Discussion Summaries from the Summit on Entrepreneurship and Expeditionary Economics

Some of the foremost thinkers in military history, foreign policy, and economic growth shared their knowledge, experiences, and insights at the Summit on Entrepreneurship and Expeditionary Economics on May 25 – 27, 2010, co-hosted by the Kauffman Foundation and the Command and General Staff College Foundation. The key takeaways from the overall summit, as well as the three panel discussions are captured in the summaries below.

These summaries collectively distill the dialogue that evolved over the course of the summit, beginning with an historical overview of post-conflict economic engagement from the Marshall Plan through The Balkans and the lessons they’ve imparted. The proceedings continued with a frank assessment of the ongoing development efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and concluded with broad conversation on how the United States can encourage economic growth through development and deployment of expeditionary economics principles in support of current and future military stability operations.

Expeditionary Economics Summit Summary and Panel Overviews
EE Panel Overview Summit on Entrepreneurship and Expeditionary Economics Discussion Summary (PDF)  

Summit Lays Groundwork by Identifying Necessary Lines of Inquiry

The conference sessions—which enjoyed the participation of a wide variety of senior and mid-ranking military officers, former officers, civilian employees in defense and foreign policy related fields, economists, academics, and think tank experts—revealed some broad areas of agreement and some sharp disagreements.
EE Panel Overview Panel I: Post-Conflict Planning and Execution in Previous Wars (PDF)  

Practice Imperfect – Assessing Half a Century of Economic Development Efforts in Post-War Environments

What do the post-conflict scenarios of the past sixty years teach us about better execution and planning for those of the future?
EE Panel Overview

Panel II: Current Post-Conflict Planning and Execution (PDF)  

The Dilemma at Hand – Debating the Approaches to Iraq and Afghanistan

What are the core challenges we currently face and what principles should be in place as we continue our objective of establishing stable economies, both now and in the future?

EE Panel Overview

Panel III: Post-Conflict Planning and Execution in the Future (PDF)  

The Road Ahead – How Do We Get There?

What doctrine is needed, how can it be achieved, and more importantly, how can we translate "expeditionary economics" into concrete, ground-level actions?