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.

Jessica Malkin

Anne Thompson

Neil Stevenson

Kelly Grier

Stephanie Gosk

Cindy Mori

Chuck Salter

Jessica Clemons

Valerie Lies

Meredith Stricker

Jenan Mohajir

David Brancaccio

Bethany McLean

Robin Givhan

Anne Munition

Nick Turner

Linda Lutton

Bobby Ghosh

Dustin Yellin

Barbara Starr

Ted Fishman

Katherine Lanpher

Carolina Sarassa

Ally Love

Kevin Pang

Sonny Garg

Brandis Friedman

Peggy Kusinski

Deborah Douglas

Padma Lakshmi

Terri Hemmert

Jud Snyder

Richard Stengel

Paris Schutz

Michal Lev-Ram

Heidi Stevens

Lin Brehmer

Odette Yousef

Kate Grossman

Kelly Leonard

Andee Harris

Charles Jenkins

Adam Benforado

Kate Sullivan

Karen Jordan

Touré

Jamil Smith

Gretchen Carlson

Eric Becker

Ben Johnson

Dan Abrams

Brian Babylon

Celeste Headlee

Lola Wright

Soledad O'Brien

Maryam Saleh

Tricia Eck

Laura Washington

Campbell Brown

Mark Caro

Anil Dash

Kavita Shukla

Eve Ewing

Dorri McWhorter

Felicia Lawrence

Poppy Harlow

Carol Coletta

Mick Dumke

Ali Velshi

Geoff Brigham

Dave Holmes

Monica Eng

Andrew Barber

Sandee Kastrul

Myra Greene

Michael Slaby

Rachel Bronson

Michael Arndt

Laura Desmond

Ji Suk Yi

Jane Harman

Val Warner

Kelly Rizzo

Jessica Wohl

Shannon Heffernan

Jon Greenberg

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Ana Belaval

Mats Lederhausen

Jessica Grose

Jason Henrichs

Linda Cohn

Desiree Rogers

Jay Smooth

David Gregory

Tom Brokaw

Melissa Clark

Gigi Pritzker

Louisa Chu

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