The Center’s Members are professionals, scholars, and public servants leading the work of Pacific strategy — military officers and diplomats, faculty and graduate researchers, executives and career civil servants. Together, they are those who will shape the Pacific’s future.
The Center holds every candidate to one standard: seriousness in shaping the Pacific’s future.
Every candidate must have:
- A record of achievement recognized by peers, faculty, or institutions in their field
- Direct engagement with the Pacific Hemisphere, through career, scholarship, or public service
- A commitment to the Center’s mission and its Focus Areas
Nomination
Every application begins with a nomination. Only a current Principal or Global Member, or a member of the Center’s Executive Leadership, may nominate a candidate.
Guidance for Nominators
A nominated candidate should show:
- Direct, demonstrated engagement with a specific Center Focus Area — not general familiarity with international affairs
- A record of achievement recognized by peers, faculty, or institutions in their field
- A genuine commitment to a career in Pacific strategy, not just their current role or degree
Nominators are responsible for maintaining the standard of the Center’s membership.
Guidance for Recommenders — Emerging Strategist Candidates
Emerging Strategist nominations require an independent recommendation, from someone other than the nominator:
- Graduate student candidates — a recommendation from a faculty member or supervisor
- Early-career professional candidates — a recommendation from a current or former supervisor
A strong recommendation speaks directly to four things:
- The candidate’s current work, described precisely enough that its relevance to Pacific strategy is clear
- The specific Center Focus Area the candidate’s work engages, and how
- The candidate’s character and professional judgment — reliability, integrity, and how they carry themselves in serious company
- Real evidence of the candidate’s commitment to a career in Pacific strategy — not just their current degree or role
Principal Membership
For the Pacific's most serious thinkers.
A candidate qualifies for Principal membership under either of the following:
- Fifteen or more years of relevant professional experience in a field bearing directly on a Center Focus Area
- Ten or more years of relevant professional experience, with a completed graduate degree directly relevant to a Center Focus Area
Principal Members carry the complete set of member privileges:
- Publish — pitch and publish work with the Center or in Pacific Strategy at any time
- Private events, working groups, and roundtables — sit with Fellows and fellow Members on the region’s hardest problems
- Private virtual events — seminars and working groups hosted online
- Directory — listed in the Center’s membership directory
- Complimentary subscription to Pacific Strategy — the Center’s flagship publication launching Spring 2027
- Complimentary admission to public lectures and briefings
- Discounted admission to premium conferences and benefit functions
Global Membership
For the Pacific's global network.
A candidate qualifies for Global membership under either of the following:
- Fifteen or more years of relevant professional experience in a field bearing directly on a Center Focus Area
- Ten or more years of relevant professional experience, with a completed graduate degree directly relevant to a Center Focus Area
Global membership is for those with a primary professional base outside the San Diego region.
Global Members carry the following privileges:
- Publish — pitch and publish work with the Center or in Pacific Strategy at any time
- Private virtual events — seminars and working groups hosted online
- Directory — listed in the Center’s membership directory
- Complimentary subscription to Pacific Strategy — the Center’s flagship publication launching Spring 2027.
- Discounted admission to public lectures, briefings, premium conferences, and benefit functions — for those visiting from San Diego
Emerging Strategist
For those building a career in Pacific strategy.
Emerging Strategist is the Center’s developmental standing — for graduate researchers and early-career professionals whose work already engages a Center Focus Area, and whose trajectory points toward a career in Pacific strategy.
A candidate qualifies under either of the following:
- Currently enrolled in, or has completed, a graduate program — master’s or doctoral level — with work directly relevant to a Center Focus Area
- Five to ten years of relevant professional experience in a field bearing directly on a Center Focus Area
Graduate study counts toward the experience total. A candidate with a completed, relevant graduate degree is not required to meet the five-year floor.
This tier is granted for a term of five years, renewable once. At the end of each term, the Membership Committee evaluates the member for Principal Membership.
Emerging Strategist Members carry:
- Private events, working groups, and roundtables — sit at the table with Fellows and Principal Members working on the region’s hardest problems
- Private virtual events — seminars and working groups hosted online
- Publish — pitch and publish work with the Center or in Pacific Strategy
- Directory — listed in the Center’s membership directory
- Complimentary subscription to Pacific Strategy — the Center’s flagship publication launching Spring 2027
- Complimentary admission to the Center’s public events
After a Nomination
Every application is reviewed by the Membership Committee against the eligibility standard for their tier. The Committee reviews nominations quarterly, and presents qualified candidates to the Board of Directors for ratification at the Board’s following meeting.
Expectations
Contribution takes many forms. Every Member finds ways that fit them.
Examples include:
- Publishing in Pacific Strategy
- Participating in the Center's events and working groups
- Opening a space — a conference room, an office, or another venue — for the Center's events
- Proposing the Center's next event, working group, or program
- Seeking opportunities for collaboration with other Members
- Engaging with a fellow Member's work, and helping it find an audience
- Carrying an affiliation with the Center into professional circles
Membership Dues
- Principal Membership — $2388 per year or $199 per month.
- Global Membership — $1428 per year or $119 per month.
- Emerging Strategist — $49 per month for the first five-year term, $79 per month for a second five-year renewal term.
Reduced Dues
Reduced dues apply to both Principal and Global Membership.
Active or retired public servants pay dues reduced by 25%. This covers Members of the Armed Forces, Government Employees, Nonprofit Employees, and Educational Faculty.
Founding Membership is open by invitation, through the end of 2026.
To inquire, write to membership@thelajollacenter.org.
General applications are open now, for the 2027 cohort. Nomination is required, as described above.
Membership is non-governing — it does not confer any voting rights or governance role in the Center. Membership dues are not tax-deductible.