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Chicago Ideas is a nonprofit platform built on one core belief

When audiences of every background have the same access to thought leaders and innovative ideas – people have the power to spark change in the world.

Who are our thought leaders? We thought you'd never ask.
Paul "DJ White Shadow" Blair
Luis Ahn
Fawzia Mirza
Ramesh Srinivasan
Margaret Gould Stewart
Tim Ferriss
Shradha Agarwal
Bashir Salahuddin
Radha Agrawal
Edward Norton
Nick Kokonas
Massimo Lepore
Shannon Watts
Colin Powell
Shane Battier
Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot
Dick Costolo
LeVar Burton
Charlamagne Tha God
Jose Antonio Vargas
Janet Comenos
Jamie Metzl
Brandon Boyd
Hillary Sale
Francoise Baylis
Emily Bear
Rahm Emanuel
Helene Gayle
Cedric Alexander
Bing Gordon
Ayana Elizabeth Johnson PhD
Liz Phair
Brian Wallach
Yusef Salaam
David Lynch
Cameron Esposito
Alec Baldwin
Bryan Cranston
Questlove
S.E. Cupp

Chicago Ideas is a nonprofit platform built on one core belief:

When audiences of every background have the same access to thought leaders and innovative ideas – people have the power to spark change in the world.

Who are our thought leaders? We thought you’d never ask.

Kelly Rizzo
Richard Stengel
Valerie Lies
Jessica Grose
Jenan Mohajir
Chuck Salter
Linda Cohn
Andee Harris
Jason  Henrichs
Tricia Eck
Mark Caro
Michael Slaby
Jon Greenberg
Steve Edwards
Brandis Friedman
Jamil Smith
Paris Schutz
Laura  Washington
Cheryl Corley
Jessica Wohl
Amanda  Seales
Ally Love
Anil Dash
Bobby Ghosh
Terri Hemmert
Ben Johnson
Jud Snyder
Janet Bodnar
Mick Dumke
David Gregory
Kelly  Leonard
Adam Benforado
Charles Jenkins
Ali  Velshi
Jessica Clemons
Linda Lutton
Francis Slakey
Deborah Douglas
Anne Thompson
Dorri McWhorter
Robin  Givhan
Kate Sullivan
Eve Ewing
Jessica Yellin
Nick  Turner
Dustin Yellin
Kelly Grier
Poppy Harlow
Lola Wright
Eric Becker
Meredith Stricker
Dave  Holmes
Anne-Marie Slaughter
Lin Brehmer
Michal Lev-Ram
Cal Fussman
Celeste Headlee
Katherine Lanpher
Keisha Howard
Neil Stevenson
Bethany McLean
Padma Lakshmi
Eddie  Aruzza
Kevin Pang
Peggy  Kusinski
Heidi Stevens
Ted  Fishman
Charles Duhigg
Sonny  Garg
Mats Lederhausen
Campbell Brown
Tom Brokaw
Val Warner
Carol Coletta
Molly Wood
Anne Munition
Karen  Jordan
David Brancaccio
Michael Arndt
Carolina  Sarassa
Jane Harman
Soledad O'Brien
Andrew Barber
Monica Eng
Geoff Brigham
Shannon Heffernan
Gigi  Pritzker
Louisa Chu
Gretchen Carlson
Kate  Grossman
Brian Babylon
Odette Yousef
Touré
Phylicia Rashad
Cindy Mori
Myra Greene
Barbara Starr
Dan Abrams
Desiree Rogers
Kavita Shukla
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