How Militarism Fuels the Climate Crisis and What We Can Do About It
Militarism is destroying - not protecting - our planet. We have to debunk what that the US military says and address its real role in our climate emergency
“There are so many manifestations of the daily colonial violence, and you can feel them all. You can feel them in Guam right now. So this is not a hypothetical thing.
You can see it coming, and all of the decisions are being made by the people you do not vote for. That is the definition of colonial violence. And that is what we are experiencing in Guam every single day” — Julian Aguon
It’s time to talk about something neither the people of Guam nor any of us can escape: militarism and the destruction of our planet.
We are living in the midst of a climate and ecological emergency. Instead of responding to this emergency by investing in community needs and transitioning away from fossil fuels, the U.S. government is investing more in militarism to maintain imperial control over a dying planet.
It is clear that militarization must stop. We cannot allow our government to prioritize power over people any longer.
So what do we do about it?
We educate ourselves and take action.
For the first part, please watch our webinar. You can see the list of all the speakers below. Then, you’ll find a number of concrete actions you can take!
Our speakers:
Todd Miller writes a weekly post for The Border Chronicle. He has researched and written about border issues for more than 15 years, the last eight as an independent journalist and writer. He resides in Tucson, Arizona, but also has spent many years living and working in Oaxaca, Mexico. His books include Storming The Wall: Climate Change, Migration, and Homeland Security (2017), Empire of Borders: The Expansion of the U.S. Border Around the World (2019), and Build Bridges, Not Walls: A Journey to a World Without Borders (2021).
Greta Zarro is Organizing Director of World BEYOND War. Greta graduated as valedictorian from St. Michael’s College with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology/Anthropology. She previously worked as New York Organizer for leading non-profit Food & Water Watch. There, she campaigned on issues related to fracking, genetically engineered foods, climate change, and the corporate control of our common resources. Greta and her partner run Unadilla Community Farm, a non-profit organic farm and permaculture education center in Upstate New York.
Ellie Kinney has worked on campaigns since 2015, largely focusing on nuclear weapons with the UK Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and more recently, Youth for TPNW (Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons). After studying Psychology at Goldsmiths, University of London, she has worked in the charity sector since 2017, supporting causes including homelessness and humanitarian healthcare before joining the Conflict and Environment Observatory in 2022 to campaign on military emissions.
Seth Shelden is the United Nations Liaison for the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize-winning coalition working to prohibit and eliminate nuclear weapons. In this capacity, he assists governments in signing and ratifying the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, and he represents ICAN in promoting universalization of the treaty. Seth is also a founding member of the New York Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (NYCAN), consisting of local ICAN partners advocating for nuclear disarmament in New York and beyond.
Abby Martin is an American journalist, TV presenter, and activist. She helped found the citizen journalism website Media Roots and serves on the board of directors for the Media Freedom Foundation which manages Project Censored. In 2015, she launched the independent documentary and interview series The Empire Files. Her newest film is Earth’s Greatest Enemy, an anti-imperialist environmental documentary.
Ramón Mejía, of Dallas, Texas, is an anti-war veteran, and the anti-militarism national organizer at Grassroots Global Justice Alliance where he supports members organizing to dismantle systems of violence to build healthy, thriving communities.
Julian Aguon is an Indigenous human rights lawyer and writer from Guam. He is the founder of Blue Ocean Law, a progressive firm that works at the intersection of indigenous rights and environmental justice. He serves on the Global Advisory Council of Progressive International. His upcoming book, No Country for Eight-Spot Butterflies, is a coming-of-age story and a call for justice.
Jim Rine joined Veterans For Peace in 2005 during the Iraq & Afghan wars. He served in the US Army in West Germany 1970–73 and now is a semi-retired research geologist who is majorly fearful of the climate crisis.
Vijay Prashad is an Indian Marxist historian and commentator. He is an executive-director of Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, the Chief Editor of LeftWord Books and an advisory board member of the US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, part of the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Vijay is the author of over thirty books, including The Darker Nations: A People’s History of the Third World (2008), and Washington Bullets: A History of the CIA, Coups, and Assassinations (2020).
Quick actions you can take:
➡️ Sign CODEPINK’s petition to President Biden urging him to declare a climate emergency for people and planet.
➡️ Sign CODEPINK’s petition telling Congress to investigate the allegations of harm set forth by three UN Special Rapporteurs regarding the impacts of increased U.S. military presence in Guam.
➡️ Sign Brooklyn for Peace’s climate crisis petition to urge your Senators and Congressional representatives to take climate action by reducing the military budget, support a Green New Deal, and more.
➡️ Send a letter to Congress via Veterans for Peace in support of House Resolution 767, which orders the Department of Defense to set emissions reduction targets.
Resources to learn more:
➡️ Check out World Beyond War’s environment website to learn about how militarism destroys our climate and environment with fact sheets, articles, and other resources.
➡️ Visit the Conflict and Environmental Observatory’s new website to track your government’s military emissions. You can also follow the research on Twitter (@milemissionsgap) and by signing up for their mailing list.
➡️ Check out NYCAN’s Nuclear NYC Map, a geographical guide to the complicated legacy of nuclear weapons of New York City: building them, hosting them, and finally banning them.
➡️ Read A People’s Orientation to a Regenerative Economy, a guide that offers pathways to solutions that work for frontline communities and workers. The guide presents a collective framework encompassing over eighty policy ideas to advance a Just Transition.
➡️ Check out the Climate Crisis and Militarism Project at Veterans for Peace, where you can watch educational videos, hear from veterans, track federal climate efforts, and find a variety of other educational resources.
➡️ Read about the militarization of frontline communities in the Pacific Islands and the efforts to protect and restore autonomy to those communities on Blue Ocean Law’s website.
The world won’t save itself. If we continue on this same course, we know what’s awaiting us. And to prevent that, we all have to get involved.
As Naomi Klein once said, to change everything, it takes everyone.