Resilient and Healthy Defense Communities: A Strategy for Enhancing Military Readiness and Quality of Life
In a recent memorandum addressed to senior Pentagon leadership, combatant command commanders, and directors of defense agencies and DoD field activities, the Deputy Secretary of Defense emphasized the importance of building resilient and healthy defense communities. This initiative aligns with the goals of the 2022 National Defense Strategy, which emphasizes the need to recruit and retain a strong, healthy, and ready military force. Defense installations, as the focal point of service members' military experiences, play an important role in achieving this goal.
Defense installations are more than just places to train and operate; they are communities where service members and their families live, work, and raise their children. These spaces must be safe, appealing, and beneficial to the physical, emotional, and cognitive well-being of all residents. Ensuring the quality of life in these communities is both a national security imperative and a moral obligation to those who defend the country.
The Strategy for Resilient and Healthy Defense Communities provides a vision for achieving this goal. It envisions defense installations as vibrant communities where people can live and work in a productive and resilient environment. The built and natural environment should meet operational requirements while also improving quality of life. Furthermore, installation managers and senior DoD leadership should have a clear understanding of infrastructure quality so that they can make timely decisions and effectively allocate resources.
The integration of installations into surrounding communities is a critical component of this strategy. By providing public services and lifestyle-oriented features, these integrated communities can help the Total Force's readiness and resilience. This approach recognizes the interconnectedness of military installations and civilian communities, as well as the mutual benefits that can result from collaboration.
To summarize, the Department of Defense's Strategy for Resilient and Healthy Defense Communities is a comprehensive approach to improving the quality of life and readiness of service members, their families, and the civilian workforce. The DoD's focus on creating safe, functional, and resilient spaces aims to build happy, productive, and resilient communities that support the well-being of all residents while also contributing to the military force's overall strength and readiness.