Innovation ruled the third and final day of the TechNet Land Forces conference in Tucson, Arizona, with military and industry experts discussing a wide range of ways warfighters use technology to improve operational effectiveness--even if the operation is a simple search for candy.

Securing the homeland will require closer cooperation among military and civilian government organizations as diverse threats adopt each others' tactics and techniques. Terrorists, smugglers and other organized crime entities have learned from each other and, in some cases, are joining forces to threaten Western democracies in new ways. Testifying before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities, Michael A. Sheehan, assistant secretary of defense for special operations and low-intensity conflict, described a menacing trend in which "terrorism, drug trafficking and other types of transnational organized crime are increasingly intertwined."

Military leaders gathered yesterday at the TechNet Land Forces conference in Tucson, Arizona, for a blunt discussion of technology challenges facing current and future forces.

The defense budget cuts proposed for the foreseeable future offer the potential for both weakening the military and triggering a renaissance in innovation. And, that is just for the current reductions in the budget; if further draconian cuts are imposed, then no amount of innovation will make up for what some experts describe as a devastating evisceration of U.S. defense capabilities.

Now that information systems have redefined how a military leader exercises command and control, they are being retasked to free that leader from constraints imposed in the process of innovation and revolution. The technology revolution has been established; now the cultural struggle is underway.

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency is juggling several different directions as it plans for the next five years. But, rather than face having to choose which direction to pursue, the agency has mapped a course in which all of the different paths aim for a common destination.

Handheld mobile devices will be the next delivery vehicles for geospatial intelligence if the agency responsible for processing and delivering the vital information has its way. The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency already has developed apps for a variety of different mobile platforms, and it is working with the commercial sector to expand the menu it is about to offer to individual users in the field.

In the battle to share information effectively among local, state and federal partners, the National Guard Bureau has employed a tool designed to give personnel an edge. This geospatial information technology is deployed across the United States and its territories, enabling better coordination during emergency situations. With Google Earth as its base, it already has proved valuable in large-scale responses, and officials are planning future improvements.

The entire U.S. Defense Department has put a strong emphasis in recent years on the need to develop alternative energy technologies not only to reduce dependence on foreign oil, but also to ensure its own energy security. Airmen have responsibility for more than 100 of these projects, and even personnel typically associated with the most dangerous missions have embarked on research. Special operations troops are determined to remain on the cutting edge as their headquarters base leads the way in confirming the viability of some new offerings.

I joined the U.S. Army in 1968. Having been trained as a Signal officer, I went to the field in the early 1970s with maps in hand, and I used acetate and grease pencils to prepare overlays for troop movements, command post and signal site locations, and the ever-important radio line-of-sight calculations. One of the greatest technology developments of the time was the marking pen—we got rid of grease pencils and we had color!