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.

Campbell Brown

Lin Brehmer

Gigi Pritzker

Felicia Lawrence

Linda Lutton

Sandee Kastrul

Debbie Millman

Ana Belaval

Terri Hemmert

Amanda Seales

David Gregory

Carolina Sarassa

Richard Stengel

Barbara Starr

Melissa Clark

Mellody Hobson

Meredith Stricker

Bobby Ghosh

Myra Greene

Chuck Salter

Paris Schutz

Kate Sullivan

Karen Jordan

Heidi Stevens

Cheryl Corley

Jud Snyder

Keisha Howard

Gretchen Carlson

Jessica Wohl

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Stephanie Gosk

Jane Harman

Jessica Malkin

David Brancaccio

Jon Greenberg

Kelly Grier

Dustin Yellin

Janet Bodnar

Deborah Douglas

Louisa Chu

Anne Thompson

Steve Edwards

Kevin Pang

Dorri McWhorter

Phylicia Rashad

Molly Wood

Anil Dash

Kate Grossman

Poppy Harlow

Eric Becker

Michael Slaby

Anne Munition

Mats Lederhausen

Peggy Kusinski

Sonny Garg

Desiree Rogers

Monica Eng

Kavita Shukla

Maryam Saleh

Jessica Grose

Eddie Aruzza

Padma Lakshmi

Tricia Eck

Ted Fishman

Mick Dumke

Ally Love

Bob Morgan

Geoff Brigham

Andrew Barber

Dave Holmes

Jason Henrichs

Andee Harris

Ben Johnson

Val Warner

Bethany McLean

Jessica Clemons

Jenan Mohajir

Linda Cohn

Michael Arndt

Lola Wright

Jay Smooth

Nick Turner

Ji Suk Yi

Laura Washington

Eve Ewing

Michal Lev-Ram

Robin Givhan

Kelly Leonard

Celeste Headlee

Katherine Lanpher

Neil Stevenson

Brandis Friedman

Kelly Rizzo

Laura Desmond

Tom Brokaw

Ali Velshi

Odette Yousef

Touré

Soledad O'Brien

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