In business, when firms are wrong, they can fix it next quarter; but, for the Department of Defense, there is no next quarter. As technology has helped researchers analyze and understand changes in global temperatures over the last several hundred thousand years, evidence shows global temperatures are warming due to the emission of greenhouse gases from the burning of fossil fuels. While reactions to this news range from acceptance to denial, there is no debate that costs associated with severe weather have increased significantly. The International Chamber of Commerce (2024) estimates that extreme weather events have cost the global economy more than $2 trillion over the last decade. One organization taking major steps to address climate change is the United States Military, which is engaged in activities intended to sustain its ability to defend our country as the world gets warmer.
"Climate change is a national security issue, and for the national security community, that declaration is not controversial — it's fact" -Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks (Garamone, 2023, para. 4).