About FOCUS-IN
Administered by CFE-DM in collaboration with the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF), the Indo-Pacific Environmental Security Partnership (IPESP) is a unique trilateral arrangement of Partners to address shared interest in non-traditional security threats with shared solution sets through an international network, annual Partnership event, and working groups.
The focus of the Partnership is on developing actionable engagement between regional military organizations and organizations from national governments and civil society. Partnerships between military and civil organizations are crucial for addressing non-traditional security challenges. Militaries have significant strategic capabilities that can be used to resolve or mitigate security threats, including logistics, trained and experienced personnel, intelligence-gathering, planning expertise and capability-building support. Cooperation and collaboration with civil society and government organizations enables these capabilities to be used for shared benefits and to have the greatest impact.
- Enhance understanding among Indo-Pacific military and civilian organizations regarding the direct and indirect security risks posed by non-traditional security threats (e.g., resource scarcity, natural disasters, ecosystem degradation) and their potential to exacerbate existing tensions and conflicts.
- Establish and maintain a robust network of Indo-Pacific military and civilian organizations, fostering partnerships through regular communication, information sharing on best practices, lessons learned, and solutions to emerging security threats and challenges.
- Facilitate collaborative development and implementation of practical solutions and approaches by member organizations to reduce the security impacts of all hazards. This includes promoting partner capabilities, project development, joint training exercises, coordinated resource management plans, and integrated response protocols.
- Proactively identify and cultivate opportunities for joint civil-military projects and initiatives focused on non-traditional security threats and challenges (e.g., enhancing resilience to natural disasters and all hazards, managing or brokering resources and solutions to prevent conflict, and supporting community recovery efforts following crises).
- Establish strategic partnerships and coordinate activities with relevant multilateral organizations and initiatives in the Indo-Pacific region to leverage resources, avoid duplication of effort, and maximize the impact of IPESP's programs.
- Core focus on civil and military cooperation to address and mitigate complex non-traditional security threats and issues.
- Strive for transparency and open communication.
- Value the collaboration amongst Members with shared interests.
- Value the security interests of Members in developing responses and actions.
- Maximize the impact of Member capabilities through this Partnership.
History:
The Indo-Pacific Environmental Security Program was established by the U.S. Pacific Command J4 Directorate as a means for the U.S. military components and commands throughout the Indo-Pacific region to improve their understanding of environmental threats to operations and mitigate environmental impacts as a result of military activities. The program expanded in 2011 to engage with militaries across the region through hosting the original Indo-Pacific Environmental Security Forum (IPESF) in Honolulu, Hawaii. The intention of the 2011 forum was to showcase the topic of environmental security to Indo-Pacific militaries. At this time, there was no common environmental security definition, and it was an opportunity to introduce the subject, initialize best practices, and determine priorities to help shape future engagements.
Since 2011, civil and military representatives from across the Indo-Pacific have gathered annually at IPESF events to share lessons-learned and best practices, deliberate on topics, participate in group activities and exercises, and conduct site visits to environmental security projects. Throughout the years, participants from diverse sectors and backgrounds have engaged on environmental security at the Forum, building common knowledge and experiences as a network of environmental security practitioners.
The IPESF evolved from an annual discussion-based event to an ongoing action-oriented program with a network of civil-military subject matter experts focused on advancing environmental security through tangible capacity-building projects. This gave rise to the concept of formalizing the network into the Indo-Pacific Environmental Security Partnership (the “Partnership” or IPESP). In 2019, 34 countries established the original Partnership charter at the IPESF in Wellington, New Zealand. The intent of the Partnership is to serve as a non-binding community of civil-military members dedicated to enhancing environmental security cooperation and capacity in the Indo-Pacific region. In 2024, the U.S. Pacific Command transferred the operational requirements of the Environmental Security Program to the Center for Excellence in Disaster Management & Humanitarian Assistance (CFE-DM).