March 11, 2010

Promoting the Dialogue: Climate Change and the Maritime Services

By Christine Parthemore

Climate change carries broad implications for U.S. interests. Scientists forecast, and in some regions are already observing, an increasingly accessible Arctic, sea level rise, melting glaciers and ice sheets, changing patterns of natural disasters and alterations to ocean conditions. These physical changes hold consequences for national security. They could affect military installations, generate new challenges for continued U.S. access to the global commons and contribute to economic and political instability abroad – with implications for U.S. maritime missions in particular. In this working paper, CNAS Bacevich Fellow Christine Parthemore synthesizes how the maritime services are thinking about climate change and assesses potential policy implications.

Authors

  • Christine Parthemore

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