In September 2017, Hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Following these hurricanes, comprehensive and timely data collection was, and continues to be, required to assess both the severity of damage across Puerto Rico and to inform recovery and mitigation strategies. In this manuscript, we present how remote sensing data was incorporated into this assessment and planning process, focusing on the applications for Puerto Rico’s natural resources in the months following the hurricanes. We first describe how different types of satellite and airborne remote sensing data, along with existing and newly developed data processing methodologies, were applied to the damage assessment and recovery planning process for three natural resource applications: terrestrial forests, landslides, and coastal systems. We show that while remote sensing data offered a critical first assessment of the damage caused by the hurricanes, it was not always easily integrated into the recovery planning process and the variable timelines required by decisionmakers. Remote sensing data remains a powerful, if sometimes underutilized, tool in immediate and long-term disaster recovery efforts, and we conclude by suggesting future areas for improvement to facilitate the integration into natural disaster planning, assessment, and response.

The RAND Arroyo Center conducted a 2014 formal needs assessment survey of active component soldiers at 40 installations. The original study described a broad landscape of needs in such areas as quality of life support services provided to help families cope with a variety of challenges. In this study, new analysis of those survey data explores differences at the garrison level and includes additional focus group data. The analysis suggests that resources providing one-on-one, personalized help should be given priority and it is possible that emphasizing trust between soldiers and their leaders could help fulfill this need. Providing easily accessible information online and staffing services that provide information to soldiers and their families should also be continuing priorities. In intergovernmental support agreements and other community partnership activities, Army garrisons should consider focusing more on partnerships that help meet the needs of soldiers and their families. The Army might consider a series of solutions to achieve the right balance between fostering resilience and helping its soldiers solve problems early. One solution is to expose noncommissioned officers and other soldiers earlier and more frequently in their careers to information regarding what resources are available. Another solution is to set priorities at the aggregate Army level, rather than leaving lower levels to determine how to prioritize the many requirements that are passed down. Finally, the Army should consider strengthening the "no wrong door" policy at Army Community Service and broadening the policy to help soldiers and families navigate resources.

This report presents findings on the economic activity supported by total Army spending in each of the 435 congressional districts for fiscal years 2012–2014. Using input/output models, researchers estimated that in FY 2014, the Army directly spent approximately $121 million in the median congressional district (in 2012 dollars), translating into about 4,200 jobs and contributing to $375 million of economic output.

The U.S. military's current concept of operations for expeditionary medical care emphasizes quickly moving patients to a series of successively more sophisticated medical facilities that provide the patients with the care necessary to treat their injury or condition. Balancing the deployment of treatment and evacuation resources is therefore necessary to ensure that the right mix of resources is available in a timely fashion. The authors propose a planning concept that, by promoting patient flow rate as the common unit of measurement, will help integrate medical planning across treatment and evacuation functions, across the increasing levels of care, and across the different military services. The primary medical planning tool approved for use by combatant commands for developing their operational plans-the Joint Medical Analysis Tool (JMAT)-already operates in a manner consistent with this concept. However, modifications and enhancements to JMAT are necessary to ensure that the concept can be fully implemented.

The Global Force Management Data Initiative was launched to improve aggregation of unclassified force-structure data. Aggregation, though, raised concerns about classification because the system might be attractive to a potential adversary. The authors develop a framework for evaluating classification decisions to determine that, while overall classification is not indicated, the inclusion of some data will require careful consideration.

: The Army owns and operates installations across the globe, and these installations consume substantial amounts of energy. The Army wants to reduce its energy consumption for several reasons. First, it is under legislative mandate to do so. The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 directs military installations to reduce their energy consumption 30 percent by 2015, and the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) directs them to increase, by 7.5 percent, their use of energy from renewable sources by 2013.1 The Army also faces regulatory pressure. Issued in October 2009, Executive Order 13514, Federal Leadership in Environmental, Energy, and Economic Performance, directs federal agencies, including the Army, to increase energy efficiency and measure, report, and reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, the Army would like to lower its energy costs: the cost of Army installation energy utilities was over $1.2 billion in 2010.2 To help meet such goals in fall 2010, the Army announced a new Army energy vision for the Net Zero Energy Installation (NZEI), an installation that over the course of a year produces as much energy on site as it uses, in April 2011 announcing pilot installations that are trying to become NZEIs by 2020.

: When first established decades ago, most U.S. military installations were far from major cities and towns. That is no longer true. A growing population and changing land development patterns over the past several decades have led to lands vital to military readiness being surrounded by urban, suburban, and other types of development. Such development, especially large residential tracts, can limit the installation's operational capability. Complaints about noise, dust, and smoke from aircraft, weapons, and vehicles force commanders to curtail training of certain types or during certain hours. As development destroys or displaces native species of plants and animals, military posts become their critical refuge, and their presence further restricts military operations. These constraints have been so severe in some cases that installations have had to close. Such pressures are called encroachment. Encroachment can be defined as issues external to military operations that affect military installation testing, training, and other operations and overall military readiness. Recognizing the gravity of the problem, Congress provided legislative authority to allow military departments to partner with government or private organizations to establish buffer areas near training and testing areas. The Office of the Secretary of Defense(OSD) created the Conservation Partnering Program (now known as the Readiness and Environmental Protection Initiative (REPI)2) to implement this authority.