January 2008 Conference Concept Note
International Medical Corps (IMC), the Center for Humanitarian Cooperation (CHC) and the Peace Keeping and Stabilization Institute (PKSOI) are Co-Sponsoring a Conference on:
Civilian–Military Association in Disaster Risk Reduction, Response and Relief: Past, Present, Future
January 22-23, 2008, Washington D.C.
Two days of enlightened discussion and determination of a best way forward
Reason for the Conference
The need for a robust international response to the adverse effect on populations of man-made and natural disasters has steadily expanded during the past decade. The two major organized response forces can broadly be described as military and civilian. This, of course, is not to minimize the often most important initiatives and actions originating at the local level. These two forces as seen by the public are traditionally separate from one another in objectives, available resources, benchmarks of progress and training. Given the wider impact of today’s natural disasters and globalization, these two forces will come into ever more frequent association. The two groups will continue respective preparation for and response to natural disasters but will increasingly meet and even overlap in particular aspects of how assistance is offered and occurs. In order to ensure most effective preparation for and response to the circumstances created by large-scale natural disasters, it is imperative that civilians and the military carefully consider how best to associate future efforts.
Conference Objectives: an Overview
There are several forums now analyzing civilian and military disaster response to specific events, such as the 2004 Asian tsunami, looking for lessons learned and ways to better communicate. The intent behind these efforts is to understand respective objectives and intentions in order to not inadvertently jeopardize the work of others. An additional goal (though less frequently distinct) is to set the conditions to better coordinate the efforts pointing toward commonly agreed outcomes. There is no doubt that such discussion has value, though the impact of the conclusions and agreements to date has been remarkably limited.
This conference –Civilian-Military Association in Disaster Risk Reduction, Response and Relief: Past, Present, Future– will carefully consider what we have learned and how we intend to best apply it. The first part of this conference is organized around acknowledging what has already been reviewed to date. Through a broad examination by a select group of professionals on outcomes (successful or otherwise) and how they were evaluated, our goal is to draw from this analysis overarching information to serve as a platform for establishing a more coherent approach. We are looking for broadly applicable conclusions that have both separated and brought together respective service resources. Following this, the conference will look at where this knowledge and these common objectives can concretely take us next. We will consider objectives and benchmarks both inside and outside traditional modes of behavior. Our goal is to identify a constructive and achievable process that will facilitate better information sharing and joint action. Participants will leave the conference with a plan of action developed by parties committed to making it happen.