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.

Melissa Clark

Mick Dumke

Molly Wood

Celeste Headlee

Geoff Brigham

Kelly Rizzo

Val Warner

Jay Smooth

Nick Turner

Katherine Lanpher

Robin Givhan

Ana Belaval

Dan Abrams

Louisa Chu

Jud Snyder

Mellody Hobson

Sonny Garg

Ben Johnson

Eve Ewing

Francis Slakey

Rachel Bronson

Dave Holmes

Michael Arndt

Gigi Pritzker

Bobby Ghosh

Michael Slaby

Maryam Saleh

Kate Grossman

Jessica Yellin

Jason Henrichs

Odette Yousef

Kelly Leonard

Jessica Grose

Adam Benforado

Meredith Stricker

Felicia Lawrence

Dustin Yellin

Stephanie Gosk

Desiree Rogers

Paris Schutz

Eddie Aruzza

Cheryl Corley

Lola Wright

Andrew Barber

Carol Coletta

Soledad O'Brien

Richard Stengel

Dorri McWhorter

Bethany McLean

Eric Becker

Myra Greene

Anil Dash

Neil Stevenson

Anne Thompson

Ali Velshi

Valerie Lies

Phylicia Rashad

Charles Duhigg

Karen Jordan

Jane Harman

Steve Edwards

Ted Fishman

Campbell Brown

Amanda Seales

Bob Morgan

Deborah Douglas

Ji Suk Yi

Jenan Mohajir

David Gregory

Debbie Millman

Janet Bodnar

Monica Eng

Cindy Mori

Linda Cohn

Kelly Grier

Keisha Howard

Linda Lutton

Terri Hemmert

Shannon Heffernan

Tom Brokaw

Padma Lakshmi

Carolina Sarassa

Tricia Eck

Barbara Starr

Andee Harris

Chuck Salter

Kevin Pang

Jessica Malkin

Mark Caro

Charles Jenkins

Anne Munition

Mats Lederhausen

Brandis Friedman

Jessica Clemons

Kavita Shukla

Ally Love

Lin Brehmer

Jessica Wohl

Jon Greenberg

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