Karen M Sudkamp

In this report, RAND researchers study the causes of civilian harm in the 2017 battle for Raqqa, Syria, and provide insights into how the U. S. Department of Defense can reduce civilian harm in future operations.

This report presents analysis and characterization of climate change's second-order impacts on three systems that are critical for human survival and security--water, food, and energy--in the U. S. Central Command's (CENTCOM's) area of responsibility. Recommendations for CENTCOM account for the role in which the U. S. Department of Defense can contribute expertise, tools, and resources to address the climate and conflict risk associated with these systems.

This report presents an analysis of the pathways from climate change to conflict and how that relationship is unfolding in the U. S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility (AOR). The analysis is based on a semistructured literature review of causal pathways from climate change to conflict and three case studies of climate-related conflict in the CENTCOM AOR.

Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) is a research agenda that recognizes the impact that women have on peace and security and also the impact that conflict has on women. This report presents vignettes to help U. S. Department of Defense (DoD) stakeholders understand WPS relevance to national security and how WPS principles and gender perspectives have been applied in DoD mission areas.

Stressors from climate change will become more intense and more frequent in the U. S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility. This development will likely contribute to CENTCOM's shift from a warfighting-focused command to a command that responds to and conducts traditional and nontraditional security missions. The aim of this report is to help CENTCOM planners prepare for a future security environment that is affected by climate change.

To support defense planners in crafting effective deterrence strategies for Europe and the Middle East, RAND researchers conducted a multimethod analysis--consisting of a literature review, roundtables with subject-matter experts, quantitative analysis, and a case study of Ukraine--to assess the effectiveness of U. S. forward presence, exercises and short-term deployments, and security cooperation for deterring Russian and Iranian aggression.

RAND researchers hosted a subject matter expert workshop, supplemented by an in-depth literature review, to determine proposed courses of action to reduce security threats from and meet international standards for prisons holding presumed former Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) fighters. The prisons are insecure, presenting a danger to the region and world given their potential for fueling an ISIS resurgence with prisoners in legal limbo.

The authors examine the humanitarian and security conditions in two camps for internally displaced persons in Syria: al-Hol and Roj. They address concerns about radicalization and highlight challenges in returning displaced residents to their home communities and countries. They offer recommendations to improve living conditions, address the legal and judicial conundrums facing foreign camp residents, and mitigate the threat of radicalization.

Given new and increasingly sophisticated threats from peer and near-peer adversaries, the authors provide an analysis of intelligence support to the U. S. Air Force acquisition community, identifying disincentives to seeking threat-informed analysis and proposing ways to enhance information sharing and workforce development to improve the integration of intelligence and acquisition.