Data Collection, Fusion, and Visualization for Decision Making in Stability Operations

Stability is the measure of regional resistance to political, economic, social and structural degradation or deterioration. Stabilizing mechanisms seek to create an environment for a populace that is legitimate, acceptable, and predictable. In today’s strategic context, local, national and regional stability is extremely dynamic; constantly influenced by state and non-state actors, media, financial organizations and behaviors, natural events, and various types of human conflict. While stability is of vital U.S. interest, diminishing resources require innovative and creative solutions that start with a full understanding of any given stability situation. Our research developed a tool that drives data collection methodology by U.S. Army Civil Affairs Teams and Security Force Assistance Teams, fuses this with open source data, and conducts initial analysis and data visualization for consumption by military commanders up to and including Combatant Commands. This tool uses a Risk Framework developed by U.S. Pacific Command’s Socio-cultural Analysis Team. This framework views regional, national, and sub-national stability environments through analysis of Humanitarian Crisis, Outlier and Recalcitrant States, Regional Power Balancing, Economic Insecurity, and Violent Extremism.