Climate Change, Natural Disasters and the Military
Publisher: Toda Peace Institute
Author(s): Michael Brzoska and Matt McDonald
Date: 2020
Topics: Climate Change, Disasters, Humanitarian Assistance, Programming
Countries: Australia, Myanmar
This policy brief explores the role of the military in responding to natural disasters. It first draws a linkage between disasters and security broadly, before then examining the ways in which military and defence resources might be mobilised in response to these disasters. We briefly look at the important role of perceptions of the military’s role in responding to natural disasters—their own and those of others—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 natural disasters. Two case studies, the contested role of defence forces in responding to bushfires in Australia in 2019-20 and floods in Myanmar in 2015, are used to illustrate the challenges associated with recognising a role for the military in response to natural disasters.