Kathleen McInnis

Senior Fellow, International Security Program and Director, Smart Women, Smart Power Initiative
Kathleen Mcinnis

Kathleen J. McInnis is a senior fellow and director of the Smart Women, Smart Power Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Her research areas include the intersection of gender and national security; global security strategy; defense policy; and transatlantic security. Before rejoining the Center, she served as a specialist in international security at the Congressional Research Service (CRS), where she served as a senior expert to Congress on strategic issues including defense policy, military operations, civilian-military relations, irregular warfare, and global strategy. Prior to CRS, she worked as a research consultant at Chatham House in London, writing on NATO and transatlantic security matters. From 2006 to 2009, Dr. McInnis served in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Policy), working on NATO operations in Afghanistan. During her last time working at CSIS from 2004 to 2006, Dr. McInnis analyzed U.S. nuclear weapons strategy, European security, and transatlantic relations. She also worked as a researcher in the UK House of Commons, focusing on NATO, the European Union, and U.S.-UK political-military relations, from 2001 to 2003. Dr. McInnis is widely published; her articles have featured in major domestic and international outlets. She is the author of two books: How and Why States Defect from Contemporary Military Coalition (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019) and the novel The Heart of War: Misadventures in the Pentagon (Post Hill Press, 2018). Dr. McInnis was awarded her MSc in international relations from the London School of Economics and completed her PhD in war studies at King’s College London.

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Championing Ukrainian Reconstruction in the United States

Ukraine is rebuilding now with the help of allies, particularly the United States.  There are many opportunities for investment, particularly in the agriculture, technology, and energy sectors, and some American companies are expanding their businesses in Ukraine.

Event — September 25, 2024

Smart Women, Smart Power Podcast

A Conversation with Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi

Dr. Kathleen McInnis sat down with Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for a conversation on her new memoir, where she reflects on her time in Congress. 

Podcast Episode by Kathleen McInnis — September 23, 2024

CSIS Smart Women, Smart Power

Take a Chance on Mentorship

Funmi Oludaiye, Managing Director (Global Head of Engineering), at Goldman Sachs, discusses how she advanced her career in STEM through hard work, mentorship, and relationship building.

Event — September 4, 2024

Smart Women, Smart Power Podcast

Take a Chance on Mentorship

Funmi Oludaiye, Managing Director (Global Head of Engineering) at Goldman Sachs, discusses how she advanced her career in STEM through hard work, mentorship, and relationship building.

Podcast Episode by Kathleen McInnis — September 4, 2024

CSIS Smart Women, Smart Power

Secrets and Sacrifices: CIA, Benghazi, and Motherhood

The Honorable Sue Gordon joins CSIS Smart Women, Smart Power for a conversation on her career in the CIA, including her time in the CIA during the 2012 Benghazi attacks, all while balancing it all as a mother of two.

Event — August 21, 2024

Smart Women, Smart Power Podcast

Secrets and Sacrifices: CIA, Benghazi, and Motherhood

Sue Gordon, a 25-year CIA veteran, joins Dr. Kathleen McInnis and Lauren Bedula to discuss balancing her career and motherhood, as well as her experience during the 2012 Benghazi attacks, where she realized the changing nature of secrecy.

Podcast Episode by Kathleen McInnis — August 21, 2024

CSIS Smart Women, Smart Power

What Does Infant Formula Have to do with National Security?

Laura Modi, co-founder/CEO of Bobbie, joins Dr. Kathleen McInnis and Lauren Bedula for a discussion on how her company was defined during a national infant formula shortage, including how symbolic it is to everything broken in our society for parents.

Event — July 24, 2024