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.

Jamil Smith

Karen Jordan

Anne Munition

Robin Givhan

Dorri McWhorter

Peggy Kusinski

Padma Lakshmi

Jessica Malkin

Tom Brokaw

Paris Schutz

Jessica Clemons

Brandis Friedman

Louisa Chu

Sonny Garg

Chuck Salter

Charles Duhigg

Jessica Wohl

Val Warner

Cindy Mori

Maryam Saleh

David Brancaccio

Michael Arndt

Celeste Headlee

Odette Yousef

Mats Lederhausen

Andee Harris

David Gregory

Linda Cohn

Myra Greene

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Katherine Lanpher

Bob Morgan

Valerie Lies

Mark Caro

Ben Johnson

Campbell Brown

Brian Babylon

Terri Hemmert

Amanda Seales

Laura Desmond

Eddie Aruzza

Desiree Rogers

Adam Benforado

Andrew Barber

Bethany McLean

Nick Turner

Janet Bodnar

Richard Stengel

Neil Stevenson

Jud Snyder

Meredith Stricker

Bobby Ghosh

Francis Slakey

Shannon Heffernan

Mellody Hobson

Monica Eng

Kevin Pang

Ally Love

Gretchen Carlson

Kate Sullivan

Laura Washington

Kate Grossman

Linda Lutton

Dan Abrams

Molly Wood

Lin Brehmer

Jason Henrichs

Jane Harman

Cheryl Corley

Debbie Millman

Barbara Starr

Ana Belaval

Sandee Kastrul

Charles Jenkins

Geoff Brigham

Phylicia Rashad

Rachel Bronson

Kelly Rizzo

Steve Edwards

Jon Greenberg

Michal Lev-Ram

Jenan Mohajir

Michael Slaby

Anil Dash

Dave Holmes

Felicia Lawrence

Ali Velshi

Eric Becker

Gigi Pritzker

Poppy Harlow

Heidi Stevens

Tricia Eck

Stephanie Gosk

Ji Suk Yi

Kavita Shukla

Dustin Yellin

Keisha Howard

Eve Ewing

Kelly Leonard

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Howard Schultz on the State of Our Nation

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