NATIONAL SECURITY IMPLICATIONS OF GLOBAL WARMING: THE U.S. MILITARY AT THE LEADING EDGE OF CLIMATE RESPONSIVENESS

• Main Author: Glancey, Sarah Megan
• Other Authors: Munson, Lester, Rosenthal, Alexander, Wagner Hill, Kathy, Wolfson, Dorothea
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Johns Hopkins University 2022
• Subjects: national security; climate change; climate crisis; US Military; Department of Defense; renewable energy; mitigation; adaptation; climate migration; Blue New Deal; Arctic Circle; information warfare; environment; sustainability; conservation; UNCLOS; blue economy; energy security; national defense; Arctic; Climate change; Global warming
• Online Access: http://jhir.library.jhu.edu/handle/1774.2/68751

Global warming has impacts beyond merely environmental changes. This thesis examines ways in which climate change impacts national security by analyzing the relationship the U.S. military has to global warming. By evaluating examples of how climate change poses direct and indirect impacts on national security, this paper argues the U.S. military should leverage its social influence, threat prioritization, and technical expertise to position themselves as a potential leader in both mitigation and adaptation efforts against climate change. The first chapter describes the information infrastructure within the Department of Defense and argues that the military is well suited to be a messenger against climate misinformation. The second chapter uses climate migration as an example of how climate change poses an indirect threat on national security and argues that a ‘threat multiplier’ like global warming should be more highly prioritized due to the cascading impacts to the U.S. The third chapter reviews the climate proposal the Blue New Deal and analyzes how politically Progressive climate plans intersect with military objectives and climate responsiveness as melting polar ice caps in the Arctic pose direct threats to national security interests and argues that a transition to renewable military energy de-escalates those threats and preserves energy security. This thesis argues that the US military has both the means and incentive to be at the forefront of pro-climate efforts.