From Monologue to Dialogue: Dr John Igwebuike’s CDP Fellowship
Sign up for the July 10 workshop with Dr. John Igwebuike, for an exclusive introduction to new CDP activities with listening practices essential better conversations! Register by June 29, 2025.
Dear collaborative discussion friends,
This week learn more about CDP Visiting Fellow Dr. John Igwebuike’s fellowship, which is focused on active listening and collaboration.
First, a reminder that registration is now open for our online summer workshops. These three workshops are being facilitated by CDP Visiting Fellows:
Listening to Improve Collaboration: Turning Monologue into Dialogue with Dr. John Igwebuike - July 10, 2 pm to 4 pm (eastern)
Civic Collaboration: Thinking through Complex Issues to Support Civic Action with Dr. Lori Britt - July 17, 1 pm to 3 pm (eastern)
Creativity in Collaboration: New Tools and Practices for Getting Beyond Fixed Thinking with Dr. Don Waisanen - August 7, 2 pm to 4 pm (eastern)
Whether you are new to the Collaborative Discussion Project (CDP) or already a CDP Coach, these workshops is a great way to learn about new tools and practices to help improve active listening skills, enhance creativity & flexible thinking, and support civic action. Register today!
Active Listening and Collaboration
How do we truly listen to one another—and how can we help others do the same? For Collaborative Discussion Project (CDP) Visiting Fellow Dr. John Igwebuike, listening is more than paying attention: it’s a dynamic, embodied, and intentional act of connection.
As part of his Fellowship, John is exploring how we can deepen our understanding of listening—not just as a communication skill, but as a collaborative practice that can spark better conversations, stronger relationships, and more inclusive communities. Whether it’s in the workplace, around the kitchen table, or in civic life, “Listening is a prerequisite—it’s a means through which we can foster deeper discussions.”
“I appreciate that there’s this awareness at IF on the importance of listening as a way to foster and facilitate deeper dialogue and deeper discussions in the collaborative context.” – John
John first discovered the Interactivity Foundation when a flyer led him to the website. That quickly led to enrolment in Collaborative Discussion Coach Training and then collaborating with IF as part of the Guanacaste Transformational Listening Conference, which John founded. “I’ve been appreciative with respect to IF,” he says, “because they’re providing these amazing tools for collaboration.”
As a CDP Visiting Fellow, John is developing new activities for the free Collaborative Discussion Toolkit—resources that will support people in listening, practicing, and reflecting on collaboration through dialogue.
CDP Manager, Eric Schmucker, points out that John’s work helps fill an essential need: “A lot of the CDP Toolkit focuses on curiosity, asking good questions, and so on. But asking a good question isn’t enough: can you really listen to what someone says?”
“Listening breaks down walls—between people, and also within yourself. It requires a mindset. John’s work challenges the idea that listening is automatic. He’s bringing it into focus as a skill that underpins all dialogue.” – Eric Schmucker
One activity John is piloting is a structured small-group activity where participants rotate between the roles of speaker, listener, and observer—sometimes known as “3-2-1” or “Uno, dos, tres.” With each round, prompts guide the group into increasingly meaningful conversation. It helps participants pay attention to not just what is being said, but also how it feels to speak, to listen, and to watch dialogue unfold.
“We’re not just speaking or listening—we’re observing ourselves and the environment, too,” explains John. “It gives participants the opportunity to see that we’re engaged in multiple dynamic roles, even during quiet moments.”
A second activity is a listening-themed icebreaker, based on a kind of “listening bingo.” Participants respond to a set of prompts, then engage in dialogue with others to find points of connection, reflect on their listening habits, and explore what it means to listen actively and with care.
“I do a lot of work in the area of just trying to animate the importance of effective listening.” – John
Together, the tools John has been developing encourage us to think differently about what it means to collaborate—not just through sharing ideas and viewpoints, but also through presence and attention. And after all, as Eric points out: “without listening, dialogue is monologue”.
Are you curious to experience these tools in action? Join John in a workshop on July 10.
Listening to Improve Collaboration: Turning Monologue into Dialogue
How can we stop talking past each other, and start building real understanding? Listening helps transform monologue into dialogue—yet most of us have never been taught how to truly listen.*
Featuring IF Collaborative Discussion Project (CDP) Visiting Fellow Dr. John Igwebuike, this Listening to Improve Collaboration Workshop explores listening as a critical yet overlooked skill for effective group work, community-building, and leadership. You will get an exclusive introduction to brand-new activities, not yet publicly released, from the free Collaborative Discussion Toolkit that help develop the listening practices essential for productive, inclusive, and purpose-driven conversations.
Rooted in both research and practical application, this session will guide you through key strategies for active listening before, during, and after dialogue—equipping you to improve collaboration across context from the personal to the professional and even the political.
When: 2 pm – 4 pm (eastern) on July 10
Where: Online via Zoom, with small group breakout sessions
How much does it cost? $40
When is the registration deadline? Sunday, June 29, 2025
Register today for this workshop. All are welcome!
Become a Collaborative Discussion Coach
Become a CDP Coach like our visiting fellows and join our growing community of 150+ coaches. Register now for our September Collaborative Discussion Coach Training.
September 2025 Coach Training
When: 6 pm – 8 pm (eastern) on September 4, 11, 18, 25, and October 2
Where: Online via Zoom, with small group breakout sessions
How much does it cost? $495
When is the deadline to register? Sunday, August 3, 2025
We are able to offer a discounted price due to the generous support of the Interactivity Foundation. Our programming should never be cost prohibitive. Please contact us if a scholarship is needed.
If you are interested but these dates don’t work for you, don’t worry. We will keep you posted as future trainings are scheduled. We are also open to offering cohort trainings. Please reach out and we can explore possibilities.
Want to learn more? Sign up for a free webinar
Join us for an Introduction to the CDP Toolkit Webinar, where you will learn more about:
Our free toolkit of activities designed to build and support collaborative discussion skills and mindsets
Collaborative Discussion Coach Trainings and becoming a CDP Coach
How our current CDP Coaches use the toolkit in their classrooms, communities, and workplaces
All are welcome! Register for our upcoming webinar:
Looking forward to collaborating,
The Collaborative Discussion Project Team