Some in the commercial real estate industry have noticed an increasing awareness of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), or a shift in viewpoints more broadly, as these issues have come to the fore nationally in the past year. Loretta Clodfelter, senior editor of Institutional Real Estate Americas, recently asked a group of industry professionals who have been engaging with this topic to answer a few questions and share their perspectives on DEI in the commercial real estate investment industry.

The roundtable participants were Jeffrey Beckham, executive vice president, head of portfolio management and co-portfolio manager for the GID Mainstay Fund at The General Investment and Development Cos. (GID); Khalif Edwards, managing director of capital raising and investor relations at Starwood Capital Group; Jim Farris, CEO of Mosser Capital Management; Salika Khizer, director at Walker Dunlop Investment