Nancy Lublin, cofounder and former CEO of Crisis Text Line, uses technology and data to save lives.

Why you should listen

Nancy Lublin is cofounder and former CEO of Crisis Text Line, the nation's first free, 24/7 text line for people in crisis. A pioneer in using big data for social good, the organization uses algorithms to stack-rank message queues based on severity and publishes insights from the data to influence systems change. Launched in 2013, the organization now operates in the USA, Canada, UK and Ireland.

At age 23, Lublin turned a $5,000 inheritance into Dress for Success, a global entity that provides interview suits and career development training to women in need. In 2003, she transformed DoSomething.org into one of the largest youth organizations in the world with more than six million members. She also wrote a popular monthly column for Fast Company for two years and taught graduate-level courses as an adjunct faculty member at both Yale and NYU.

More news and ideas from Nancy Lublin

Live from TEDWomen

The many meanings of seduction: The talks in Session 3 of TEDWomen 2015

May 29, 2015

Seduction happens in many forms. The speakers in this session highlight unexpected twists on the topic — a romance of dueling banjos, the allure of insects, and our ever-widening definition of love. Short recaps of the talks in this session… What we learn from insect sex. “You could have an insect-of-the-month calendar and not have to reuse a species for […]

Continue reading
Impact of Ideas

Crisis Text Line has counseled teens through nearly 2 million problems. Here’s how this idea got its start.

May 6, 2014

Teenagers love to text—their thumbs pound out an average of 3,339 texts per month. Crisis Text Line turns this into a way to help teens through their hardest times: family issues, stress or suicidal thoughts. Trained counselors text back and forth with advice and resources—and, in the process, collect (anonymous) data that could lead to better […]

Continue reading