NEWPORT, RI – Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) Gen. Charles Q. Brown, addressed faculty, staff and students during a visit to the U.S. Naval War College (NWC), Nov. 21.
Brown’s lecture covered topics including the global security environment, his expectations for the Joint Force and the changing character of war.
“We are profoundly fortunate to have this nation’s senior ranking member of the Armed Forces and principal advisor to the President address our students, staff and faculty,” said Rear Adm. Darryl Walker, president of the U.S. Naval War College. “Engagements by leaders like Gen. Brown not only foster relevant and rigorous discourse among our campus community, but also highlight the importance of our institution’s efforts at the strategic level.”
During the lecture, Brown told students that as leaders in the Joint Force, they must balance mastery of the enduring nature of warfighting with anticipating future changes to the character of war.
“There are certain things about the nature of war that do not change,” Brown stated. “So, what is changing? The information space – how quickly information can move, including disinformation. Changes in technology – the addition of additional domains like cyber and space. The fact that many things happen outside of the DOD from a research and development standpoint, particularly in the innovation space. And just the difference in our geostrategic environment.”
He asserted that these differences must be the main drivers of change across the Joint Force.
Brown ended the lecture emphasizing the importance of engaging with partners and Allies to the success of U.S. military strategy.
“I think it is so important that I listen more than I talk because I learn something,” Brown said. “We have dialogue because I want to ensure that we can work together.”
Audience members also included personnel from various training commands onboard Naval Station Newport, including Surface Warfare Schools Command (SWSC) and other Naval Education and Training Command (NETC) schoolhouses.
Brown’s lecture will be used as seminar proceedings in support of the college’s newest course, Perspectives on Modern War (PMW), which combines the theoretical analysis of war with development of practical solutions for current and future global security challenges. The course follows a year-long learning community construct, integrating current events, emerging technologies, guest speakers, and thought leaders for greater impact on student learning.
PMW’s learning objectives are synthesized from all three trimesters at NWC that challenge students to critically analyze the changing character of modern warfare, honing their abilities in critical thinking, assessments, strategic analysis, ethical decision making and leadership.
By integrating content from symposia, guest lectures, course readings, and wargaming activities, PMW aims to prepare students to tackle 21st-century challenges and better serve the Navy, Joint Force, and interagency.
Established in 1884, NWC is the oldest institution of its kind in the world. The college delivers excellence in education, research, and outreach, informing today’s decision makers, educating tomorrow’s leaders, and engaging partners and allies on all matters of naval power in order to preserve the peace, respond in crisis, and win decisively in war.