“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” ― Sun Tzu, The Art of War
The truth that existed for Sun Tzu remains true today: knowledge is power and the ultimate key to success on the battlefield. However, the transfer of that knowledge has evolved over time. At the beginning it was through word-of-mouth, then through written recordings. For generations the accessibility of written knowledge improved throughout the world. Knowledge is increased and creativity and innovations grow when information is widely shared. The Army clearly understood this because each branch devised its own professional journal over time to share knowledge and increase an understanding of their function.
The Continued History of Army Sustainment
Logistical operations are no different, and in 1968, the Department of the Army began the initiative to create a professional journal for logistics. A pilot edition (MAR-APR 1969) was created for the final layout and sections approval. While this edition was never officially published, with hardcopies only existing in the Army Sustainment University Library, it showcases the beginning of 55 years of publication for the Army Sustainment Professional Bulletin. At the beginning, Army Sustainment was titled Army Logistician, with the first official edition publishing SEP-OCT 1969. Throughout the 55 years thus far, Army Sustainment has covered everything from the Vietnam War, Cold War, War on Terror, technology innovations, and an ever-changing formation landscape across the force, to name a few.
Army Sustainment remained in print from 1969 to the summer of 2023 before going fully digital. During the 314 printed editions (not including the pilot edition), Army Sustainment underwent a variety of changes. At first it was called Army Logistician, often referred to as ALOG. The editions from SEP-OCT 1984 thru MAR-APR 1987 were even titled ALOG on the covers. In 2009, on the 40th anniversary of the bulletin, Army Logistician changed to Army Sustainment. 2013 was the only year to have only five editions printed before 2019 when Army Sustainment went from six to four editions a year. In 2022, Army Sustainment went from naming the editions by months to seasons. Then, in the summer of 2023, Army Sustainment printed their final edition. From that moment on, all Army Sustainment articles would solely be available online for the individual Soldier to read. Another chapter in the way we transfer knowledge began.
This is just a brief overview of Army Sustainment with some facts that were previously unpublished. For a more thorough history of Army Sustainment before 2009, refer to the 30th anniversary issue (JAN-FEB 1999) and the 40th anniversary issue (SEP-OCT 2009), available online in Army Sustainment archives (https://asu.army.mil/alog/backissues.html). These contain multiple articles that highlight the progression and developments of Army Sustainment from 1969 to 2009.
The Launch of the Harding Project
It had not even been a full year after Army Sustainment went fully digital before the next significant development began. The launch of the Harding Project ushered in a new age of how Soldiers share and consume knowledge. It is an initiative of the Chief of Staff of the Army, GEN Randy A. George, to renew the Army’s professional journals through the Harding Project. The project is focused on ensuring that the journals provide the force with content that is relevant, high quality, and accessible. Two of the major efforts to accomplish this intent are the creation of a single point of reference website for all branch journals and staffing the journals with military editors-in-chief called Harding Fellows.
Line of Departure Website
Launched on October 11, 2024, the Line of Departure website provides a single access point for all branch journals that is easy to navigate, web-first, and mobile-friendly for all users. The content is available in HTML, downloadable PDFs, and audio files. Thus, every Soldier of every rank will be able to consume the information in the manner of their choosing. The link for the website is https://www.lineofdeparture.army.mil/.
Soldiers can now read articles while waiting in line at the chow hall, waiting for their turn during the monthly uranalysis, or as part of their weekly leader’s time training. Not only are they able to read the articles, but they can listen to them as well. So, when Soldiers are at the gym, driving, or cooking dinner, they can be listening to an article and consume that knowledge. This website meets Soldiers where they are.
Another prime aspect of the Line of Departure is that all the Army’s professional journals are located there. The website is constantly fed by each of the journals, so there is always new content. This broadens our overall knowledge and understanding by reading articles from other branches. This opportunity truly enables us to know ourselves and our enemy.
If you are interested in a specific topic, you can search key words and the website populates every article that contains those words, no matter the source. For instance, if you search “port operations,” the results will show you articles from the engineer, aviation, sustainment, and signal journals, to name a few. No longer does this information exist in a vacuum, nor is it separated by branch. It is no longer just contained at the senior level either. The most junior Soldier can be reading these articles, and then write about the innovations they themselves have discovered that will benefit the entire force. Now we are fully using the power of information to increase our knowledge and lethality.
The website does not just contain articles. It also provides a platform for all the Army podcasts. These podcasts enable Soldiers to gain greater understanding on current topics that they are passionate about. Lastly, each journal page provides submission guidelines specific to that journal. Here writers can find information on what the journals are looking for in submissions and how to submit. If a writer needs additional assistance, they can use the “Professional Military Writing Special Edition” of the Military Review, September 2024, which is directly linked on the website. This edition provides guidance on how to write professionally, how to start a writing program at your unit, how to foster dissent, and tips for getting published. All these initiatives on the Line of Departure are fully supported by the military editors-in-chief of the journals, the Harding Fellows.
Harding Fellowship
As part of the launch of the Harding Project, each branch center of excellence selected an individual to serve as their professional branch journal’s military editor-in-chief. They serve alongside their civilian editors to work to renew the Army’s journals and increase our ability to share this knowledge. The Harding Fellowship is officially titled the MG Edwin “Forrest” Harding Fellowship to honor MG Harding, who renewed Infantry and the Infantry Journal in the 1930s. The first cohort of Fellows officially assumed their duties during the summer of 2024.
The Harding Fellowship has been codified as an official Army Broadening Opportunity. MILPER Message 24-321, published in August 2024, formally describes the program as follows: “The MG Edwin ‘Forrest’ Harding Fellowship is a competitive, 36-month program consisting of a 1-year accelerated master’s degree program at the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Kansas for Active Component captains, non-commissioned officers in the grade of E8, and warrant officers in the grade of CW4. Upon completion, Fellows will then serve as editors-in-chief for the branch journals at their respective center of excellence for a two-year term. The Harding Fellowship produces leaders who strengthen the Army profession with their deep expertise in branch matters and superior communications skills.”
The Fellows bring to the journals current firsthand experience that was otherwise missing. This enables them to be the prime candidates to help drive change and ensure the journals connect with the force. After their two-year utilization, they have become experts in their branch and have gained unmatched communication skills that they can take back with them to their operating units.
Harding Fellowship at Army Sustainment: From Simple Beginnings to Editor
Little did I know that the path that would lead me to being a Harding Fellow was started all the way back in my childhood. When I was in the 4th grade, I created a class paper that I would pass out weekly to my classmates. On some regular white copy paper, I would tape articles that I found interesting from magazines or newspapers, created my own puzzles and math problems, put the lunch schedule for the week, added some interesting or random facts, and included any upcoming events for the school. Then I would make copies to hand out. It was a very simple and creative way to learn about journalism at a young age.
My next experience came when I was deployed to Atlantic Resolve in Poland from 2018–19. As a first lieutenant, I was with the 49th Transportation Battalion (Movement Control), which oversaw all the movement operations into and out of eastern Europe. I personally oversaw the customs clearance part of the operation and saw issues with the program, which drove me to write and publish an article to highlight the issues and present solutions. I wanted units arriving to theater to be aware of what they may face when attempting to cross borders on convoys. Thus, I published an article titled “CCO Operations: Atlantic Resolve’s Achilles Heel” in the Spearhead Newsletter, Volume XV, Issue 2, APR-MAY 2019. The Spearhead Newsletter is the Transportation Corps’ official newsletter. Army Sustainment is the official publication for the overall logistics branch. I will never forget the conversation I had with my battalion S-3, then MAJ Michael McDaniel, when he was reviewing my draft for the article. He told me that when I publish this, I will probably find myself writing again for the Army. I did not believe him at the time, but truly how correct he was.
Prior to assuming my role as the Harding Fellow, I was an instructor in the Logistics Captains Career Course and was overseeing the writing department. At first, very little was known on the Harding Project, and it was thought that this role would just be an additional duty. That very quickly changed, and I was selected as the first Harding Fellow for the Sustainment Center of Excellence. It truly has been a rewarding experience, and I have learned more than I could have ever imagined from my civilian counterparts on journalism and publishing. They have created a well-oiled machine that produces a world-class professional journal quarterly. It truly is an honor to be part of this team.
To take Army Sustainment to the next level, I have started multiple initiatives in my short time thus far with the team. The fall 24 edition saw the implementation of the “Did You Know?” and “Captains Career Corner” sections. This winter 25 edition contains the new “Blast from the Past” and this “From the Military Editor-in-Chief” section. These initiatives are designed to increase our audience and create focus areas within each publication for the sharing of knowledge.
Additionally, I have broadcasted the Harding Project and Line of Departure website across the Fort Gregg-Adams installation. The goal is to ensure that every Soldier is aware of the program and how to access the website. The next step is the creation of a podcast for Army Sustainment, which will provide opportunities to discuss hot topics in the sustainment world. Soldiers across the world will be able to directly listen to the conversations I will have with sustainment leaders. These are just some of the initiatives, with many more in the works.
With the Harding Project, Knowledge Is Endless
No longer is the sharing of knowledge restricted to word-of-mouth or printed resources to which some Soldiers may not have access. The Harding Project has not only renewed the Army’s professional journals, but it has also unlocked the key to the ultimate transfer of knowledge across all branches and ranks. Now, Soldiers can consume knowledge from any professional branch journal in the manner of their choosing.
Sun Tzu’s point on knowledge is just as relevant today as it was when he wrote The Art of War. To be lethal, you must be able to communicate. To communicate, you must have the knowledge about what you are trying to communicate. This knowledge about yourself, and in our case the enemy, is paramount to success on the battlefield. Thus, we must never cease to write, read or listen, and share knowledge. If you are developing a new way to conduct sustainment operations, reviewing a historical battle for lessons learned that can be applied today, or have lessons learned from a recent combat training center rotation, then write about them. We can no longer exist in vacuums. The professional journals will only be as beneficial to this transfer of knowledge as the articles submitted to them.
Technology is ever changing, and the manner in which we share knowledge is always evolving. We must continue to keep pace with these advancements, so that the sharing of knowledge is never hindered. The key to our success in the next conflict rests with our ability to share knowledge before the conflict starts.
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CPT Garett H. Pyle is currently the Military Editor-in-Chief for the Army Sustainment Professional Bulletin and has been selected as the first Sustainment Center of Excellence Harding Fellow at Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia. He joined the Army Reserves in 2012 as an O9R (Simultaneous Membership Program Cadet) where he simultaneously attended ROTC at Washington & Jefferson College where he commissioned in 2016 in the Transportation Corps. He graduated with a Master of Arts degree in transportation and logistics management from American Military University. He is an Honor Graduate of both the Transportation Officer Basic Course and Logistics Captains Career Course.
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This article was published in the winter 2025 issue of Army Sustainment.
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