Strategic Governance for Sustainable Development in the Defense Industry

Can the defence sector reconcile sustainability with security?

Aris Sarjito explores this question in "Strategic Governance for Sustainable Development in the Defence Industry", analysing how governance frameworks can embed environmental and social goals without undermining national security.

Key takeaways include:

• The defence industry has adopted some green measures, but implementation is inconsistent and lacks a unified governance approach.
• Barriers to sustainability include regulatory constraints, limited funding, cultural resistance, and siloed initiatives.
• Standardising ESG practices can improve reputation, reduce regulatory risk, and enhance access to capital by aligning with global standards like the UN SDGs.
• Sustainable procurement and efficiency reforms promise long-term cost savings, freeing resources for innovation or dividends and improving disclosure to investors.
• A robust governance framework must include clear sustainability goals, supportive regulations, greater transparency, and investment in innovation.
• A multi-dimensional strategy including policy guidance, best practices, and targeted implementation plans is deemed essential to institutionalise ESG values in such a complex sector.

The framework proposed in this article is designed to help the defence industry meet national security imperatives while also contributing to sustainable development goals in the long run.

As a limitation, the study relies on qualitative analysis of secondary data, which provides broad context but no direct on-ground observation and may overlook classified or unreported practices.

The defence sector's unique secrecy and security constraints mean the research could not drill down into unit-level implementation details.

The proposed framework also remains conceptual, so its effectiveness remains unproven until applied in real defence institutions.