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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.

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