Introduction As the world lurches from one crisis to another, lessons learned from past crises are easily forgotten. In this vein, we can draw useful insights from Operation COVID-19 Assist (OCA) for future domestic operations and for their wider relevance to issues concerning operational readiness. Indeed, the shifting strategic climate referenced in the Defence Strategic Review (DSR) begs the question whether the Australian Defence Force (ADF) should be involved in a domestic emergency on the scale of …

2(AS) Division PME Program SPEAKER : Major General David Thomae, AM Reflections on Command Reflections on Command Major General David Thomae assumed command of the 2nd (Australian) Division on 17 July 2021 and as commander of the standing Joint Task Force (JTF) 629 on 10 December of the same year. In that role, he has had responsibilities that have shifted the purpose, meaning and narrative of 2(AS)DIV from fulfilling a predominantly domestic support role to becoming a platform for domestic security and …

Over the past decade, the Australian Army has established itself as the ‘preferred partner’ within the Indo-Pacific region. The Indo-Pacific region covers the area from India to Papua New Guinea, extending to North Korea in the North, our greatest footprint landing within the archipelagos of the Pacific Ocean north of Australia. The importance of maintaining or gaining the ‘preferred partner’ status with the countries in the region is highlighted by the meagre 800km stretch of ocean that separates the …

Introduction Since 2017, measles outbreaks have been surging around the globe, with many Indo-Pacific nations experiencing disease outbreaks due to low vaccination rates [i] . A targeted vaccination program provides opportunities for the Australian Defence Force (ADF) to supplement its traditional train, advise and assist missions with a low-risk and cost-effective public health intervention while delivering a strategic deterrent effect within our region. Measles vaccinations provide a legitimate reason …

Five Ideas to Strengthen Civil-Military Coordination Before a Crisis Recently, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) headed off to again to support another humanitarian response, this time in Vanuatu . The ADF has a long history of supporting humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HA/DR) operations overseas and providing defence assistance to the civil community (DACC ) in Australia. The 2023 Defence Strategic Review reiterated that ‘climate change is now a national security issue’ and this reality will …

The Australian Civil Military Centre (ACMC) is seeking project proposals and scholarly articles from interested researchers and authors. This post shares a Call for Proposals recently issued by the ACMC that identifies research themes, and submission guidelines. Completed research will be published in the ACMC Research Compendium.   Submissions close on 3 March 2023. Website: https://www.acmc.gov.au   Documents for download: ACMC Call for Proposals (PDF 593.53 KB) ACMS Call for Proposals (DOCX 137.79 KB) …

The impact of climate change is becoming more evident in Australia, leading to profound environment, social and economic impacts. 2019 was Australia’s hottest and driest year since records began in 1910, with 40% less rainfall than average across the nation, and the annual national mean maximum temperature at 2.09ºC above average. This hot, dry weather led to the devastating Black Summer bushfires, in which 33 people directly lost their lives (and hundreds more subsequently passed from smoke-related …

Army’s vision of Accelerated Warfare heralds changes in war and international circumstances and directs members to discuss and debate ideas. Analysis published by ASPI , IFRS and AFA highlights changing geostrategic circumstances and environmental conditions to call for new approaches to defending Australia. Questions of force preparedness and scaling for unforeseen events loom large. Proposed roles for the Army range from securing offshore bases for naval and air forces, through regional constabulary …

Studies of culture in the social sciences increasingly acknowledge the reflexive approach as a useful tool for research. The reflexive approach (sometimes called  auto-ethnography ) calls on the author to be both ‘ subject and object of the inquiry ’, meaning it includes the researcher’s lived experience in the analytic process. Reflexive practices have developed as legitimate methods of qualitative inquiry in some academic fields, but military studies, which stems from the more traditional disciplines …