UGA Defense Community Resilience Program

What are defense communities? Defense communities are the cities, counties, regions, and states that support our nation’s military installations and their respective military missions and that maintain economic, social, and community ties to the military.

 

About DCRP

In 2024, the Defense Community Resilience Program received $5 million in federal funding to support its ongoing work, which builds upon the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Engineering With Nature® (EWN) initiative.

The public service faculty and professional staff of the UGA Defense Community Resilience Program (DCRP) serve as a bridge, facilitating connections between military installations and their related civilian defense communities to enhance their shared resilience.

WHERE WE ARE WORKING NOW

 

Housed at the UGA Carl Vinson Institute of Government, the DCRP harnesses federal support to bring multi-disciplinary expertise to bear from across a broad collaborative network. The DCRP team works to remove obstacles and chart the road ahead as communities adapt to a changing climate and a dynamic world.

Currently, the program is engaged in Georgia communities surrounding Fort Moore (formerly Fort Benning), Fort Stewart and Hunter Army Air Field, and Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base. Work also extends into coastal South Carolina and Florida.

The Defense Community Resilience Program helps communities and military installations explore mutually beneficial opportunities for economic growth. A recent example is the River Valley Community Compatible Development Plan, which provides a regional roadmap for creating vibrant downtowns, investing in infrastructure and promoting outdoor activities in the rural communities surrounding Fort Moore.

The program also considers natural solutions to restore and protect existing environments within installations. For example, DCRP experts have proposed ways to redirect stormwater runoff on roadways into retention ponds that support native plants and habitats, thereby enhancing the landscape and reducing flooding. Such efforts reflect the military’s commitment to strengthening communities that share borders with its installations.

>> Read more about our work