There is potential for globalization, demographic trends, regional tensions, energy appetites, and identity or religion politics to conspire to create a greater and more pervasive instability. International relief organizations may become overwhelmed. I think that this paints a picture that calls for dramtically enhanced interservice, interagency and international capacity to plan together as well as execute together in a variety of efforts from economic development to humanitarian assistance to support to governance to conflict engagement and resolution. This is a present problem. At a recent event including participation of an international and interdisciplinary collection of government and nongovernment professionals, the observation was offerred that one can get a Brit, an American and a Canadian to agree on a definition of a problem much more easily than on a process for planning. One issue, but instructive.

I think that as difficult as the effort associated with enhancing US service interoperability has been, it is simple compared to the same challenge applied to US efforts involving multiple agencies of the government. In turn I think that challenge may look tame when compared to the complexity of the challenge to improve the capability for international coordination of several teams, each representing a "whole government approach" for their respective nation, and all seeking to work together to accomplish a common goal.

Again, in the context of the future environment described, it appears that the capability to plan and execute efforts aimed at reducing the causes of conflict, mitigating the residual sources of insecurity and instability (economic, technological, etc.) and resolving conflicts that occur (including engaging directly in conflicts when necessary) will be very important.