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About ChicagoGlobal

We’re excited to share with you ChicagoGlobal, a weekly newsletter from Crain’s Chicago Business and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Each Sunday evening, we'll bring you fascinating coverage of our city's role in the wider world — and the ways global connections shape our lives here at home. See all of the Council's newsletters.

Here's what you can expect to read each Sunday:

  • Shaping Global Chicago will feature two stories that provide analysis on the intersection of business, Chicago, and the world.
  • Midwest Briefing will list three stories from other news sources that connect Chicago or the Midwest to the world.
  • Global Chicagoan: 3 for 3 will be a mini Q&A that highlights one Chicago-based professional active in the business world or global community.
  • City Explorer will feature relevant and intellectually stimulating globally themed events taking place locally.
  • Global Connections will spotlight one country and five interesting connections to Chicago.
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Check out recent editions

The Chicago Council on Global Affairs publishes ChicagoGlobal every Sunday evening. The newsletter includes stories, interviews, and local events.

October issues

  • October 6: Chicago’s marathon: a world-class event with big local impact

September issues

  • September 8: Pinkies up: Chicago enters the business of British high tea
  • September 15: Your guide to all things quantum
  • September 22: Six decades of Chicago’s global film fest
  • September 29: Five features that define Chicago’s role in global trade

August issues

  • August 4: Global Street Art + All Things Olympics
  • August 11: Chicago's Other Big Convention + The Blue Economy + More Olympic Connections
  • August 18: Chicago's foreign consulates prepare for the DNC
  • August 25: Spotlight on Chicago's small businesses

July issues

  • July 14: Montreal Appeal + Krishnamoorthi Q&A + Belgian Connections
  • July 21: Chicago Biking + Sustainable Business + Colombia Connections
  • July 28: CrowdStrike Analysis + Fantuan’s Delivery Strategy + Italy Connections

June issues

  • June 2: Chicago Folk School + Global Philanthropy Q&A + Korea Connections
  • June 9: Illinois/Taiwan Trade + Local Russian Disinfo + Bangladesh Connections
  • June 16: Chicago's Global Landmarks + Southland Tourism + Ghana Connections
  • June 23: AI in Farming + O'Hare’s New Look + Thailand Connections
  • June 30: Global Sports Bars + China Tariffs + Peru Connections

May issues

  • May 5: Midwest Investment Outlook + Global Street racing + UK Pub Dining
  • May 12: Gamifying Chicago's sewers + Cicadas for Dinner + Ethiopian Connections
  • May 19: Food’s future + Illinois Soy + Sweden connections

April issues

  • April 7: Chicago Tea Party + World-Class Stadium + Switzerland Connections
  • April 14: Farmland Foreign Investment + McDonald's 🍟 Test + Greece Connections
  • April 21: Global M&A outlook + Outdoor dining beyond Clark Street + Vietnam Connections
  • April 28: Courting Entrepreneurs + Expanding Health Care + Ukraine Connections

March issues

  • March 3: Chicago Chef, Global Mission + Recipes With a History + Cuba Connections
  • March 10: When Digital Nomads Come to (Chi)town + Connections to Ireland
  • March 17: International Flavor Incubator + Business Magnet + Cambodia Connections
  • March 24: Retail Vacancies Global Lessons + Little Italy's Ticking Clock + Costa Rica Connections
  • March 31: Courting international tourists + Nazi-looted art + South Africa connections

February issues

  • February 4: Is Chicago Sinking? + UChicago's Doomsday Clock + Türkiye Connections
  • February 11: Chicago's Challenges and Advantages + The State of the CTA + Czech Connections
  • February 18: Chicago's Air Quality + Chicago Shakespeare Theater + Connections to Indonesia
  • February 25: AIT Worldwide Logistics' Global Ties + City Hall's Foreign Affairs Resolutions + Egyptian Connections

January issues

  • January 7: Chicago's Pedestrian Malls + Hispanic Business Owners on Migrant Influx + Polish Connections
  • January 14: 'Golden Visa' Backlog + Congested Pricing in Chicago + Canada Connections
  • January 21: Chicago's Ties to Tattooing + Chicago Auto Show + Connections to Argentina
  • January 28: Alinea's Global Success + Love for Chicago's Commuter Trains + Morocco Connections

December issues

  • December 3: Chicago attorneys help migrants + international holiday decorations + connections to Australia
  • December 10: Translating Chicago's Business Culture + Exporting Comedy + Connections to Jamaica
  • December 17: Chicago's Kyrgyz Community + A Mass Migration to the Great Lakes + French Connections

November issues

  • November 5: Why a French Company Picked Chicago + Host City Challenges for Large Events + India Connections
  • November 12: Integrating Migrant Families + Crisis Playbook for Businesses + Connections to China
  • November 19: Chicago's compost initiative + Midwest 'Best Value' ranking + Connections to Brazil

October issues

  • October 1: Chicago's sustainable architecture scene + reshoring + connections to the Philippines
  • October 8: Chicago Marathon's Impact + Columbus, Indiana Architecture + Connections to Mexico
  • October 22: International Horror Films + China's Economy + Connections to Afghanistan
  • October 29: Chicago Businesses Help Migrants + Kevin Pang's Favorite Chinese Restaurants + Croatian Connections

September issues

  • September 17: Welcome to ChicagoGlobal + A 'Stinky Ditch' + Chicago's Gastro-tourism Scene + Japan Connections
  • September 24: Chicago's Hospitality Biz + the City's Unicorns + Connections to Germany

Latest | ChicagoGlobal

The WNBA's two-way international exchange

BLOG
ChicagoGlobal by Hope O'Dell

With popularity surging, the WNBA aspires to attract the world’s best players. But global exchange doesn’t only mean bringing foreign athletes to the U.S.

A woman in a blue Minnesota Lynx jersey shoots a basket while a woman in a white Chicago Sky jersey tries to block her
Bruce Kluckhohn / AP
Culture

The Chicago Marathon puts the city in the global sports spotlight

BLOG
ChicagoGlobal by H. Lee Murphy

And the annual event's impact on the local economy has risen rapidly.

Runners at the starting line of the Chicago Marathon
AP Photos
Culture

What's the value of an international education in Chicago?

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ChicagoGlobal by AJ Caughey

Across the city, schools that use curricula from foreign countries give a unique edge to K-12 students seeking a globally diverse education.

Small children at a classroom desk wave flags from the U.S., Germany, and Spain
Envato
Culture

Q&A: What rate cuts — and tariff talk — portend for the Midwest in the global economy

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ChicagoGlobal by H. Lee Murphy

Chicago economist Diane Swonk had been skeptical that the Federal Reserve could engineer a soft landing from post-pandemic inflation. Now she's coming around.

A person talks on stage during an event while two other people listen in the background
Courtesy Eurasia Group
Global Economy

Five features that define Chicago's role in global trade

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ChicagoGlobal by AJ Caughey

Illinois and its largest city play crucial parts in the worldwide trade landscape. To understand what those parts entail, we spoke to World Business Chicago.

A railyard in Galesburg, Ill., shows various trains lined up awaiting track space, with a yellow-fronted BNSF engine in the front.
Shafkat Anowar/AP
Global Economy

Chicago film fest celebrates its 60th year — and its biggest endowment ever

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ChicagoGlobal by H. Lee Murphy

For years the Chicago International Film Festival was run on a shoestring budget, but a new gift from the Steiner family is changing all that.

Inside a theater at the Chicago International Film Festival
Chicago International Film Festival
Culture

Chicago's wide world of international literature

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ChicagoGlobal by Hope O'Dell

Thanks to a passionate group of independent presses, bookstores, and translators, the city’s foreign lit scene is thriving.

A photo taken from above shows a person browsing a table and shelf of foreign-language books
Julio Lopez
Culture

What's a "quantum job"? A Q&A with Illinois's first chief quantum officer

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ChicagoGlobal by AJ Caughey

We asked Dr. Preeti Chalsani to help us explain the state's newest tech industry, which may soon create tens of thousands of "quantum jobs."

People looking at full quantum computer
Ross D. Franklin / AP
Tech and Science

Michelin adds 3 Chicago restaurants to its guide

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ChicagoGlobal by Ally Marotti

The teasing for Michelin stars has begun. The company says these three restaurants could go on to win Michelin stars or be named to its Bib Gourmand list.

Outside of Bayan Ko restaurant
Bayan Ko
Culture

Chicago businesses embrace British tea traditions

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ChicagoGlobal by Hope O'Dell

Amid a Brit-centric TV landscape and declining alcohol consumption, more and more Americans are embracing afternoon tea. Here’s where to enjoy it in Chicago.

A table set with afternoon tea service
Courtesy Deer Path Inn
Culture