In this episode, historian and international relations scholar Neta Crawford examines the deep and largely hidden ties between U.S. military power, fossil fuel dependence, and the climate crisis. Tracing a history that runs from 19th-century coal stations to today’s global network of more than 700 U.S. military bases, Crawford explains how war-fighting doctrine, energy consumption, and emissions became structurally intertwined—and why the U.S. military may be doing more to endanger us than protect us.  

Neta Crawford is the author of four books and dozens of journal articles, including The Pentagon, Climate Change, and War. She is a professor at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland and the co-founder of the Costs of War Project at Brown. She has been elected to both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the British Academy.  

Robert Perkinson is an associate professor of American Studies and the director of the Better Tomorrow Speaker Series.  

The Better Tomorrow Speaker Series features incisive conversations on the most pressing issues of our time. The project is a joint venture of the University of Hawai‘i and the Hawai‘i Community Foundation.

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