The polling places have closed and the “red wave” — a tsunami, some predicted — never quite materialized, and an expected backlash against corporate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and ESG initiatives might not be as severe as some had feared.

Roi Ewell, founder and principal of Ewell & Associates in Orlando, Florida, and co-chair of the Council’s Social Impact Committee, formerly the DEI Taskforce, says it “will be more important than ever, in this critical time, to demonstrate how the initiatives that some people are criticizing as socially extreme actually support long-term shareholder value rather than detract from it. We hope to leverage the Social Impact Committee to equip Council members and public affairs professionals to make that case to their own companies’ leadership and to the general public. The good news, I am convinced, is that the corporate community will not back off from these efforts, although they will have to do an effective job defending their actions. We intend to help them in these efforts.”

Ewell will be joined in the leadership role by Maureen Kline, vice president of public affairs and sustainability at Pirelli Tire North America, who is the committee’s new co-chair.

Formed in May 2022, the Social Impact Committee is tasked with providing strategy and programmatic guidance to advance Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) and related sustainability frameworks in support of membership needs and interests,” its charter reads.

The committee has already begun to deepen the profession’s understanding of its need to improve in DEI areas — and has taken steps to help it do so. Planning research on DEI and social impact was among the first initiatives. Through the Foundation for Public Affairs, the DEI Taskforce (before the formal committee was created), commissioned the fielding and publication of a DEI survey in the spring of 2021, and in late November of this year the findings of the 2022 Social Impact Survey will be released.

This year’s survey found that the average share of public affairs function staff who are people of color is just 20%, a low number compared with the 40% racial and ethnic diversity of the U.S. population. And 61% of respondents say the lack of diversity of the field discourages individuals from entering the profession. When asked whether ESG priorities had ever influenced corporate lobbying efforts, 66% of respondents reported their company’s sustainability goals had led to a change in their position on a policy issue.

Education and programming have also been elevated. A new signature event called STRIDE: A Social Impact Summit, was held in Washington this month, and the new Hogans Fellowship program, launching in January, will focus on expanding leadership opportunities for diverse talent.