Our Story

The Institute for Sustainable Diversity and Inclusion (ISDI) is a nonprofit organization founded in 2015 to continue the work of the Northwest Diversity Learning Series (NWDLS) with the goal of facilitating generative and progressive learning, organizational capability, agility and change leading to more sustainable, diverse and inclusive workplaces and communities.

Our values guide us in all that we do and include:

• TEAMWORK: We work together in a way that values everyone’s contributions.
• EQUITY: We treat each other with dignity, fairness and respect.
• AGILITY: We value flexibility and explore options in all we do.
• CURIOSITY: We ask questions and dig into the details.
• HUMANITY: We affirm each other’s fundamental importance with compassion, empathy and a generous spirit.

To achieve our vision, we have developed a mission to strengthen individual and organizational capability for creating diverse, inclusive and equitable workplaces.

ISDI offers a range of services to guide people and organizations in transforming and sustaining inclusive cultures, behaviors, systems and practices. These services include public education through our annual Northwest Diversity Learning Series (NWDLS) and special event programs, as well as consulting services that work with leaders to develop their commitment to DEI and execute sustainable change within their organizations.

The NWDLS is a bi-monthly workshop series that provides relevant, thought-provoking and cost-effective education on DEI. Originally programmed for the Pacific Northwest, the NWDLS is now available virtually to employees and managers anywhere. The Series has been operating non-stop for 25 years and features new authors, unique thought leaders and exciting change agents.

ISDI’s consulting services are led by highly trained consultants who use world-class, global DEI standards and have many years of experience working with a wide variety of clients. We follow a leadership-led philosophy for organizational change because we believe that leaders must set the expectations and hold people accountable for achieving sustainable results throughout their organizations. We also support action and practices that contribute to building frameworks leading to sustainable change.

We believe that collaborative relationships are pivotal to our work, and we engage with our community of employers and dedicated professionals to generate provocative approaches to tackling workplace inequities. We offer sponsorship opportunities and collaborate with groups to maximize our impact.