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.

Deborah Douglas

Bethany McLean

Steve Edwards

Mats Lederhausen

Molly Wood

Andee Harris

Jay Smooth

Jenan Mohajir

Gigi Pritzker

Kavita Shukla

Felicia Lawrence

Chuck Salter

Kate Grossman

Kate Sullivan

Laura Desmond

Geoff Brigham

Mellody Hobson

Jessica Clemons

Stephanie Gosk

Kelly Rizzo

Richard Stengel

Terri Hemmert

Barbara Starr

Valerie Lies

Jessica Wohl

Jane Harman

Michael Slaby

Campbell Brown

Jessica Grose

Gretchen Carlson

David Brancaccio

Monica Eng

Michal Lev-Ram

Eric Becker

Laura Washington

Odette Yousef

Eddie Aruzza

Neil Stevenson

Janet Bodnar

Cheryl Corley

Jessica Malkin

Lin Brehmer

Padma Lakshmi

Meredith Stricker

Anil Dash

Desiree Rogers

Shannon Heffernan

Ana Belaval

Dustin Yellin

Sandee Kastrul

David Gregory

Sonny Garg

Kelly Leonard

Celeste Headlee

Karen Jordan

Myra Greene

Katherine Lanpher

Tom Brokaw

Ally Love

Brandis Friedman

Charles Duhigg

Robin Givhan

Heidi Stevens

Francis Slakey

Val Warner

Jon Greenberg

Maryam Saleh

Michael Arndt

Keisha Howard

Jamil Smith

Touré

Linda Lutton

Soledad O'Brien

Anne Munition

Bobby Ghosh

Dave Holmes

Debbie Millman

Mick Dumke

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Mark Caro

Tricia Eck

Kevin Pang

Peggy Kusinski

Charles Jenkins

Brian Babylon

Melissa Clark

Ben Johnson

Jud Snyder

Nick Turner

Kelly Grier

Amanda Seales

Ali Velshi

Carol Coletta

Dorri McWhorter

Ted Fishman

Phylicia Rashad

Anne Thompson

Linda Cohn

Cindy Mori

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