Military-to-Military Collaboration on Environmental Management

Military-to-Military Collaboration on Environmental Management

This paper discusses the relevance and importance of military-to-military collaborations for the long-term benefit of military environmental programs in developing countries, as well as to the wider environmental security issues that can impact regional and transboundary security.

A country’s armed forces are responsible for upholding the sovereignty, supporting the constitution or governing framework, and defending the territory of the country against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and advancing the national aims, interests, and policies. While the relationship between security and the environment is not always specifically detailed as part of these responsibilities, protection of the environment is directly related to the protection of the people and the national interest. The preservation of a high-quality environment allows a country’s citizens to enjoy a high quality of life. Furthermore, safeguarding the environment strengthens the economic viability of a country by ensuring the sustainability of its natural resources. As such, a country’s armed forces are a crucial component to protection of the environment as part of the institutional makeup of that country.

The framework for strategic information, education, and communication (IEC) capacity building discussed in this paper was presented to the United States Department of Defense (DoD), Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Installations and Environment) as a template for possible use in military-to-military international environmental engagements in South Asia. This framework can potentially serve as an initial discussion point between the U.S. (or another developed country’s defense department, such as within the E.U.) and a developing country’s military for the purposes of establishing a joint environmental management program. This Framework is designed to further enhance the skills and capabilities of the selected military staff and civilian personnel representing various foreign defense departments and their armed forces. In addition, the Framework is designed with the objective of developing a foundation for the future implementation of various environmental initiatives, such as an environmental audit program, as well as the consideration and development of more comprehensive environmental management systems at selected military camps or bases once the capacity and willingness to do so is ingrained and established within a country’s defense department.

Through this information, education and communication, a host country’s defense department and armed forces also will become more enlightened about and sensitive to the implications that wider environmental security issues can have on regional and transboundary security. It is hoped that this will lead to an understanding and commitment to preventing and addressing regional and transboundary environmental security threats, thereby assuring and improving the health, welfare and security of its country and citizens and well being of and relations with its neighboring countries.