BACKGROUND

     In 2008 both government and private organizations have called for a national commitment to understand and implement resilience.  Resilience is defined as the “capacity of a system to absorb disturbance, undergo change, and still retain essentially the same function, structure, identity, and feedbacks” (Resilience Alliance, http://www.resalliance.org/1.php). It is important in the nation’s fight against terrorism, an important planning instrument for responding to natural disasters, a critical factor in nation-building and international development, and a design criterion for the security of critical infrastructure.  It is nothing less than a profound shift in the goal for dealing with these problems – from resisting dangers to bouncing back when they strike.

 

     Bridging the gap between traditionally separated realms of defense strategy and development and humanitarian arenas has become a U.S. foreign policy priority in recent years.  Efforts underway in Afghanistan and Iraq are testing the U.S. with this exceedingly relevant policy issue.  New U.S. Army doctrine has made its own recent contribution to these efforts in the release of a new Field Manual (FM 3-07, 6 Oct 2008) that puts stability operations on a par with offensive and defensive operations (see Field Manual 3-0, Operations, Jun 2001).  The emergence of stabilization operations into a higher sphere of doctrine indicates the Army’s realization that troubled and failing states, as well as global hotspots and ungoverned spaces, threaten U.S. national security and, further, feed transnational and grass-roots extremist movements that fuel international instability.  Community resilience (i.e., resisting extremist movements, governance, essential services, etc.) is critical information for intelligence analysts and key decision makers throughout all phases of stability operations. 

     Resilience is just as significant to homeland security.  In recent years, the U.S. government has focused a tremendous amount of effort and resources toward preparing for and mitigating the risks of natural and man-made disasters.  Resilience of critical infrastructure and key national resources is a common theme throughout the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) planning documents (see National Infrastructure Protection Plan, 2006 and National Preparedness Guidelines, 2007).  While all disasters are local in nature, resilience is the common thread through which the U.S. government can administer nation-wide programs with limited resources.

 

     The concept of resilience spans the deepening and broadening security agenda, from states as the traditional referent object of what ought to be secured, to that of individuals and the global community.  For planners in the Departments of Defense and State, the ability to recognize and measure resilience factors in these troubled regions will enable improved decision analysis and a more appropriate deployment of resources before, during, and after a conflict or humanitarian intervention.  For the Department of Homeland Security, FEMA, and State and Local Emergency Management Officials, resilience provides a nexus for developing and coordinating risk-based policies across over 87,000 local governments.  For environmentalists, resilience will provide a global framework for modeling the impacts of national and international policies on climate change.