Smart Women, Smart Power

Nov 20 2024 234 ep. 30 mins 4.6k
Smart Women, Smart Power Podcast artwork

CSIS Smart Women, Smart Power is a speaker series on women in international business and global affairs. The biweekly podcast features leading women from the corporate, government, and national security worlds discussing top international issues.

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Countering China and Russia: The Hidden Advantages of Women, Peace, and Security

Nov 20 2024 50 mins  
How can Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) be better utilized to accomplish U.S. strategic objectives? Recently, the Smart Women, Smart Power Initiative released their latest brief: Countering China and Russia: The Hidden Advantages of Women, Peace, and Security. To discuss the findings of the report, Dr. Kathleen McInnis was joined by Dr. Kyleanne Hunter, Director, RAND Women, Peace

Decoding the Pentagon Bureaucracy

Nov 06 2024 27 mins  
In this episode, Dr. Kathleen McInnis is joined by Dr. Janine Davidson, who currently serves as president of Metropolitan State University of Denver and the chair of the Defense Policy Board. The pair discusses Dr. Davidson’s years of navigating the bureaucracy within the Pentagon and the lessons she has taken with her to higher education.

Building Comprehensive Approaches to Wicked Problems: The Ukraine War

Oct 29 2024 78 mins  
As a part of the tenth-anniversary celebration of Smart Women, Smart Power, Dr. Kathleen McInnis hosted a panel discussion that explored women’s leadership during Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine and how women are leading the charge in both prosecuting the war and planning for peace. The panel featured Amb. Kelley Currie, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Atlantic Co

Pentagon Priorities Amid Polycrises with Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks

Oct 22 2024 38 mins  
On October 15, Smart Women, Smart Power celebrated its tenth anniversary! The celebration kicked off with a discussion with HON Kathleen H. Hicks, Deputy Secretary of Defense, who sat down with Beverly Kirk, Director of Washington Programs at Syracuse University. The pair discussed her approach to the world’s simultaneous challenges, including the Russia-Ukraine crisis and China

The State of Election Security in 2024

Oct 21 2024 26 mins  
Suzanne Spaulding, Director of the CSIS Defending Democratic Institutions Project, joins a special crossover episode with the CSIS Smart Women, Smart Power podcast to discuss election security, the role of election officials, and how to fight disinformation as early voting begins across the nation.

A Conversation with Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi

Sep 23 2024 23 mins  
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. Additionally, the pair discusses the current and future U.S. landscape, including what the U.S. should be doing to counter China’s aggressive authoritarian expansionism and more.

Take a Chance on Mentorship

Sep 04 2024 23 mins  
An off-chance encounter as an intern transformed Funmi’s life several years later when someone she networked with early in her career thought of her down the line and offered her a job. 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.

Solving the World’s Hardest Problems with Mellody Hobson: Closing the Racial Wealth Gap

Aug 28 2024 32 mins  
Mellody Hobson, co-CEO and President of Ariel Investments — created Ariel Alternatives, the first private equity subsidiary of the 40-year-old investment firm, alongside its current CEO Les Brun. On this Smart Women, Smart Power episode, Mellody joins Dr. Kathleen McInnis for a discussion on how she strives to close the racial wealth gap and create a better public understanding o

Secrets and Sacrifices: CIA, Benghazi, and Motherhood

Aug 21 2024 48 mins  
After 25 years working for the CIA, the Honorable Sue Gordon has served the United States across administrations. She joins Dr. Kathleen McInnis and Lauren Bedula, the Managing Director at Beacon Global Strategies, for a conversation on how she balanced it all as a mother of two—plus, she’ll get into her time in the CIA during the 2012 Benghazi attacks – where the realization

What Does Infant Formula Have to do with National Security?

Jul 24 2024 37 mins  
In 2020, Laura Modi launched Bobbie, the first U.S.-based manufactured organic formula company. Laura joins Dr. Kathleen McInnis and Lauren Bedula, the Managing Director at Beacon Global Strategies, for a discussion on how her company was defined during a national infant formula shortage, including what she learned about the infant formula industry, and how symbolic it is to everyt