
Benita Tsao
Making Non-Profit Workplaces Equitable & Inclusive
Back when I first chose a non-profit career, I wanted to make life better for a whole ton of people. I had just spent a year living and working in China, where simple errands could morph into full-blown ordeals. I kept thinking, "It shouldn't be this hard." But it is really hard, every day in the U.S., for far too many immigrants, families trying to make ends meet, and communities on the margins. No matter the role, my job has always been to connect people and ideas so society works for all of us.
These days I'm exploring how "human resources" are an essential mechanism for equity and inclusion at non-profit organizations. Solving complex social problems requires sustained effort and partnerships; neither is possible when people feel alienated at work. Taking action so our shared values manifest in every aspect of how we do work is crucial -- for staff retention, mission success, and for making real and tangible a better world. That's why I inspire colleagues to be courageous in their everyday work, support their growth and success, and strive to systematically uproot supremacy culture in the workplace.
I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and I live and work on unceded Lisjan Ohlone land. I use she/her pronouns. I like riding bicycles, reading science fiction, and eating pasta.
Where I've Worked Lately
Oasis Legal Services
Human ResourcesManager
since 2025
Legal assistance and
holistic social services for LGBTQ+ immigrants
826 Valencia
Human ResourcesManager
2019 to 2024
Neighborhood writing centers for underresourced students and English learners in San Francisco
ChangeLab Solutions
Senior
Policy Analyst2017 to 2019
Non-profit organization using local laws and policies to advance health equity
What I've Been Reading
Whistler
"'It's an awful business,' she said. 'Loving another person.'
'It is,' I said, and for the first time in a long time, I remembered that I loved her, or more precisely, I remembered she was a person who had lived her own autonomous life full of mistakes and disappointments and judgments and thwarted love."
Ann Patchett
The Raven Scholar
"Then they'd left her alone, but every so often they would slide the grate back on the door and peer in, like she was a cake in the oven, to make sure she was all right. 'I mean, I'm not all right, but I'm all right,' she told them, and the guards had nodded, and said they knew the feeling."
Antonia Hodgson
Nine Goblins
"She didn't want to wake up and be the sergeant. Being the sergeant was thankless, and they didn't pay you very much more, and when something went wrong, you were the one that had to fix things. Responsibility was lousy. On the other hand, if you didn't see things were done right, it'd get done badly, and watching the resulting inefficiency was like being poked in a sore tooth. It galled at her."
T. Kingfisher
How to Connect
Photo of Benita by Sarah Deragon
