Policy Brief: Climate Change, Natural Disasters and the Military

Prof. Dr. Michael Brzoska, Prof. Dr. Matt McDonald

Michael Brzoska  from the IFSH Hamburg and Matt McDonald from the University of Queensland, Australia, explore in their Policy Brief for the Toda Peace Institute the role of the military in responding to disasters. They first draw a linkage between disasters and security broadly, then examine the ways in which military resources might be mobilised in response to these disasters. They look at the important role of perceptions of the military’s proper role in responding to natural disasters—in their own and other countries—and conclude with an assessment of how different countries have navigated this issue and carved out a specific role for the military in responding to disasters. The policy brief refers to two case studies, the bushfires in Australia in 2019-20 and floods in Myanmar in 2015, and concludes with policy recommendations.

Read the Policy Brief