Senior Fellow – India Urbanization

Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)•Washington, DC

1d•$83 - $85•Hybrid

About The Position

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) is seeking a senior, part-time leader to design, build, and lead an India-focused urbanization and urban governance workstream. This role is ideal for a professional with approximately 10 or more years of experience in urban policy, urban planning, development finance, public administration, or Indian governance. This is a temporary role with the potential for extension based on performance, particularly the successful development of a sustainable fundraising pipeline. The Senior Visiting Fellow will be responsible for securing financial support for the workstream, including cultivating donor relationships and generating project funding. The successful candidate will possess a strong understanding of urban planning and urban systems, along with familiarity with India’s urban governance challenges, such as fragmented authority, municipal finance constraints, service delivery, and center-state-city relations. The work will prioritize policy-relevant insights and practitioner engagement over purely academic research. This role involves agenda-setting, partner engagement, and shaping funded projects, with limited administrative and research support. A dedicated Program Coordinator/Research Assistant will support the Senior Fellow. The Senior Fellow is expected to be in the office two days per week. This is a part-time term appointment, with an hourly rate of $83.33-85.00 commensurate with experience.

Requirements

Approximately 10 or more years of professional experience in urban planning, urban policy, development, governance, or a related field.
Demonstrated understanding of Indian urban governance structures and challenges, including municipal institutions, finance, and implementation constraints.
Ability to connect technical urban issues to policy and political economy realities.
Proven ability to engage senior policymakers, practitioners, and funders in a constructive, solutions-oriented manner.
Comfort working independently and setting strategic direction in a part-time role.
Proven network in India with policymakers, foundations, and companies working on urban policy and planning.
Ability to work at CSIS HQ for 14 hours per week.

Nice To Haves

Direct professional experience working in or with Indian cities or state governments.
Direct experience with successful fundraising for a nonprofit highly preferable.
Familiarity with India’s major urban reform initiatives and financing mechanisms.
Experience working with multilateral development banks, donors, or private-sector infrastructure actors.
Prior experience in a think tank, government, international organization, or policy-facing advisory role.

Responsibilities

Design and lead a new India urbanization and urban governance policy workstream, aligned with CSIS priorities and India Chair strengths.
Identify priority policy themes such as: Urban planning and land use, Municipal governance and institutional capacity, Urban infrastructure and service delivery, Municipal finance, own-source revenues, and access to capital, Center–state–city coordination and reforms affecting cities.
Translate urban challenges into clear policy frameworks and actionable recommendations.
Produce and guide policy-relevant outputs (commentaries, briefs, memos, convening readouts), emphasizing actionable recommendations rather than academic research.
Engage senior stakeholders across U.S., Indian, and partner-country governments, as well as the private sector and civil society.
Organize events (in-person, virtual) to elevate key policy issues.
Represent CSIS and the India Chair in high-level meetings, workshops, and private-roundtable discussions on urbanization issues.
Identify and cultivate partnerships with key potential donors- foundations, high net worth individuals, companies, and others.
Establish a pipeline of funded projects to sustain and grow the urbanization workstream over time.
Prepare one or more proposals that comply with CSIS project standards and “arms-length standards” with donors and pitch to potential donors.
Identify and cultivate partnerships with Indian urban institutions and reform-minded city leaders, development banks, foundations, and bilateral donors, planning, infrastructure, and urban services practitioners.
Help position CSIS as a trusted platform for linking Indian urban reform priorities with global best practices and financing partners.