Session Summaries
Day 1 Keynote Address
Advantages of the military include
- Large logistics capacity
- Transportation
- Security
- Military coordination
- Civil affairs
- Medical expertise (preventative medicine)
- PYSCH OPS
- Engineers and large scale contracting
Further Thoughts
- Military can respond quickly in the short term capacity, however it is not a long term solution, due to cost, lack of expertise, lack of acceptability, and mission constraints.
- Mechanism needed for joint planning and information sharing.
- NGOs and government agencies can provide expertise on cultural situations important in planning and implementation.
- Challenges: Political constraints, Funding, Public affairs and Recognition of all actors.
Recommendations
- Commit ideas to written doctrine
- More simulation exercises needed
- Transition planning important to military/NGO takeover
- Private companies can provide transition logistics/security
- Greater coordination among agencies on situation assessments
- Prioritize information sharing
- Need for bridging organization such as OFDA/USAID
Day 1 First Panel
- USAID OFDA supports national governments which have requested assistance by working with national NGOs.
- Building local capacity is crucial: local input is effective, sustainable and less costly.
- In the future, some believe there will be greater role for military in humanitarian relief during natural disasters.
- Need for recognizing civil/military assumptions and stereotypes of each other as a means to improving cooperation.
- Disasters can be opportunities for change and development
- i.e., women can be empowered as agents of significant change.
- NGOs can provide expertise to military on community impact and accountability
Environmental degradation, globalization & changing warfare present new challenges.
- Additional constraints will include decreasing levels of access due to mistrust and perceived relevancy of humanitarian operations to existing political actors.
- Neutrality, impartiality and independency enable ICRC to have access where other actors do not.
- Cooperating between ICRC and military can jeopardize perceptions of neutrality, however is at times necessary, and guided by strict SOPs
Day 2 Keynote Address
Despite their stereotypes of each other , there is great commonality between those in the military and civil society.
4 areas where CSOs and Military should work together:
- Lack of civilian capacity in the federal government
- Local Capacity: Countries should build local capacity along with disaster response
- UN: U.S. should take leading role in providing greater help and guidance to UN
- Security is a growing problem which NGOs cannot meet without
There is a need to elevate the debate and achieve progress in these 4 areas.
Day 2 First Panel
- We live in a world of increasing disaster risk
- Therefore, it is important to incorporate risk reduction into emergency
UN ISDR prioritizes disaster risk reduction through the Hyogo Framework
Greater urbanization, and other nuanced risks pose new challenges as well as
- opportunities to shift from preparing for disasters to reducing their risks.
USNORTHCOM's roles are in national defense and civil support.
- Tension between state and federal authorities leads to "one step at a time" response by states, with some reluctance to cede authority to the federal government.
- American Red Cross disaster services start at local chapters;
- As events grow, regional and organizational service responses kick in.
- While the military plans and trains with other entities, its fundamentally
- supportive role to the government makes it a last resort in Red Cross responses
Hospital Ship Humanitarian Mission provides medical and humanitarian assistance, facilitating cooperation with partner nations.
- There is a perceived need for better sustainment to the population and impact to the patient