Faculty Research Fellow Neta Crawford Discusses DOD and Climate Change at Pardee Center Seminar

On November 20, the Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future hosted a seminar exploring how the Pentagon thinks about its fuel use and climate change, featuring Neta C. Crawford, Professor and Chair of the BU Department of Political Science and a Pardee Center Faculty Research Fellow.

In her talk, titled “The Pentagon, Greenhouse Gases & Climate Change,” Prof. Crawford explored trends in U.S. Department of Defense fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions, explaining that DOD is responsible for about 80 percent of the federal government’s energy consumption. DOD’s total annual greenhouse gas emissions are roughly equivalent to those of entire countries like Portugal and Sweden.

Prof. Crawford also analyzed arguments by the Pentagon and many academics that climate change will lead to greater conflict, as climate disruptions like drought lead to migration and political instability around the world.

The seminar was the first event in the “20 Years of War” research series, a two-year collaboration with the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University to expand the Costs of War project, which Prof. Crawford co-founded and co-directs.

Watch the full seminar above.