It was made known in a report on Monday October 13th, by the Pentagon that the proposed idea made in 2007 suggesting that global warming will impact the U.S. military day-to-day decision making is now a present day issue.                             The chief executive of the military advisory board Sherri Goodman raised the important notion that climate change is a risk today, and we need to plan, program and budget for it now, and into the future. Whether that means implementing the impact climate change would have on war games, training exercises and purchasing decisions, due to things such as sea rise level, heat waves and drought. The U.S. military has decided to establish training scenarios which incorporate these events instead of only operating when the optimal situation is assumed.

This new venture then raises the question of how much additional funds will be spent on the military and is it completely necessary. In my opinion, I would say that yes, it is necessary for the U.S. government to have to spend more money on this issue to discover innovative ways to incorporate climate change into national security and defense decisions in order to become sustainable for the future. To me, it seems nearly impossible for the U.S. military to downsize as decisions have already been made in the sense that the U.S. military operates on a global scale in a position of power, and to downsize by spending less, and not evaluating the fact that climate change will alter the way things operate would be naive, and irresponsible of the government. Implementing climate change into day-to-day military decisions takes into the consideration the idea of being socially responsible, innovative and being a social entrepreneur. This is because, people of power have to become aware of the social repercussions it would have on society, contemplate them and act accordingly with every decision made to ensure that we are prepared for the future, and that we will be sustainable while operating.

Therefore, in my opinion, the Pentagon is taking a proper course of action by implementing climate change and global warming into their national security and defense. I am impressed by the way they are looking towards the future, and not only that, but starting now to incorporate these issues. The sooner people realize the fact that we are at risk, the sooner we can do something about it and become socially responsible, the better.

Sources:

Goldenberg, Suzanne. “Pentagon: Global Warming Will Change How US Military Trains and Goes to War.” The Guardian. Guardian News And Media Limited, 13 Oct. 2014. Web. 1 Nov. 2014.<http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/13/ pentagon-global-warming-will-change-how-us-military-trains-and-goes-to-war>.

Institute For Public Research. “National Security and the Accelerating Risk of Change.” Center For Naval Analysis And Solutions. CNA Corporation, Oct. 2014. Web. 2 Nov. 2014. <http://www.cna.org/reports/accelerating-risks>.