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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:

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.

Kelly Grier
Anne Thompson
Bobby Ghosh
Eric Becker
Celeste Headlee
Jessica Yellin
Michal Lev-Ram
Val Warner
Louisa Chu
Linda Cohn
Ana Belaval
Jane Harman
Carolina  Sarassa
Anil Dash
Poppy Harlow
Jon Greenberg
Jenan Mohajir
Heidi Stevens
Carol Coletta
David Brancaccio
Gigi  Pritzker
David Gregory
Keisha Howard
Jud Snyder
Anne Munition
Shannon Heffernan
Cal Fussman
Ben Johnson
Desiree Rogers
Charles Duhigg
Amanda  Seales
Terri Hemmert
Linda Lutton
Jessica  Malkin
Kate Sullivan
Dorri McWhorter
Monica Eng
Jessica Wohl
Peggy  Kusinski
Jamil Smith
Felicia Lawrence
Richard Stengel
Neil Stevenson
Ali  Velshi
Maryam Saleh
Debbie Millman
Gretchen Carlson
Kelly  Leonard
Bob Morgan
Ally Love
Jason  Henrichs
Adam Benforado
Lola Wright
Ted  Fishman
Mick Dumke
Meredith Stricker
Kelly Rizzo
Chuck Salter
Bethany McLean
Jay Smooth
Tricia Eck
Cindy Mori
Katherine Lanpher
Jessica Grose
Brian Babylon
Francis Slakey
Cheryl Corley
Odette Yousef
Brandis Friedman
Janet Bodnar
Kavita Shukla
Valerie Lies
Charles Jenkins
Rachel Bronson
Paris Schutz
Eddie  Aruzza
Dustin Yellin
Mark Caro
Andee Harris
Steve Edwards
Michael Slaby
Jessica Clemons
Sandee Kastrul
Laura Desmond
Soledad O'Brien
Campbell Brown
Sonny  Garg
Kevin Pang
Melissa Clark
Touré
Dan Abrams
Lin Brehmer
Andrew Barber
Karen  Jordan
Stephanie  Gosk
Dave  Holmes
Robin  Givhan
Myra Greene
Laura  Washington
Padma Lakshmi
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