DATA + ANALYSIS
A central challenge to examining the extent and evolution of civil-military cooperation in climate-related disasters is the dearth of systematic data on military involvement in such disasters. No country we surveyed for inclusion in the project currently has a national dataset tracking such military operations. There is also no cross-national dataset systematically tracking such military operations.
This project creates the first cross-national dataset on military involvement in climate-related disasters that aims to provide comprehensive coverage for included countries. The dataset includes national military activities in both domestic and foreign civil protection related to climate-related disasters.
The dataset makes it possible to answer several research questions related to national militaries’ involvement in climate-related disasters—both for individual countries and comparatively across countries—including:
- What is the level of military involvement in domestic and foreign civil protection with regard to preparing for, responding to, and recovering from climate-related disasters?
- What are the patterns and trends in this military involvement in recent years?
- At what stage and by whom are military personnel called in to assist with climate-related disasters?
- Who pays for the civil protection activities of the military?
- How do national militaries’ responses align and differ in responding to the same climate-related disaster?
This data collection effort will produce several distinct products:
- Cross-national dataset: The dataset itself will include standardized cross-national data for all included countries and years.
- Country analysis: Country-specific data will be summarized for each country chapter in the final report.
- Comparative analysis: Cross-national data will be drafted as a stand-alone chapter in the final report.