planetary Security Conferences at the Hague in the Netherlands. The goal of the PSI is to strengthen the knowledge-policy interface by consolidating a community of practice on planetary security – with climate and security issues serving as an important topic.