The CDSN Doctoral Seminar Initiative

Ok, maybe not. As always, thanks to

PhD Students: Assemble!  As normal avenues of presenting research and receiving feedback have been disrupted by the pandemic, the Canadian Defence and Security Network is planning to hold monthly virtual seminars where advanced PhD students can present their work in progress. It is not the same as an in-person workshop or conference, but this will help students get some feedback and build connections to other PhD students.  

Each month, we plan to host two students presenting their work, about 15-20 minutes each, on our zoom platform, with questions, answers, and discussion to follow afterwards.  The students presenting will benefit by testing their ideas and getting feedback, the students observing will get a better awareness of what kind of work is being done, and will also learn what to do and what not to do in their own work.  

We are also considering holding a professionalization q&a in between the seminars, so we would ultimately have meetings every two weeks, alternating between presentation seminars and professionalization seminars.  This will only happen, of course, if students indicate there is an interest in this.  

Thus, we are surveying the PhD students who are already connected to the CDSN to determine the level of interest in each activity.  If you are not on our mailing list, you can (a) get on it; and (b) respond to the survey by clicking on this link:  https://cuhealth.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b3g77eRatleWNXD   

Who is eligible?  

a) Canadian PhD students working in defence and security issues, defined quite broadly.

b) PhD students elsewhere working on Canadian defence and security issues, which includes students studying Canada as one case of a few/many. 

Note that this gets to what the Canadian modifies in the CDSN: it is mostly a network of Canadian people doing defence and security stuff--not always Canadian defence and security stuff--but includes international partners who are interested in Canada but are not solely focused on Canada.   So, we are Canadians doing defence and security and also people doing Canadian defene and security.  I hope this makes sense.

CDSN COVID Response Briefing Note, Civil-Military Relations Edition

Last week, members of the Canadian Defence and Security Network, along with networks funded by the Department of National Defence (SPNET [Concordia-based group of engineers working on tech-related policy, like AI], the Defence and Security Foresight Group,and the North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network) released a briefing note, based on a teleconference we held via zoom to discuss a series of questions that DND had given us and some we had developed.  I am discussing each piece, day by day.  I discussed Operations on Wednesday, Security on Thursday, Personnel on Friday, and on Monday I addressed Procurement. Today, I address the piece that I know the best even though as I mostly sat on that group's conversation: civil-military relations.

1.      How can the CAF work more closely with other government departments and agencies, civil society organizations, and the communities in which they serve to prepare for and prevent the spread of infectious disease?

• Develop and disseminate Principles of Involvement that define what the CAF can and cannot do in Canada during the pandemic, both in terms of capability and legal restrictions, akin to rules of engagement but unclassified.
• This is a rare opportunity to demonstrate the work of CAF members to other Canadians.  Doing it well may help in the post-COVID budget fight and boost recruitment.  

 While the Canadian Armed Forces has been involved in disaster relief for a long time, I am not sure whether either the public or local/territorial/provincial agencies know what the CAF can and cannot do nor what their guidelines are.  So, we advised DND/CAF to clarify what are the CAF's rules of engagement--what can they do in terms of capabilities and what are they allowed to do.  These rules mostly exist but are not well-known.  In Afghanistan, Libya, and elsewhere, the Chief of the Defence Staff develops not just a letter of intent (I was able to get most of these, partially redacted, for my research) but rules of engagement (nope, didn't get those) to guide the units in the field (or in the skies).  It made sense to keep this stuff classified since we wouldn't want the enemy to know the intent or limits of our forces.  In Canada, the enemy is the virus, and it can't read.  More importantly, the public and the CAF's partners need to know what the CAF can do.  While there is a website with lots of information, one place it falls short is being clear about the limits.   Let's see the equivalent of rules of engagement, please.

The second part here is obvious and one which the CAF knows well--that this is an opportunity to remind the Canadian public that the CAF is there to help out in domestic emergencies and not just expeditions elsewhere. 
 

2.    How can the DND/CAF further leverage social media/digital applications for flat (vs hierarchal) communications?

• Develop a better capacity for virtual collaboration.  Consider reforming security classification so that more work can be done over unclassified systems. 
• The digital space is more than just a domain for cyber conflict with the pandemic revealing much confusion about not just how to analyze the data but whether the data is good.  Need to recruit and train people with data analytics capabilities.
• Assess online training resources being used while much of DND/CAF is staying at home, to determine which ones work best, which features/designs get more engagement.
• No consensus on whether it is CAF’s responsibility to defend Canadian “cognitive” sovereignty.  Who should be fighting against foreign disinformation campaigns aimed at public?  More clarity needed from gov’t about CAF’s role in disinformation fight

 It apparently is really hard to work as a team from home in a pandemic, especially if much of the material is classified.  Most folks in DND and the CAF don't have classified computer systems (if Canada is at all like the US, the classified internet is on a different network entirely from the unclassified, so it is not like one can just hit a new webaddress to get to the juicy stuff).  Given that Zoom is a Chinese-related company, DND/CAF have to rely on other tools to interact.  MsTeams is an American one, so, um, sure, it could be safe.  Anyhow, the point is that the CAF and DND never planned to have most of its workforce work from home.  So, new tech may be required, new tactics and procedures are definitely required.  And to address an old problem--that too much stuff is classified.  Folks at home would be more productive if they didn't have to worry about violating the laws governing secret stuff if less stuff is secret.  Unnecessary classification is endemic because it is less risky for individuals than underclassifying stuff.  So, some thought to addressing this would be handy.

When digital stuff comes up, the thought turns to cyberspace and cyber war.  But another problem is simply knowing what is going on.  Data analytics can help make sense of all of the information that is out there, and COVID reminds us that bad data collected badly can't inform good decision-making.  So, we need to improve the CAF's ability to put the info together and make sense of it.

Never have so many members of the CAF had so much time at home during their working hours.  They may or may not be using the online training materials.  This would be an excellent time to figure out which ones work best, which ones are bad, and what features are most engaging.  Because online training has been a thing for sometime.  Speaking of data, there may be all kinds of data regarding these training materials--this data should be analyzed to improve the delivery of online training.

Finally, yes, the Russians and Chinese are filling the info battlespace with crap.  Whose job is it to combat this stuff?  DND?  CAF?  Other government agencies?  It is not clear that the CAF should be the lead on this just because they have much capability.  The government really needs to think hard about who should have which jobs in the disinformation fight. 


We will be examining each of the questions and answers further through the spring and summer and produce a report with more evidence and explanation.  If you have questions or comments, let us know.

CDSN COVID Response Briefing Note, Procurement Edition

Last week, members of the Canadian Defence and Security Network, along with networks funded by the Department of National Defence (SPNET [Concordia-based group of engineers working on tech-related policy, like AI], the Defence and Security Foresight Group,and the North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network) released a briefing note, based on a teleconference we held via zoom to discuss a series of questions that DND had given us and some we had developed.  I am discussing each piece, day by day.  I discussed Operations on Wednesday, Security on Thursday, and Personnel on Friday. Caveats: I have less knowledge of procurement issues, so take my comments here with a larger grain of salt than usual; and I did not sit in on that group's discussions.  

What are the assumptions for 10% or 20% reductions in the defence budget?
Particularly in terms of the timing and process involved in either set of cuts?
• Govt may allow departments to identify potential cuts or it may freeze spending and ask departments to find savings. Unclear whether/how cuts may play out.
• Avoid equal misery. Some parts of the CAF will have to be cut further than others, cutting proportionately leads to significant inefficiencies.
• Focus on outputs and enterprise level optimization as a means to generate efficiency and savings.

The first question was challenging as we have no idea what the government will do in reaction to big budget deficits.  It could be that the deficits are so big that cutting the defence budget is not going to happen--that the deficits will just be lived with.  The Liberals are not a party of Austerity, not these days, so it is not clear that they will feel compelled to cut the budget.  However, the DND/CAF budget is the most cut-able part.  So, the key then is to have a good strategy.  Just cutting across the board is a bad idea--it lives some projects just short of completion, the military without some crucial stuff, and other, less essential projects getting more than needed.  Real cuts would require real prioritizing--what is necessary, what is important but not essential, and what would be good  but can be foregone.  And that would require another Defence Review and another one or half dozen CDSN zoom conferences. 
Likewise, rather than just focusing on what goes into the machine, focus on what is produced and how each entity can produce more efficiency to get the most out of the budget.












How can DND/CAF help to grow the economy following COVID-19?
• As demand was cut by order of government, there is no need to stimulate economy.
• If stimulus is desired, spending on the CAF is not the best tool. Focus should be on lump sum payments to low income earners and infrastructure investments.

The economists in our group had no patience with the ideas that (a) Canada needs a stimulus post-covid and (b) spending on the CAF to stimulate the economy.
First, because the economy was brought to a stop by the disease and by governments' decisions, there is less need to stimulate the economy to get it moving.  Opening up the economy will likely suffice.  Second, throwing money at the military does not really have a multiplier effect on the economy.  The procurement projects are slow and focused so one would not see a big, quick boost across the economy.  Throwing money at personnel might help improve employment a bit, but the force is not that big and can't get much bigger without a lot of work, so, again, marginal impact.  Instead, give the $ those who don't make much money--since they will spend it--and build stuff for the long term so that the deficits today are really investments in the future.  That would probably be mass transit (even if that feels icky in age of masks and social distancing) and green projects to reduce climate change-producing emissions. 

I think I prefer economists giving answers that are not politically appealing, as the last time they gave one that was, Austerity, it screwed things up for a generation.

Tomorrow is our last post from the briefing note--civil-military relations.

Quarantine Week 8: It Ain't Summer Camp

Every summer from age 12 to 20, I spent eight weeks at summer camp.  I lived for summer as I felt I fit in better at camp than at school.  Week 7 of each summer was a time for crankiness, as people rubbed each other a bit much, the routine got too routine, etc.  But week 8 was a week where we put that stuff aside as we knew the summer was coming to a close, and I'd have to wait another 44 weeks to feel really alive again.  So, when I realize we have been quarantining for about eight weeks, my first thoughts are of those summers, that I didn't want them to end.

Strangely enough, I don't want this quarantine to end either but for different reasons.  That is, we are not ready yet.  Not in Canada and definitely not in the US.  The curves vary across each big country, but the basic tale is the same--not enough progress has been made in reducing the rates of transmission, in reducing the loads facing hospitals, and so on.  I understand that people are tired of being stuck at home, although we have had it easy compared to the Italians and Spaniards who have really stayed put.  Us?  We still run out to pick up takeout, we can still take walks and bike rides, we can still mass together in front of state capitols to take incredibly dumb stances, and so on.  Our freedom is hardly restricted.  Well, except for those entities that want to compel people to work in dangerous circumstances.

One of my themes of the week has been the realization that the hotzones in this pandemic in North America--prisons, eldercare facilities, meatpacking plants--are precisely the places that have not and largely could not close down.  Imagine if all the other places where people are close together had stayed open--universities (yes, they come
first in the mind of this professor), offices, restaurants, bars, churches, etc--the disease would have spread much farther, ultimately not just testing the hospitals and health care systems but breaking them.  So, before we open things up, let's think a bit more and let's not waste the eight weeks of restraint, shall we?

On the bright side, it was a productive week for the Canadian Defence and Security Network.  We produced our Briefing Note from the conference we had last week.  The leadership team met to discuss how to operate as the pandemic limits the kinds of things we can do.  My team in Ottawa brainstormed some ideas about what we can do to help younger scholars in this time of isolation, and we will be rolling out one initiative in the next week.

And we found yet more flour.  The only thing we still can't find is yeast, but we have plenty to last us... about eight more weeks of weekly pizza.  And then after that, I can still make another 20 or so weeks from ye old beer-based pizza dough.

I am less stressed about shopping and such with a helpful post I saw about how it is not just one quick whiff of microbes that gets one sick but something a bit more substantial.  Which means I am not going to catch it while biking or while shopping.... even if the same findings say that it is bad for the clerks.  The way I summarize it is: airports are ok, but planes are bad.  Oh, and no matter how you try to do it, getting universities started back up is going to be mighty, mighty hard.

I think it would be easier to be patient in the US if the government was making decent policy.  In Canada, the response has not been perfect, but the government is putting out large amounts of money and getting it quickly in the hands of the newly unemployed.  I am one of the least patient people I know although, of course, it is easier for me to be patient given my job, my financial situation, my cool house and family, and the endless supply of silly stuff on Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney +.  The good news is that the polls in both countries show that most people are willing to wait it out a bit longer.  Which means that even if the governments open things up, many stores and businesses will remain sensibly closed.

Always, the only way out is through: