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.

Tom Brokaw

Mellody Hobson

Soledad O'Brien

Carol Coletta

Heidi Stevens

Gigi Pritzker

Sandee Kastrul

Janet Bodnar

Odette Yousef

Ally Love

Linda Lutton

Gretchen Carlson

Linda Cohn

David Gregory

Brandis Friedman

David Brancaccio

Laura Desmond

Tricia Eck

Myra Greene

Louisa Chu

Neil Stevenson

Katherine Lanpher

Bobby Ghosh

Molly Wood

Carolina Sarassa

Chuck Salter

Kelly Rizzo

Charles Duhigg

Jamil Smith

Mark Caro

Ben Johnson

Meredith Stricker

Maryam Saleh

Charles Jenkins

Terri Hemmert

Karen Jordan

Jessica Wohl

Padma Lakshmi

Poppy Harlow

Val Warner

Jenan Mohajir

Eric Becker

Deborah Douglas

Ana Belaval

Jessica Malkin

Ali Velshi

Monica Eng

Steve Edwards

Jessica Yellin

Valerie Lies

Jon Greenberg

Rachel Bronson

Kate Grossman

Dorri McWhorter

Lin Brehmer

Felicia Lawrence

Amanda Seales

Lola Wright

Anne Munition

Peggy Kusinski

Jay Smooth

Kate Sullivan

Laura Washington

Jud Snyder

Bob Morgan

Robin Givhan

Dave Holmes

Brian Babylon

Kavita Shukla

Francis Slakey

Andrew Barber

Phylicia Rashad

Dustin Yellin

Cindy Mori

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Andee Harris

Nick Turner

Kevin Pang

Jessica Grose

Campbell Brown

Jane Harman

Bethany McLean

Kelly Leonard

Michael Slaby

Melissa Clark

Sonny Garg

Jason Henrichs

Eve Ewing

Kelly Grier

Shannon Heffernan

Eddie Aruzza

Paris Schutz

Mats Lederhausen

Celeste Headlee

Richard Stengel

Anne Thompson

Michal Lev-Ram

Geoff Brigham

Touré

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Helene D. Gayle on the History of Chicago's Wealth Gap

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The History of Slavery in Objects

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Helene D. Gayle on the History of Chicago's Wealth Gap

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Yusef Salaam on What He Learned From Adversity

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Dick Costolo and How Algorithms Changed Twitter

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Jose Antonio Vargas on Immigration Law Reformation

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Ayana Elizabeth Johnson Focuses on Finding Solutions for Ocean Conservation

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Jamie Metzl on Evolution of Technology

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Jose Antonio Vargas Explores What Immigration "Looks Like" Today

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An Exploration of the Trump Administration's Impact on Immigration

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Pete Holmes Explores the Meaning of Life

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David Lynch on Transcendental Meditation

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Bring Your Imagination to Life

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Bashir Salahuddin on Chicago's Creative Scene

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Hebru Brantley on the Story Behind Nevermore

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Listening Between the Lines

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The Power of Your Gene Sequence

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John Carreyrou on Theranos as Silicon Valley Cautionary Tale

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Xavier Ramey Sits Down with Charlamagne Tha God to Talk Black Men & Mental Health

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Do We Really Know the Truth about Men?

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Xavier Ramey Sits Down with Charlamagne Tha God to Talk Black Men & Mental Health

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Full Talk: What Does It Mean To Be a Black Man Today?

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Howard Schultz Sits Down with Mellody Hobson to Talk About What's Next

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Of the People, For the People, We the People

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Howard Schultz on His Potential 2020 Run

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Former Starbucks Chairman & CEO Shares His Thoughts on What Happened in Philadelphia

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Howard Schultz on the State of Our Nation

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