The U.S. Department of Defense just released its 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review. As the name implies, DoD releases this report every four years as a way of articulating its strategic direction. The opening sentence in Secretary Hagel’s introduction notes: “The 2014 Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) seeks to adapt, reshape and rebalance our military to prepare for the strategic challenges and opportunities we face in the years ahead.”
This year, as in 2010, the QDR robustly addresses the national security implications of climate change – highlighting the significant degree to which the climate change threat is taken seriously by the U.S. military. Beginning in the Executive Summary on page VI, the document points to the impact of climate change on both missions and installations:
"The impacts of climate change may increase the frequency, scale, and complexity of future missions, including defense support to civil authorities, while at the same time undermining the capacity of our domestic installations to support training activities. Our actions to increase energy and water security, including investments in energy efficiency, new technologies, and renewable energy sources, will increase the resiliency of our installations and help mitigate these effects."
On page 8 of the introduction, under the heading “Global Trends,” the document identifies the “threat multiplier” nature of climate change (a concept first articulated by CNA’s Military Advisory Board), including its impact on political instability. It states:
"Climate change poses another significant challenge for the United States and the world at large. As greenhouse gas emissions increase, sea levels are rising, average global temperatures are increasing, and severe weather patterns are accelerating. These changes, coupled with other global dynamics, including growing, urbanizing, more affluent populations, and substantial economic growth in India, China, Brazil, and other nations, will devastate homes, land, and infrastructure. Climate change may exacerbate water scarcity and lead to sharp increases in food costs. The pressures caused by climate change will influence resource competition while placing additional burdens on economies, societies, and governance institutions around the world. These effects are threat multipliers that will aggravate stressors abroad such as poverty, environmental degradation, political instability, and social tensions – conditions that can enable terrorist activity and other forms of violence."
For the complete article, please see The Center for Climate and Security.
A recently published paper by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has focused on the under-researched topic of how climate change impacts may affect violence in South and Southeast Asia. Titled “Climate change and violent conflict: Sparse evidence from South Asia and South East Asia”, the report highlights how little work has been done in looking at climate change and its possible impact on security in the most densely populated regions on the planet.
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As governments take stock of the adequacy of the Paris Agreement, willingness to raise the level of ambition will depend significantly on confidence that a variety of promises are being kept. Many of these relate to fundamental commitments around international solidarity. A solidarity of which we are in sore need today, on far too many fronts.