Best of Chicago Ideas

The Academy Award-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow tells the story behind the lifestyle and wellness brand she founded, Goop, alongside the company’s former CEO Lisa Gersh in conversation with Johnson Publishing CEO Desiree Rogers.

Sebastian Junger, the New York Times best-selling author of "War" and "The Perfect Storm," discusses the difficulties veterans face when returning from war. Addressing the rising rates of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, Junger illuminates how these long-term issues are, by and large, preventable.

In today’s episode, Reshma Saujani, the Founder of the nonprofit organization Girls Who Code, speaks about her goal of teaching one million girls how to code by 2020. Through her organization, Saujani is working to make the tech industry more open, accessible and welcoming to women of all ages.

Sal Khan, the founder and CEO of the Khan Academy, digs deep into the flawed thinking surrounding education. Khan has worked to provide free, world-class education for people anywhere and everywhere, and here, Khan addresses whether or not it's possible to make education a human right.

California Senator Kamala Harris discusses our flawed approach to criminal justice. Here, she offers paths forward, ones that focus on the humanity of people in the criminal justice system.

Al Pittampalli, the Founder of MCW Consulting and author of Persuadable: How Great Leaders Change Their Minds to Change the World, discusses the struggle between speed and accuracy in the decision making process in the modern world.

Al Pitampalli, the Founder of MCW Consulting and author of Persuadable: How Great Leaders Change Their Minds to Change the World, discusses the struggle between speed and accuracy in the decisionmaking process in the modern world.

New York Times bestselling author D. Deepak Chopra stares down life's big questions and offers up some answers-finding ways to explore our consciousness and make peace with the unknown.

Featuring Cook County Commissioner Bridget Gainer, WBEZ reporter Natalie Moore, Illinois state representative Sonya Harper, the Executive Director of the inner-city Muslim Action Network Rami Nashashibi, and the Executive Director and Founder of the Dovetail Project Sheldon Smith, this eclectic group tackles how Chicago can work to heal fractures and become one vibrant, diverse city.

Former U.S Secretary of Education, and Managing Partner of Emerson Collective, Arne Duncan sits down with Abrams Media Founder Dan Abrams to discuss how to bring change to communities throughout Chicago. In this episode, Duncan offers advice that community leaders can turn into concrete action in the here and now.