Crain's "40 Under 40" honors Intelligence Squared US's Clea Conner

Congratulations to Intelligence Squared U.S. (IQ2US) Chief Operating Officer Clea Conner on her inclusion in Crain's New York Business's 2018 "40 Under 40" list. She was included alongside other honorees like Michael Barbaro (NY Times' "The Daily" host) and Amber Ruffin ('Late Night With Seth Meyers' writer).

"Clea Conner is trying to bring some harmony to the nation's discordant dialogue," the article says. "For Intelligence Squared U.S., she is putting together formal, Oxford-style debates, during which debaters with opposing views take turns making their case before an audience, which then casts votes on who has been most persuasive." Read the full story.

In her time as COO, Conner has spearheaded new partnerships to connect the nonpartisan, nonprofit debate series with internationally-recognized organizations like the Mayo Clinic and German Marshall Fund, the latter of which saw IQ2US travel outside of the United States for the first time for a debate just this month at the prestigious Brussels Forum.

The IQ2US podcast was downloaded over 4 million times in 2017, and their debates air on 225 public radio stations nationwide. IQ2US also began airing on national television just this year with weekly show "Up For Debate" on new cable channel Newsy. The New Yorker has called their debates "fascinating," and the New York Times recently dubbed them "a model for disagreeing well"

Intelligence Squared U.S. has become a New York City institution, plugged into the city's cultural and political fabric. In 2017, the organization co-sponsored both general-election and primary New York City Mayoral debates during which all candidates had to address one specific motion in a special "Intelligence Squared round." IQ2US also partnered with WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show this election season to organize a debate about whether New York state should amend its constitution.

Upcoming Intelligence Squared U.S. debates this spring tackle religion in society with Deepak Chopra and Michael Shermer (March 27), net neutrality with former FCC leaders and Mitchell Baker (April 17), and Bitcoin with Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne (April 21). Find more information on these at the IQ2US website.