Crisis response in a changing climate: implications of climate change for UK defence logistics in Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) and Military Aid to the Civil Authorities (MACA) operations

Climate change is expected to have a significant impact on defence and security, acting as a threat multiplier and straining resources. The UK government generally, and UK defence specifically, have embarked on a proactive approach to better adapt to the effects of climate change. In 2021, the UK Ministry of Defence is to publish its Climate Change and Sustainability strategy, which is focused on enhancing operational capability in changing climatic conditions and on identifying and embedding sustainable solutions to enable UK defence to meet its net zero carbon emissions target by 2050. This report informed the preparation of the strategy by identifying the implications of climate change for defence logistics in crisis response situations.

This report provides three key findings:

1. The UK could benefit from shifting from an 'emergency' to 'resilience' paradigm because of the projected rise in the demand for crisis response.
2. Technologies focused on environmental efficiency and self-sufficiency are a powerful enabler of more environmentally sustainable logistics.
3. Climate change will increasingly disrupt global economies and ecological integrity and requires a global response, in which the UK should have a powerful voice.