Closing Remarks at Civil-Military Environmental Conference Ambassador Martin J. Silverstein:

Minister Fau, Minister Gonzalez, Minister Irureta, distinguished guests. I am pleased to be here with you today to give remarks on what has been an excellent conference.

I hope that this week’s efforts will serve in exactly the way stated by Dr. DeKay (from our Environmental Protection Agency) in his opening remarks when he said that this conference should serve to enhance contacts in order to facilitate continued communication and cooperation between not only the civil and military sectors, but between nations.

As we well know, our habitat cannot be managed only from any Ministry of the Environment. It really needs to be a community effort and has to engage all sectors. In this conference, sponsored by military and civilian organizations, we have chosen on reinforcing the links between the military and civil society. We have focused on the idea that the civilian environmental authorities can make use of the training, professionalism, and capabilities of their defense forces to overcome some of the challenges of environmental protection. The military can also use these missions to conduct training in logistics, command and control and in many cases, technical abilities. Under the conditions that exist today, with our natural resources under threat and our ability as governments to cope, we need to be creative and apply what resources society has at its disposal to protect the environment for future generations. And the military, as a part of and defender of civil society should (and does) have a natural role in this.

So, besides the obvious pleasure of visiting (and for those of us lucky few, living in) Montevideo, what have we accomplished in these last few days?

The topic of the conference, “Exploring Opportunities for Civil-Military Cooperation to Protect the Environment in South America”, appears to suggest that cooperation has not been executed well in the past. However, during this conference we have seen excellent examples that show that cooperation not only has existed, but that it has worked very well…to the benefit of the community. And that is why we are here. Our populations count on us, their governmental officials to act on their behalf and for their welfare. Therefore, we are obligated to strive to use all our energy and creative ability to accomplish our charge. Environmental problems are often man-made in origin. They are the result of man’s genius and drive to improve his way of life. This desire to improve our lives manifests itself in how a community works together to solve the problems of external threats, poverty, hunger, shelter and illiteracy. As science and engineering have progressed to create the chemicals, farming techniques and construction methods that sometimes harm our environment, they have also provided us the tools to measure and anticipate the damage…as well as the technological and organizational means to prevent and repair. However, it isn’t science and engineering that effect change…it is people and communities.

The phenomenon of environmental degradation is complex and far-reaching. Every action made by each member of the world community can have far-reaching consequences. For example, Under Secretary of State Paula Dobriansky recently wrote about the link between consuming narcotics and the destruction of the environment. In her editorial, entitled “If You Want to Save the Environment, Don’t Do Drugs,” she pointed out that purchasing cocaine or heroine enables a cycle resulting in the destruction of rain forests thousands of miles away. This isn’t the only example, but it illustrates my point very well. Individuals, non-governmental organizations, armies, and governments can’t save the environment on their own. Saving the environment requires local community participation. Saving the environment requires education. Saving the environment demands and deserves the attention and cooperation of every member of our global community every day, in every choice we make in how to live our lives. With the cooperation of the communities we represent, we can preserve our environment for generations to come.

So, what have we accomplished by having a civil-military environmental conference if the participation of the community is more important than the sum of our individual efforts? I hope that when we bid each other farewell that we will take with us ideas on how to better combine forces within our states as well as with each other to combat natural disasters, remedy past environmental damage, and assist in the enforcement of environmental policy. Unfortunately, we have not arrived at a time when all communities work harmoniously toward the goal of sustainable development. And until the time that we do, we shall need the dedicated efforts of men and women like you.

What we have accomplished is to take another step toward using our genius and drive to formulate plans to creatively face the challenges of water pollution, soil erosion, natural disasters, deforestation, endangered and invasive species, and criminal incursions related to these issues. We have provided each other with the contacts, tools, and ideas to continue to improve our efforts to protect our children’s legacy. I hope that we have also provided good examples of how to integrate the military, within the law, to do missions like surveillance, logistics, and horizontal construction to make a difference in an integrated, well-managed effort to save the environment.

You only have to look at your children to understand how important it is to protect our environment. Just as one works everyday to ensure their children’s future through the provision of food, security, clothing and educational opportunities, one must seek to leave them a world in which they can grow and prosper. In order to do that, we must ensure the survival of our habitat. It simply isn’t possible anymore, due to growing populations and industrialization, to count on nature to absorb man’s problems. Society must take decisive and coordinated action. However, we live in a world of limited financial resources and the environment has not taken pride of place on the list of challenges we face. Therefore, governments have to seek creative solutions like involving their militaries in non-traditional roles that serve society while conforming to the norms that regulate them.

Why is the United States interested in promoting environmental protection in the Western Hemisphere? The answer is that in order to protect our children’s legacy, we must cooperate as a community of people sharing a finite habitat. The problem is complex and involves every member of the American community. I refer to us all as citizens of the community of the Americas, members of a greater society that faces a complex and subtle threat. We must act as a community in order to fully overcome that threat. The United States doesn’t have all the answers and we certainly can’t solve all the challenges by ourselves. We still face environmental problems in the United States and want to explore alternate means of facing them while sharing what we have learned with you. For that reason, we will continue to cooperate and work with you to learn what has been effective in Argentina or Ecuador or to tell you what hasn’t worked so well in the USA. We seek to gain synergy by the combination and coordination of our research, experience and efforts to continue the fight against the destruction of the environment and our society.

I hope that when you return home, you will continue to engage each other through e-mail, phone and fax. When an opportunity arises to use the military, I hope that you now have the right points of contact to call to ask for help. For the military members here today, I hope we have given you some ideas of how to organize to respond to your country’s call for help.

Currently, we plan to continue to engage on this issue, potentially doing this again next year in a country to be determined. We hope to grow more sophisticated, support the already establish coordination cell, and work to reinforce a network of well-trained and well-connected citizens of our hemisphere.

This conference is an excellent example in and of itself of civil-military cooperation. SOUTHCOM and the US Department of State, along with the Uruguayan Ministries of Agriculture, Environment, and Defense, worked to provide this forum for you. I want to take this opportunity to thank Minister of Defense Fau, Minister of Agriculture Gonzalez and Minister of Housing and Land Use Management Irureta, for their assistance and efforts in organizing this conference. I also want to thank General James Hill of SOUTHCOM for ensuring that the opportunities continue to occur.

I especially want to thank you, the men and women of the Armed Forces, for taking the time to be here, for your dedication, for your service.