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.

Terri Hemmert

Deborah Douglas

Celeste Headlee

Cindy Mori

Tricia Eck

Steve Edwards

Val Warner

Rachel Bronson

Michal Lev-Ram

Jenan Mohajir

Geoff Brigham

Poppy Harlow

Kavita Shukla

Adam Benforado

Francis Slakey

Jessica Malkin

Cheryl Corley

Charles Jenkins

Jessica Yellin

Andrew Barber

Katherine Lanpher

Keisha Howard

Anne Thompson

Sonny Garg

Stephanie Gosk

Peggy Kusinski

Meredith Stricker

Kate Grossman

Dorri McWhorter

Louisa Chu

Carol Coletta

Lin Brehmer

Michael Slaby

Jessica Clemons

Kelly Rizzo

Odette Yousef

Jamil Smith

Neil Stevenson

Molly Wood

Valerie Lies

Richard Stengel

Carolina Sarassa

Ted Fishman

Kelly Grier

Jon Greenberg

Ally Love

Maryam Saleh

Dustin Yellin

Desiree Rogers

Dave Holmes

Linda Cohn

Laura Desmond

Anil Dash

Andee Harris

Tom Brokaw

Shannon Heffernan

Sandee Kastrul

David Gregory

Ben Johnson

Linda Lutton

Eve Ewing

Brian Babylon

Heidi Stevens

Anne-Marie Slaughter

Gigi Pritzker

Brandis Friedman

Touré

Melissa Clark

Phylicia Rashad

Kevin Pang

Laura Washington

Myra Greene

Gretchen Carlson

Lola Wright

Campbell Brown

Kate Sullivan

Bob Morgan

Eric Becker

Dan Abrams

David Brancaccio

Charles Duhigg

Bobby Ghosh

Anne Munition

Amanda Seales

Soledad O'Brien

Ali Velshi

Nick Turner

Felicia Lawrence

Janet Bodnar

Eddie Aruzza

Monica Eng

Jessica Grose

Jessica Wohl

Jud Snyder

Karen Jordan

Kelly Leonard

Ana Belaval

Ji Suk Yi

Paris Schutz

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