The Edge

Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine – Five Lessons for Taiwan

Beijing is closely watching the West’s response to the 24 February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine for its own plans regarding the eventual subjugation of the independent country of Taiwan. The West’s desultory response to the crisis has revealed plain vulnerabilities and false assumptions about what the West would likely do in the event of an amphibious invasion or blockade of Taiwan by mainland China.

ADFA Presentation 2019 – General Sir Peter Cosgrove, AK, MC

The Governor-General of Australia, General Sir Peter Cosgrove, AK, MC, addresses ADFA staff and trainees

Future of Logistics Systems in Defence

Logistics! Its not something we usually think about. Not many people understand the concept, or its impact on the progress of society. It is the lifeblood of economy – of any home, organisation, city or country.

Queryable Earth: A Searchable database of Earth

What if you could search the surface of the Earth the same way you search the internet? Will Marshall and his team at Planet use the world's largest fleet of satellites to image the entire Earth every day. Now they're moving on to a new project: using AI to index all the objects on the planet over time -- which could make ships, trees, houses and everything else on Earth searchable, the same way you search Google. He shares a vision for how this database can become a living record of the immense physical changes happening across the globe. "You can't fix what you can't see," Marshall says. "We want to give people the tools to see change and take action."

How the Military Fights Climate Change

Military leaders have known for millennia that the time to prepare for a challenge is before it hits you, says scientist and retired US Navy officer David Titley. He takes us from the humanitarian catastrophe in Syria to the icy shores of Svalbard to show how the military approaches the threat of climate change, in a refreshingly practical, nonpartisan take on climate preparedness. "The ice doesn't care who's in the White House. It doesn't care which party controls your congress. It doesn't care which party controls your parliament," Titley says. "It just melts."

CDLE Leadership Paper 2 - 2018

The CDLE Leadership Paper 2-2018 is Anne Goyne and the CDLE team addressing issues around negative leadership. The paper is couched in terms of a range of events including the JEDI Council, the ADFA skype incident, the F111 deseal/reseal, the Defence Abuse Response Taskforce (DART) and the associated findings, which relate to many negative experiences of ADF personnel. The paper goes on to explore why the ADF culture has such negative leadership experiences and what to do about it.

Workplace Flexibility in the ADF: anathema or panacea?

Discussions about ‘flexible work’ in Defence have brought with it questions about what ‘work’, rather than ‘service’, looks like within the organisation. Yet what ‘flexibility’ means for Navy, Army and Air Force members, what ‘flexible work’ looks like, and what its implications are for capability remain contested.

Understanding Why a Ground Combat Vehicle That Carries Nine Dismounts Is Important to the Army

The Army has examined the lessons of half a dozen significant conflicts, starting with World War II, has conducted numerous studies over the last 65 years, and has found time and again that an ability to conduct dismounted fire and maneuver is the fundamental squad-level tactic.

Development of an Algorithm for Calculating the ‘Risk’ of Terrorist CBRN

In order to avert a disaster from a terrorist chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) attack, it is important to study the likelihood of terrorists using CBRN weapons. This study reports on the development of an algorithm for calculating the ‘risk’ of a terrorist seeking CBRN weaponry with 67.3 percent prediction accuracy.

A 3D Atlas of the Universe

For the last 12 years, Carter Emmart has been coordinating the efforts of scientists, artists and programmers to build a complete 3D visualization of our known universe. He demos this stunning tour and explains how it's being shared with facilities around the world. The 3D representation of the Earth and the Space around it will be a key technology for ADF to achieve comprehensive situational awareness of the world in the near future.

CDLE Leadership Paper 1 - 2009

In CDLE Leadership Paper 1-2009 CMDR Tony Mullan, RAN identifies a range of practical areas against which the content of existing values programs in Defence can be evaluated. The paper describes what values are and their relationship to individual behaviour, decision making and long term organisational performance.

Teaching Guidelines – A Criticial Thinking Model

Critical thinking is that mode of thinking – about any subject, content, or problem – in which the thinker improves the quality of his/her thinking by skilfully analysing assessing, and reconstructing it. Critical thinking is self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective thinking. It assumes (or takes for granted) agreeance to rigorous standards of excellence and careful (mindful) command of their use. It entails effective communication and problem-solving abilities, as well as a commitment to overcome our native egocentrism and sociocentrism (or group egocentrism).