Sikorsky, Erin Climate Change on the Battlefield

International Military Responses to the Climate Crisis

What do rising temperatures and increasingly extreme weather events mean for military readiness? How will climate threats affect the conflicts of today and tomorrow? What new tasks will the armed forces take on in response? Climate Change on the Battlefield examines how climate change is transforming modern military operations and the role international armed forces play in addressing the impacts of the climate crisis. The book's international case study approach provides concrete answers to these questions, looking at specific regions such as Afghanistan and the Arctic, as well as different types of military operations, including firefighting, humanitarian aid and disaster response. The book also examines in detail how different countries from all continents and international institutions are responding to these threats while critically assessing their own emissions and contribution to the climate crisis. It assesses different responses by countries, from those that integrate the impacts of climate change into a more traditional understanding of the role of the military to those that are redefining the role of the military in the face of climate change. Finally, it examines whether current military responses are adequate to meet the risks ahead and what the future relationship between the military and climate change might look like.