Cognitive Defense: 2024 Homeland Defense Symposium

Curator note

The term “cognitive defense” is gaining traction in national security
and homeland-defense planning. And for good reason. The diverse portfolio
of threats to the homeland that has emerged following two decades of conflict
in the Middle East and Southwest Asia, a resurgent and aggressive Russia,
and the pacing competition from China overlays a range of domestic challenges
and advanced technologies with the potential to serve as threat enablers.
Defending the homeland to secure US interests domestically and abroad has taken
on relatively sudden and significant importance, as the away game now clearly begins inside the borders of the United States and our allies and involves a comprehensive civil-society component as well.
The Homeland Defense Symposium was truly fortunate to have distinguished
members of the defense, homeland security, and academic communities share their
views and experience. As you will see in the following pages, the participants’
combined thoughts provide a thoughtful review of cognitive defense and how
we—collectively—might apply an understanding of cognitive defense to meet
the array of challenges and opportunities ahead. Major-General Darcy Molstad,
deputy commander of the Canadian Joint Operations Command, set the scene
with a global context, discussing the origins of cognitive warfare and how relevant
doctrine has evolved and been applied in NATO planning, which defines the
term as follows.
Activities conducted in synchronization with other instruments
of power, to affect attitudes and behaviours by influencing, protecting, and/or disrupting individual and group cognitions to gain an advantage . . . . Cognitive Warfare integrates cyber, information, psychological, and social engineering
capabilities. These activities, conducted in synchronization with other Instruments of Power, can affect attitudes and behaviour by influencing, protecting, or disrupting individual and group cognition to gain advantage over an adversary.
The definitions of the operational side of cognitive defense provided
the backdrop for complementary presentations by Dr. George Schwartz,
director of the Emergency Planning and Management program at Immaculata
University and former assistant adjutant general of the Pennsylvania National
Guard (and current faculty member at the US Army War College); Dr. Michael
Roi, strategic adviser to the Canadian Joint Operations Command and former head
of the defense planning team in the office of the Canadian assistant deputy
minister (policy); and Dr. Mark Landahl, emergency manager for the city
of Rockville, Maryland, and former homeland security commander for the
Frederick County Sheriff’s Office. Together, the speakers described the complexity
of defending against nonkinetic threats. The challenges, as you will read,
reside mainly in how we might strengthen our collective resilience in the face
of competitors and adversaries using cognitive warfare as an enabling element
of their defense and security actions.
Our hope is the following papers will engage you in exploring, understanding,
and applying their respective critical analyses of cognitive defense. On behalf
of the distinguished speakers and the Naval Postgraduate School Center
for Homeland Defense and Security, congratulations to the US Army
War College, Center for Strategic Leadership for hosting this timely and
worthwhile event. The Center for Homeland Defense and Security was honored
to contribute alongside our partners at the US Army War College and the
Homeland Defense Institute