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:

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.

About the Organization

About the People

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

Geoff Brigham

Anne Thompson

Heidi Stevens

Mellody Hobson

Gretchen Carlson

Jon Greenberg

Debbie Millman

Maryam Saleh

Felicia Lawrence

Meredith Stricker

Kate Sullivan

Jud Snyder

Bethany McLean

Lin Brehmer

Francis Slakey

Laura Desmond

Jason Henrichs

Deborah Douglas

Dustin Yellin

Mark Caro

Myra Greene

Neil Stevenson

Jay Smooth

Soledad O'Brien

Chuck Salter

Jane Harman

Cindy Mori

Padma Lakshmi

Eve Ewing

Anil Dash

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Dave Holmes

Jessica Yellin

Nick Turner

Kelly Rizzo

Jessica Grose

Michal Lev-Ram

Laura Washington

Odette Yousef

Monica Eng

Tricia Eck

Steve Edwards

Louisa Chu

Celeste Headlee

David Brancaccio

Brandis Friedman

Richard Stengel

Amanda Seales

Jessica Wohl

Michael Slaby

Molly Wood

Desiree Rogers

Charles Duhigg

Jessica Clemons

Kate Grossman

Ted Fishman

Ally Love

Eric Becker

Linda Cohn

Ji Suk Yi

Rachel Bronson

Ali Velshi

Jessica Malkin

Bobby Ghosh

Adam Benforado

Dorri McWhorter

Cheryl Corley

Stephanie Gosk

Touré

Ben Johnson

Robin Givhan

Paris Schutz

Karen Jordan

Eddie Aruzza

Ana Belaval

Melissa Clark

Carol Coletta

Campbell Brown

Kelly Leonard

Kevin Pang

Sonny Garg

Kavita Shukla

Keisha Howard

Brian Babylon

Linda Lutton

David Gregory

Lola Wright

Sandee Kastrul

Terri Hemmert

Val Warner

Janet Bodnar

Katherine Lanpher

Shannon Heffernan

Barbara Starr

Kelly Grier

Tom Brokaw

Carolina Sarassa

Andrew Barber

Mick Dumke

Jenan Mohajir

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Howard Schultz on the State of Our Nation

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