The Council on Strategic Risks

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
823106472
IRS 990 coverage
2018–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-N 2017
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
2026318505
Rating
77
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Research Institutes and Public Policy Analysis

Reported finances

Revenue
$6,445,581
Expenses
$5,184,309
Assets
$6,812,912
Liabilities
$435,072

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • CHRISTINE PARTHEMORE (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER)
  • CATHERINE DILL (VICE PRESIDENT OF PROGRAMS)

Highest reported compensation

  • CHRISTINE PARTHEMORE (CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER): $277,020 total reported compensation
  • CATHERINE DILL (VICE PRESIDENT OF PROGRAMS): $229,796 total reported compensation
  • ERIN SIKORSKY (PROGRAM DIRECTOR): $218,021 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The organization is devoted to anticipating, analyzing and addressing core systemic risks to security in the 21st century, with special examination of the ways in which these risks intersect and exacerbate one another. See schedule o for further explanation.

What it reported doing in 2025

The center for climate and security ("ccs") - ccs is a non-partisan institute of csr with a team and distinguished advisory board of security and military experts. Ccs envisions a climate-resilient world which recognizes that climate change threats to security are significant and unprecedented, and acts to address those threats in a manner that is commensurate to their scale, consequence and probability. To further this goal, ccs facilitates policy development processes and dialogues, provides analysis, conducts research, communicates to the public, and acts as a resource hub in the climate and security field. For more, visit the ccs website.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 98% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. The filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad and the filing does not identify recipients for some grant dollars.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 78
  • Transparency & Controls: 61
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 53
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 70.8%; rating input score 71
  • Program expense ratio: 87.2%; rating input score 87
  • Fundraising efficiency: $130.89 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 90; 90th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 19.6%; rating input score 72; 72nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.31; rating input score 43; 43rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.06; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 38.6%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 28.5% per year; rating input score 100; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 23.1% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 24.6% per year; rating input score 100; 89th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 70.8% of revenue deployed · 87.2% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 14 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $4.5M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $277K · 24 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 8 filing years from 2018 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 10 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
  • Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 43/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 3/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 56/100.