Science, Security and Resilience Meet at CMDR COE Annual Conference
Date: (02-06-2026)
The 14th CMDR COE Annual Conference on Crisis Management and Disaster Response and the 4th International Conference on Environmental Protection and Disaster Risks is underway, bringing together representatives from NATO, national institutions, academia, research organisations, emergency management structures, industry, and the wider crisis management and disaster response community.
The event is hosted by the Crisis Management and Disaster Response Centre of Excellence and provides a high-level platform for professional exchange on some of the most pressing security and resilience challenges today. The conference focuses on the growing interconnection between natural and human-induced hazards, environmental risks, climate-related disasters, technological innovation, business continuity, and the need for stronger preparedness across civil and military structures.
The opening of the conference was attended by Mr Lyubomir Monov, Deputy Minister of Defence of the Republic of Bulgaria, and COL Orlin Nikolov, PhD, Director of the CMDR COE. In their remarks, they underlined the strategic importance of resilience, interoperability, scientific cooperation, and practical solutions in an increasingly complex security environment.
The first day of the conference set a strong tone for the discussions ahead. Keynote sessions addressed NATO’s role in civil emergency response, Ukraine’s operational experience in organising forest fire suppression in a hybrid warfare environment, and practical support for Ukraine’s State Emergency Service in achieving NATO interoperability. Further discussions focused on standards-based living digital twins for defence and intelligence systems, risk intelligence, integrated wildfire risk management, contaminated land fire management, and the role of advanced research infrastructure in environmental risk analysis.
Today’s programme continues with expert panels dedicated to high-performance computing, modelling and simulation, artificial intelligence, climate change and security implications, disaster medicine, air pollution and health, water resources and flooding, wildfire resilience, business continuity management, natural and human-induced hazards, and risk assessment.
By bringing together scientific expertise, operational experience, and institutional perspectives, the conference reaffirms the role of the CMDR COE as a hub for knowledge exchange, innovation, and practical cooperation in support of NATO, Allies, partners, and the broader resilience community.
News
The initial planning conference for the SEESIM 14 exercise was held in Zagreb, CroatiaThe initial planning conference for the distributed computer assisted exercise South Eastern Europe Simulation Network (SEESIM 14) was held in Zagreb, Croatia. The Republic of Bulgaria is co-organizer and participates actively in the conducting of the exercise together with the Host Nation. Among the participants are also representatives of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Montenegro, Romania, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, United States of America and the SEEBRIG.
The exercise is held under the auspices of the Ministers of Defence of the SEE Nations.
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CMDR COE FEBRUARY Forthcoming events- In 3-7 of February experts from the CMDR COE team will take part in the Final Planning Conference of the SABER GUARDIAN ′14 Exercise, organized by the US EUCOM and BGR LANDFORCE.
The purpose of the exercise is to train and educate civilian and military participants in planning and conducting an UN mandated Chapter VII Peace Operation/Crisis Response Operation, based on a Comprehensive Approach, and focusing on co-operation and co-ordination within an unstable environment, involving all stakeholders. The principal exercise focus is the civilian-military cooperation and coordination. The scenario supports exercising a wide range of peace operations functions (e.g. rule of law, humanitarian, etc.). The CMDR COE will contribute to achieving the exercise objectives by providing subject matter expert support in the CMDR area and by organizing distributed point for White cell.
- In 11-13 February 2014 the Civil-Military Interaction: Disaster Preparedness and Response Workshop will take place in Sofia. The workshop is sponsored by the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies, the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Bulgaria and the CMDR COE. The workshop comprises lectures dedicated to NATO and EU Crisis Management, role of military in civil security, risk management, as well as discussions and tabletop exercise.
Internal CMDR COE Seminar on the Crisis in SyriaThe CMDR COE organised an internal seminar which was held on 20.12.2013. The main focus of the seminar was the crisis in Syria. The CMDR COE experts discussed issued related to the chronology of the crisis; the increased influx of refugees to neighbouring countries and Bulgaria; the positions of NATO, the UN and EU; the involvement of international humanitarian organisations etc.
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Visualizing Implications of Climate Change on Military Activities and Relationships was conductedOn 11-12 December 2013, the Crisis Management and Disaster Response Centre of Excellence (CMDR COE) co-hosted together with US European Command (USEUCOM) and the US embassy in Bulgaria the workshop Visualizing Implications of Climate Change on Military Activities and Relationships. The opening remarks were given by the Deputy Minister of Defence of Bulgaria, Mr. Ivan Ivanov, who welcomed the participants and underlined the importance of the topics that the workshop focused on.
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