DoD Regional and Cultural Capabilities: The Way Ahead. The Regional and Cultural Expertise Summit: Building a Framework to Meet National Defense Challenges

摘要

The DoD Regional and Cultural Capabilities: the Way Ahead is the outcome of an unprecedented gathering of senior leaders from the Department of Defense to focus on mission demands for regional and cultural capabilities and develop a framework for synchronizing policies, plans, and programs to meet these demands. The Summit provided a forum for an enterprise-wide dialogue on the need to raise the bar on the Department's ability to better understand different cultures and societies and work more effectively with the Interagency Community and global partners to lay a firm foundation for security in the 21st Century. Summit participants agreed that an intense focus on regional and cultural capabilities is critical if we are to grow leaders, operators and analysts who understand both the broader regional, as well as the cultural contexts, in which they perform their jobs. The stakes are extremely high. We must begin immediately to address the challenges the Department is facing in building the regional and cultural capabilities we need for the defense and security of the Nation. We must discern and prioritize demands and take the necessary actions to address requirements. An integrated solution that engages all sectors will be needed to achieve our goals. Collectively, we can and will make a difference. This document represents the views and recommendations of Summit participants and is meant to serve as a foundation for expanding the dialogue within and beyond the Defense community.