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.

Neil Stevenson

Gigi Pritzker

Sandee Kastrul

Mellody Hobson

Maryam Saleh

Michael Arndt

Cindy Mori

Brian Babylon

Jenan Mohajir

Jason Henrichs

Jud Snyder

Mark Caro

Odette Yousef

Keisha Howard

Felicia Lawrence

Mats Lederhausen

Robin Givhan

Tricia Eck

Peggy Kusinski

Meredith Stricker

Molly Wood

Michal Lev-Ram

Louisa Chu

Bobby Ghosh

Tom Brokaw

David Brancaccio

David Gregory

Jessica Grose

Barbara Starr

Laura Desmond

Jessica Malkin

Mick Dumke

Kavita Shukla

Myra Greene

Francis Slakey

Val Warner

Cheryl Corley

Jamil Smith

Anne Munition

Desiree Rogers

Laura Washington

Debbie Millman

Touré

Monica Eng

Paris Schutz

Phylicia Rashad

Kate Grossman

Kelly Rizzo

Celeste Headlee

Dave Holmes

Eve Ewing

Deborah Douglas

Jessica Wohl

Campbell Brown

Richard Stengel

Sonny Garg

Shannon Heffernan

Andee Harris

Rachel Bronson

Valerie Lies

Ted Fishman

Lin Brehmer

Jay Smooth

Steve Edwards

Anne Thompson

Dorri McWhorter

Stephanie Gosk

Adam Benforado

Heidi Stevens

Carol Coletta

Nick Turner

Poppy Harlow

Ali Velshi

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Carolina Sarassa

Chuck Salter

Eddie Aruzza

Kate Sullivan

Charles Jenkins

Charles Duhigg

Melissa Clark

Eric Becker

Bob Morgan

Jon Greenberg

Ben Johnson

Padma Lakshmi

Linda Cohn

Geoff Brigham

Soledad O'Brien

Kevin Pang

Ana Belaval

Kelly Grier

Linda Lutton

Ally Love

Brandis Friedman

Amanda Seales

Dustin Yellin

Michael Slaby

Jane Harman

Terri Hemmert

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