USA 
United Kingdom
The Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), a charity formed by Mark Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan, has eliminated its DEI department in a U-turn on reassurances given to staff in January.
According to a report from the Guardian, the for-profit charity emailed staff on Tuesday evening, informing them it has disbanded its diversity equity, inclusion, and accessibility team.
The move comes just weeks after CZI told staff that Meta’s decision to axe diversity and inclusion programs would not impact its own, long-standing DEI commitment.
Why did Zuckerberg’s charity axe DEI after reassurances to staff?
On January 10, concerned CZI staff raised concerns after Meta sent a company-wide memo detailing plans to eliminate all DEI measures, including “equity and inclusion programs and changing hiring and supplier diversity practices.”
Staffers were concerned as the charity – co-founded by Zuckerberg and Chan as a vehicle for the couple to funnel 99% of their Meta stock-generated wealth into philanthropic endeavors – has previously followed the social media platform’s lead on HR strategy including layoffs and a return-to-office policy.
Mark Gundacker, Head of HR at CZI, wrote to employees: “Meta and CZI are and will remain separate organizations with entirely different and independent commitments. Decisions made at Meta do not impact how we operate at CZI.”
“Like in this case, Meta’s changes to its DEI efforts does not impact ours,” he continued. “If employees have questions, please reaffirm this for them and we’ll continue to do the same whenever the question comes up.”
But employees still harbored well-founded concerns about the charity’s commitment to DEI. Just 39 days later, the charity has moved to eliminate its entire DEI department and scrap its ‘Diverse Slate Practice.’
On February 18, Marc Malandro, Chief Operating Officer at CZI, wrote in the email to all employees: “Given the shifting regulatory and legal landscape, we will no longer have a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility team at CZI.”
CZI will no longer require qualified candidates from diverse backgrounds to be interviewed for its vacancies, following the likes of Meta and Google that have also rolled back diverse hiring targets.
The email from Malandro echoes wording used by Meta’s Vice President of HR, Janelle Gale, explained to her staff that the “legal and policy landscape surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in the United States is changing.”
Navigating Global Workforce Management: A Guide for Businesses Expanding Globally
Expanding your business internationally is more accessible than ever, but managing a global workforce presents unique challenges. Our guide helps you choose the right provider, avoid common mistakes, and identify essential features for scaling your business across the globe.
This guide covers:
Choosing the Right Provider: Key factors like scalability, compliance, and cost-effectiveness.
Avoiding Common Pitfalls: How to prevent frequent selection errors.
Critical Features: Must-haves like international payroll, compliance, and benefits support.
Compliance & Risk Tips: Ensuring your provider handles local laws and regulations.
Scalable Solutions: How the right provider supports long-term growth.
Download your free guide to start your global expansion today!
Meanwhile, Zuckerberg has been clear about his plans to align with President Trump. “After the last several years, we now have an opportunity to have a productive partnership with the United States government, and we’re going to take that,” he said in a memo to Meta staff in January.
A CZI spokesperson declined the Guardian’s request for comment.
‘Extremely frustrating’ – The impact of CZI’s DEI U-turn Top of Form
The about-face on DEI will also impact the charity’s operations, including significant changes to where it apportions its funding.
Malandro confirmed in Tuesday’s email that CZI, beyond a “small number of multi-year grant commitments,” will no longer offer “social advocacy funding.” The charity will instead invest in grants for work around “biology and AI.”
The COO added that the changes would allow the charity to “align with our focus as a science philanthropy.”
In previous years, the charity has made thousands of grants to bodies and programs supporting diversity and the addressing the issue of underrepresentation in scientific research.
But now CZI has removed pages from its website that included wording about DEI, including a pledge to conduct its operations with “a diversity, equity, and inclusion lens.”
The changes have triggered a small round of layoffs and reorganization within CZI’s community team, the Guardian reported.
On Tuesday, the charity also nixed a grant program called ‘Science Diversity Leadership awards,’ which promised $1.15million to researchers. One applicant told the Guardian that an brief email confirming CZI “decided not continue” with the program was “extremely frustrating.”
morgan lobb