Climate Change and Security

Climate change and security looks at how a warming planet reshapes the threats the United States prepares for. Rising seas, extreme weather, and shifting resources can strain economies, displace populations, and destabilize regions in ways that reach far beyond environmental policy, drawing in defense planners, intelligence agencies, and diplomats alongside scientists.

Redefining threats. Government agencies responsible for protecting the country have broadened what counts as a security risk, treating environmental stress as a factor that can trigger conflict, mass migration, or the collapse of fragile states. This shift changes how officials assess danger and allocate resources, as explained in Why Climate Change Is Now Treated as a National Security Threat.

Military readiness. Armed forces must also account for how a changing climate affects their own operations, from bases exposed to flooding and heat to supply chains vulnerable to extreme weather. Planning for these physical risks sits alongside broader strategic questions about where and how conflict might emerge in a warmer world.

International cooperation and disagreement. Because climate effects cross borders, addressing them often requires working with other nations on shared risks like water scarcity or displacement, even as governments disagree over how much weight security agencies should give to environmental factors compared to more traditional military concerns.