In mechanical physics, resilience refers to a material's resistance to impact. For a body or a nation, resilience is the ability not to be discouraged, not to give up: its moral strength. Physical resilience is the foundation of moral resilience, and armies are a pillar of national resilience.
On this National Resilience Day (JNR), a government initiative since 2022 to raise public awareness, the IHEDN explains how resilience permeates defence in the broadest sense: from protecting people from disasters to ensuring the sustainability of military infrastructure and equipment.
" Climate change, resource scarcity and biodiversity loss are having an impact on international security and military operations. It's all about sustainable development," says Sylviane Bourguet, senior civil servant for sustainable development and Director of Land, Property and the Environment (DTIE) at the French Ministry of Defence.
CÉDRIC BOURILLET: "CLIMATE CHANGE POSES A CHALLENGE TO PREVENTION POLICY".
Cédric Bourillet, Director General of Risk Prevention (a national department attached to the Ministry of Ecological Transition), also points out: "With climate change, prevention policy is challenged", because it has "major impacts in terms of natural risks, with an intensification of natural phenomena in terms of both frequency and intensity".
According to this general mining engineer, "it is usual to say that resilience is the ability to overcome 'shocks' and return to normal functioning as quickly as possible ". And in recent years, France has experienced several major shocks," continues Cédric Bourillet:
"Examples include the AZF accident in 2001, the fires at the Lubrizol and Normandie Logistique sites in 2019, storm Alex in the Alpes-Maritimes in 2022, the major floods in the Hauts-de-France region in the winter of 2023-2024, cyclones Chido in Mayotte and Garance on Reunion Island in late 2024 and early 2025 respectively, and more recently the fire in Ribaute (Aude), which, with 11,130 hectares burnt, its intensity and speed of spread off the charts, is one of the biggest fires of the last 50 years."
Some of these natural and even industrial shocks are particularly accentuated by climate changeadded the Director General of Risk Prevention:
"I'm thinking of fires and marine submersion, but also of new risks in the mountains. It is also a source of greater constraints on high-risk industrial sitesThis is known as the "Natech" risk, a technological accident caused by a natural event. This is known as the "Natech" risk, a technological accident caused by a natural event.
SYLVIANE BOURGUET: "RESILIENCE SHOULD NOT BE CONFUSED WITH AUTONOMY OR INDEPENDENCE".
In response to the same findings, the Ministry of the Armed Forces has drawn up a "sustainable defence strategy 2024-2030". the aim is to strengthen the armed forces' ability to meet environmental challenges while ensuring the continuity and performance of their missions "explains Sylviane Bourguet:
"Â The definition of resilience in terms of sustainable development at the Ministry is therefore to reconcile the continuation of operational activities and military performance with the preservation of resources.Resilience is not to be confused with autonomy or independence. Resilience should not be confused with autonomy or independence.
In concrete terms, the Ministry of the Armed Forces is strengthening its resilience through various actions," continued the senior official for sustainable development:
- "Â Adapting to climate change to maintain operational efficiency (diversifying energy sources, rethinking mobility, adapting everyday equipment and infrastructure, rethinking training methods and locations, etc.);
- reducing our ecological footprint (development of renewable energies, waste management, water resource management, preserving the diversity of training areas through ecological management, etc.);
- preparing for environmental crises (droughts, floods, etc.) to protect staff and infrastructure (awareness campaigns, exercises, etc.);
- integrating sustainable criteria into our purchasing and construction processes (long-term capability strategy, e.g. hybridisation).
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And on its huge sites (275,000 ha, including 80% located in areas of high ecological value), the army is taking action to preserve biodiversity. At the La Valbonne camp, a 1,600 hectare site in the Ain department, the ministry is working to reconciling "biodiversity and operational readinessIn partnership with experts (Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Conservatoires d'espaces naturels)". In this way, it is helping to restore threatened habitats in an area that is highly popular with migratory birds.
This very "upstream" approach is also used by Cédric Bourillet at national level for civil infrastructure:
"In terms of natural risk preventionThe public authorities have been particularly active in one area: ensuring that risk assessment is carried out in a way that is consistent with the principles of sustainable development. integrated into the design of development projectsrather than being seen as a simple constraint to be dealt with at the end of the process.
At the same time, we have worked to reduce vulnerability at all levels. In particular, we have strengthened At individual level by developing the concept of "rebuilding better after a disaster. To this end, we are experimenting with a scheme that grants financial aid specific measures for private individuals and small businesses (with fewer than 20 employees) to encourage them to install effective individual protection against flooding".
As we have seen at MinArm, the preparation and training of civilian and military personnel is a key issue. For Cédric Bourillet, it's the entire French population that needs to be made aware of the issue, in both their private and professional lives, because " the damage caused by these crises highlights the importance of risk prevention measures ".Â
JNR: 2,000 AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS BY 2022, 12,000 LAST YEAR
According to the Director General of Risk Prevention, resilience is built around a continuum of essential actions, from anticipation to post-crisis learning:
- Risk awareness for each region
- Risk culture : To make every citizen aware of natural phenomena and industrial accidents, which can affect large numbers of people at the same time.
- Focus on reducing the vulnerability of existing assets and theintegrating risks into future development.
- Preparing for the crisis management as well as return to normal after the event
- Systematize the feedback to continually improve prevention and management systems.
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Cédric Bourillet illustrates this logic with a very telling figure:
" One euro invested in prevention via the Fonds de Prévention des Risques Naturelles Majeures avoids €8 in damageNot to mention the human lives saved, which remain the priority of our public policy".
The most popular initiative in terms of raising awareness of resilience is, of course, the annual JNR. In concrete terms, as the General Engineer points out, "the JNR sets out a framework for action via a call for projects, renewed each year, to encourage all stakeholders (local authorities, associations, insurers, schools, etc.) to roll out local initiatives to raise awareness of major risks (natural and technological), to make people aware of the risks and the best ways to behave".
Year after year, awareness is growing thanks to the JNR: from less than 2,000 actions in 2022, this has risen to more than 12,000 in 2024. This year, a significantly higher figure is expected.
