Sustainability and National Security

instability can result in costly humanitarian and mili-
tary interventions.

Figure 1. Human-Environmental System and State Fragility:

Simplified Conceptual Model

Security and Sustainability

The term “security” can be defined simply as the
freedom from danger, fear, or anxiety, but it remains
a rather vague concept. It has been suggested that
security is as much of a state of mind as a physical
aspect of the environment (Mr. Y 2011).^1 Consideration
of the physical aspect of security raises several important
questions: what referent object is being threatened, who is
being protected, what threats or insecurities are being ad-
dressed, and what are appropriate responses (Renner 2006)?
A comparison of differing security approaches (Table 1)
helps answer these questions by summarizing the specific

1. Mr. Y is a pseudonym for Captain Porter and Colonel
   Mykleby narrative published by the Woodrow Wilson Center,
   which provided the authors the opportunity to frame U.S. na-
   tional policy decisions and discussions based on three sustainable
   investment priorities: human capital, sustainable security, and
   natural resources.