Installation-Community Partnerships: A New Paradigm for Collaborating in the 21st Century

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Introduction: Why the Focus on Partnerships Now?

As Department of Defense (DoD) budgets shrink rapidly, DoD leaders are looking for revolutionary ways to reduce costs while retaining capabilities critical to their missions. Communities, states, and industry that depend heavily upon DoD for their livelihoods and economies are searching for more efficient operating models that will compensate
for reductions in defense spending and provide a stronger foundation to rebuild when the budget cli- mate improves. During lean times, “partnership” is a construct often employed as a way to share burdens, adjust to reductions and enable mission continuity. There are many examples where partnerships have been critical to DoD and community success. Disap- pointments have also occurred. Developing partner- ships that successfully realize their goals requires stakeholders to rely on new operational models for collaboration between military installations and their community hosts.
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