Complex policy challenges require innovative and comprehensive solutions that can only be achieved with a diverse workforce. CSIS seeks to build a sense of belonging across the Center, ensuring everyone can bring their authentic selves to work and contribute their unique perspectives to the policy community.
Since 2019, CSIS has conducted an Annual Climate Survey to collect quantitative and qualitative data on organizational culture, employee engagement, and workplace satisfaction. Following each survey, CSIS publishes a report to highlight key survey results, feature diversity and inclusion initiatives across the Center, and identify priorities for the year ahead. This established practice has served as an instrumental tool for tracking institutional progress and enhancing transparency and accountability.
The Abshire-Inamori Leadership Academy, the Center’s in-house professional development program, provides monthly trainings for staff to ensure everyone has the tools and resources they need to contribute to a positive and inclusive workplace culture. These trainings provide skill-building opportunities and include topics on power dynamics in communication, managing up, multigenerational diversity, and neurodiversity in the workplace.
Owning your brand training with Dr. Sweta Chakrabarty
CSIS is proud to support six employee-led groups (ERGs), each playing an integral role in nurturing a sense of community across the Center. Our ERGs foster a culture of inclusion and belonging, provide career advancement and growth opportunities, and increase staff retention.
LGBTQIA+ ERG celebrating LGBTQ+ History Month with a conversation with Matthew Riemer, the co-author of “We Are Everywhere: Protest, Power, and Pride in the History of Queer Liberation” and owner of popular Instagram account, @lgbt_history.
Scholarly talks are closed-door conversations between distinguished experts and CSIS staff. Each discussion aims to raise awareness around the intersection of diversity, equity, and inclusion and foreign policy and further the Center’s commitment to elevating diverse perspectives in national security.
Scholarly talk with Professor Khaled A. Beydoun on the intersection of national security, civil rights, Islamophobia, and constitutional law
CSIS is committed to celebrating the culture and contributions of the diverse communities in the United States, while recognizing the challenges these communities face in today's political, social, and economic landscape. Whether it's private meals with local chefs or guided museum tours, these events bring staff together to connect with new people, places, and ideas.
Field trip to National Museum of the American Latino for a cooking demonstration with Chef Silvana Salcido Esparza