Community Empowerment, a tool for social education

In this episode of Conscious Conversations, Mmabatho Montse speaks with Chad Zibelman, CEO of The Sonder Project, to explore how community empowerment can serve as a powerful vehicle for social education and global equity. With years of experience in international development, Chad brings grounded insight into the practicalities and ethical complexities of working across cultural and geographic boundaries. Together, they reflect on the significance of trust, collaboration, and dignity in development work, challenging extractive aid models in favor of community-led transformation. Chad shares stories from his time as a Peace Corps volunteer in Namibia, his years with buildOn organizing school-building treks across the Global South, and his current leadership with The Sonder Project, particularly their water, education, and food security programs in Burkina Faso. The conversation considers how education—both formal and experiential, can be a relational act of solidarity and listening. It also surfaces tensions between Western-based NGOs and the communities they serve, asking what it truly means to stand with, rather than speak for, others. Throughout, Chad’s reflections highlight humility, intercultural learning, and long-term partnership as central to social impact. Chad Zibelman earned his degree in Education from Temple University and has spent much of his life working to advance equitable access to opportunity through education, infrastructure, and local empowerment. His leadership at The Sonder Project builds on nearly two decades of experience and a deep commitment to honoring the agency, resilience, and visions of the communities he works alongside. This episode invites listeners to think critically about development as a pedagogy, where transformation is mutual, and education becomes an act of co-creation rooted in justice and care. thesonderproject.org