THE VALE

VALUE-DRIVEN ADVANCED LEADERSHIP COURSE

2021 FINAL REPORT

THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

DEAR READER,
Even with COVID-19 slowing the world down, we managed to make this
international, value-driven leadership course for YFU volunteers happen. At the
time when the working group began preparations in autumn 2019 and started
reaching out to partners to form cooperation agreements, no one could have
predicted the tumult that would soon emerge. The competition for grants in
times of Covid was high and regrettably, there weren't many funders that
support youth leadership education and even fewer that recognise self-
leadership and mental health. Luckily we were able to find funding from
Erasmus+ programme of the European Union to organise a Mobility for Youth
Workers, which made this course possible.

The VALE Team identified these variables related to the success of The VALE:
1. The project must reflect a well-structured, well-planned, and professional
course that meets the expectations proportional to an advanced leadership
course and is in alignment with The VALE values.
2. The course must provide meaningful content that challenges participants
and adds new knowledge and tools, and it should be possible to assess
actual change in knowledge, behaviours, and attitudes
3. Reaching the aim, objectives and defined learning outcomes
4. Creating further impact that is meaningful and tangible by observing the
implementation of new knowledge and tools in practice by participants to
impact other individuals, groups, and partner organisations
5. Positive feedback and evaluation from the participants of the course

We are proud to say that the project has indeed been a resounding success.
Meeting these criteria has been thoroughly evaluated through feedback,
reflections, analysis, and evaluation forms completed by participants, trainers,
and partners; before, during, and after the course period.

A SINCERE THANK YOU FOR ALL SUPPORTERS

FOR BELIEVING IN US AND THE IDEA OF THE VALE!

For all and any questions, you may WEBSITE: WWW.THEVALE.EU

contact us at [email protected]. LinkedIn:
Please don't hesitate to reach out! linkedin.com/company/thevale

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THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

WHY THIS PROJECT

The demands on the leaders of the future are different from the demands on
the leaders of the past. Today, and increasingly so tomorrow, it is expected of
a leader, or any role model, to be aware of one’s own values, to promote peace,
diversity, and sustainability wherever possible, and to always put people in the
focus. Leading for a peaceful, inclusive, and sustainable world is, and has
always been, at the core of YFU’s mission. For over 60 years, YFU has
contributed to a positive societal change through our mission of advancing
intercultural understanding, global competencies, and social responsibility via
our educational programs and projects.

However, both in YFU and elsewhere, we notice a distinct gap between what
the world expects of its leaders and what they are actually being prepared for.
It is vital that civil society actors like YFU step up to fill this gap. Every person
has the capacity to positively influence the world around them, creating ripple
effects amongst friends, family, school, and community - as well as in arenas
extending far beyond their immediate proximity. We see powerful examples of
this every day among our youth workers. We believe that for them to execute
their role skillfully, it is essential that they are equipped with the necessary
competencies, tools, and networks.

The foundation of this impact is in the personal leadership: a person’s

knowledge, skills, and attitudes related to their ability to lead themselves and
others. It is our firm view that the development of one’s personal leadership
cannot simply be reduced to being a byproduct of their commitments. On the
contrary, it is a whole space of competence of its own that could and should
be actively nourished. This insight sparked the conception of the VALE – a
project created to drive quality and progress in our network through
empowering our youth workers in value-driven leadership.

AIM
The course aimed to contribute to capacity building for quality youth
work in YFU organisations across Europe, by empowering youth workers
to become more aware, skilled, and value-driven leaders. At the VALE,
they were challenged to examine and build on their own leadership
experiences, as well as to integrate the newfound insights continuously
into their youth work context.
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OUR PARTICIPANTS TELL WHY

YFU was build on the passion of people who saw a world without boarders and
prejudices, a world where opening your heart and being generous will create
everlasting connections across the globe. This vision was so strong, it is still
with us today even if the world has completely changed. We need to empower
our volunteers to explore and find their vision as well in order to make their
own big contribution to the world. If we manage to unlock this potential in as
many YFU volunteers as possible, we will see many more motivated young
people, willing to improve the organisation and grow it even in more
destinations and fields of expertise. - Our participant Andreea

For me, the best thing that The Vale made me reflect a lot on me as a self-
leader, leader and group member. I truly believe change starts with me, and I
also found out during the whole course, or got reminded of, what is really
important to me and who I really am. - Our participant Kinga

Volunteers are in my experience often thrown into leadership positions without

much help. This leads to people who are learning leadership skills in other
parts of life being the ones always taking charge, which I don't believe is
sustainable. Also, bad leadership sometimes can be detrimental to the whole
national organization (as unfortunately observed in some parts of YFU) and is
a key aspect in why people choose not to stay with YFU and volunteer. I can at
least say for myself that good people with good leadership skills who know
how to motivate and create an encouraging working environment, is why I stay
with YFU. - Our participant Aurora K

With the tools I have now, I would like to improve my own leadership and
create a more sustainable and empowering environment within the local YFU
community and inspire my colleagues and our volunteers. -- The fact that the
VALE is coming from volunteers is incredibly powerful. This makes the project
very authentic and inspiring, and allows volunteers to learn from each other
and strengthen each other. - Our participant Maria

I think this leadership course aligns perfectly with YFU's mission and values.
Furthermore, not just YFU as an organisation but every person can benefit from
participating in a course like this because ultimately aligning your actions and
life with your values makes you happier and more content with your life.
- Our participant Eli
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PROJECT OBJECTIVES
The course sought to:
1. strengthen civil society youth leaders in their leadership and youth work by
acquiring tools and developing competencies in the fields of self-
leadership, working with values, management of group dynamics, conflict
resolution, motivation, communication, and virtual teamwork
2. strengthen the participants’ role as leaders, innovators, and shapers of best
practices in their organisations
3. increase participants’ awareness of the reverberations and responsibilities
connected to their own personal leadership
4. increase the quality of youth leadership within the YFU community and
achieve a higher level of youth leader engagement in YFU
5. create opportunities for networking, sharing of best practises, and a space
for connecting with other young European YFU youth workers
6. highlight and raise awareness of the importance of young people being
empowered as leaders and changemakers

In the participant post-course evaluation (with 24 respondents), we asked

“How well do you think the course achieved its stated aim?”. On a scale of 1
(Not at all) to 5 (Completely), 92% responded 5 and 8% responded 4.

The results of the participant evaluations on the specific objectives were:

2 3 4 5
1
2
3
4
5
6
0 20 40 60 80 100

Out of these, the first objective stands out; both participant, partner and trainer
evaluations reflect that the project exceeded expectations of providing advanced
leadership tools and knowledge in the listed fields and advancing the skill set of
everyone involved. To us, this illustrates the achieved quality and the impact of the
course’s leadership education.

Although they are by no means negatively received, the reaching of objective

number 2 and objective number 4 rank as the lowest. This was no surprise to us.
Both of these objectives are linked to longer-term, organisational challenges of
leadership capacity building, and we knew that this was not going to be something
we alone could solve at once. It will take time, and engagement from all
stakeholders, to apply what was learned into practice.
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PROJECT STRUCTURE
The Value-driven Advanced Leadership (VALE) course stretched over 3 months
and consisted of three educational activities: two training weekends and,
between those, a distance learning program made up of individual and group
home assignments. The two (long) weekends with the participants were 20-24
January 2021 and 3-7 March 2021. Having two training weekends was crucial
for the educational framework. It opened up a wide range of methodologies
that increased impact potential and allowed knowledge to be applied and
properly sink in. This was done through the distance learning program, 25
January-2 March 2021, which for the participants held equal weight to the
physical training weekends.

The final report was submitted to Erasmus+ in the autumn of 2022, slightly
later than originally planned. Due to a break in communications the processing
time of our reporting was long and only wrapped up in summer 2023, just
before the next edition of The VALE course. This final report has been put
together during the fall of 2023 and is gifted to the VALE team and community
as a Christmas present.
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THE COURSE IN 5 PHASES

Pre-course Week 1 Distance learning Week 2 Follow-up
29.9-3.10.2021 10-14.11.2021

ONLINE MODULE ...AND TAKING MULTIPLIER

PREPARATORY LAYING THE
AND HOME IT TO THE NEXT WORKSHOPS IN
TASKS GROUNDWORK...
ASSIGNMENTS LEVEL 15+ COUNTRIES

We will engage The first five-day This will be a crucial The second five- The participants
the participants to course weekend stage in reinforcing day course will lead workshops
reflect on their will take place at what was learned weekend will take in their local
ideas of YFU Denmark's the first weekend place in Tallinn, communities. It will
leadership and premises in and serves as an Estonia and raise engage and inspire
values already Tommerup, important the bar for the members of their
before the course Denmark. preparation for the participants. community for
to kickstart the next. better leadership.
process.

The first course weekend served as the common harbour of departure: providing a
familiarisation with the group, a theoretical foothold, and a safe learning environment
where participants engaged with the educational content through discussion, reflection,
and various non-formal methodologies.

Unlike a training course delivered in one block, the VALE’s multi-staged course structure
allowed for a 5-week period of active experimentation in the “real world”, leading to
unexpected observations, reflections, and insights by the participants. This also allowed
for the participants to apply methods directly to their youth worker team leadership or
activities, which furthermore allowed them to exchange key reflections and learnings with
the other participants during the second course weekend.

The second course weekend served as reinforcing and extending on the learnings from
the first training weekend and the distance learning period, allowing the learning
experience to truly anchor with the participants as they had not only learned about new
methods and practices in theory, but also actively applied learnings in real-life context,
with subsequent reflection and evaluation.
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THE CORE TEAM & TRAINERS

OF THE VALE

TRINE TULLE RIIKKA ERIK

TAMM MOURIDSEN PASANEN SUNDBERG
ESTONIA DENMARK FINLAND SWEDEN

AND THEIR SUPPORT TEAM

NEA MATTHIAS MICHAEL

MIKKELÄ MEIERING ELVER
FINLAND GERMANY DENMARK

PROJECT INTERN EDUCATIONAL SUPPORTING

CONTENT & TECH TRAINER

CHRISTIAN ROBERTAS
NIELSEN BORISAS
DENMARK LITHUANIA

OUR CHEF IN HELPING HAND

DENMARK IN ESTONIA
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ORGANISATIONS
Suomen Youth For Understanding ry. (FI) Applying organisation
MITTETULUNDUSUHING YFU EESTI (EE) Erasmus+
YFU CZ, z.s. (CZ) Erasmus+
FUNDATIA YOUTH FOR UNDERSTANDING ROMANIA (RO) Erasmus+
Youth For Understanding Denmark (DK) Erasmus+
Anlayis Icin Genclik Dernegi (TR) Erasmus+
DEUTSCHES YOUTH FOR UNDERSTANDING KOMITEE E.V. (DE) Erasmus+
YFU Latvia (LV) Erasmus+
Asociacija "Tarptautiniai moksleiviu mainai" (YFU Lietuva) (LT) Erasmus+
Youth For Understanding (NO) Erasmus+
FONDAZIONE YFU ITALIA (IT) Erasmus+
EUROPEAN EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGES - YOUTH FOR UNDERSTANDING AISBL
(BE) Erasmus+
YFU AUSTRIA - INTERCULTURELLER AUSTAUSCH (AT) Erasmus+
Młodzi Dla Porozumienia – Polska (YFU Polska) (PO)
Youth For Understanding Hungary Egyesület (HU)
YFU FRANCE - ECHANGES ET JEUNESSE (FR)

PARTNER CONTRIBUTIONS
In the beginning, the first activity was planned to be hosted by YFU Germany in a location
in Southern Germany, but this was later changed to YFU Denmark with approval from the
Finnish National Agency. The reason for this was partially financial and partially due to
partner input. Even though Denmark is a more expensive country than Germany, YFU
Denmark offered their headquarters as a training venue. This led to savings on the
accommodation side of things and balanced the increased flight prices due to shutdowns
during COVID-19. Therefore the 1st course weekend was organised in the village of
Tommerup in Denmark. YFU Denmark was also able to send volunteers to help out in the
kitchen to cook food for the course participants. National Director Mads-Erik
Schiønnemann visited the course in Denmark for a day to observe and deliver an
inspirational session for the participants. Similarly, the National Director of YFU Finland
Riikka Seppälä visited the course weekend in Estonia to serve as one of the judges for the
VALE Challenge and to observe the course.

All involved organisations posted about the opportunity to their volunteers to help us
reach as many interested participants as possible and sent at least one participant. The
coordinator of the project, YFU Finland, further contributed by being the responsible body
behind the project and its finances. In addition, EEE-YFU contributed with help regarding
the funding application, as they have experience running EU-funded projects. They gave
advice and provided feedback on the application and reporting at different stages in
addition to helping the project gain this many partner organisations in Europe.
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PARTICIPANTS
The target group of the VALE training course was volunteer leaders with a YFU
background. We foresaw that most participants would be active YFU volunteer
youth workers in positions working directly with the high school-aged students
of our exchange programs, in capacities such as regional volunteer
coordinators, exchange student support person, or educational orientation
leaders.

The VALE brought together a group of 25 participants. There were a total of 51

applications, many of them of very high quality. During the selection process,
we looked at the applicants’ leadership experience within and outside of YFU,
aspiration for future leadership roles, as well as motivation to attend the
course. The countries with the largest number of applicants were Germany and
Turkey. We also had some cancellations among the selected, which gave the
opportunity for waitlisted participants to join the group.
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For me, the best thing about the course was the environment where I felt safe
to try and make myself more vulnerable to people than I ever have before. - Our
participant Eli

I think we have definitely managed to create our own safe space to learn and
share within, which makes a good working environment for me. As I see it, we
are quite different personalities and I had not spoken that much with the other
members of my group, so that was a challenge for me to begin with. - Our
participant Johanne

I learned so much about myself: about my flaws and faults, my strengths and
good bits, what do I contribute to a team or group, what do I need to work on
more on myself. But I think the best-best part of the course were the people. I
love people and it was wonderful meeting so many inspiring peers in an
environment like this. - Our participant Jonatan

For me, the best thing about the course was that I have found my inner
strength and realized more of my own potential as a leader and as a human
being, and I can't think of anything that is cooler than that. The second best
thing was seeing the progress and growth of everyone else, especially because
we didn't even know each other at all a few weeks ago, but the development
was so obvious. - Our participant Maria

It was interesting to see how we grew so close from being total strangers. I
really liked the first task we had as a group, which was sharing something we
usually don't tell people. It was a great introduction and a good place to start
building trust from. - Our participant Kadi
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EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK
THE GUIDING PRINCIPLES
These four principles are a key part of the VALE. By taking them to the heart, we
believe our participants will multiply the value of their output in the course.
Your focus is yours to direct
You get what you give
It's hard to look good while learning
Dare to jump

FOCUS TOPICS
All sessions were categorised into the following focus topics: Foundational,
Group Dynamics, Self Leadership, Communication, Values, Motivation, Self-
reflection, and Virtual Teamwork.

The first training weekend (Denmark) included 14 unique sessions, and 3

sessions repeated each day of the training weekend. The second training
weekend (Estonia) included 17 unique sessions, and 3 sessions repeated each
day of the training weekend. The interim period included five main learning
streams that expanded on the duration of sessions by providing an opportunity
for self-paced tasks and group projects. These included a group project,
individual self-paced tasks, an online module on virtual teamwork (Udemy
Course created by the VALE Team), a buddy system with specific tasks, and
coaching sessions between each participant and a Trainer.

“The program was very comprehensive and every detail was considered. Even though there
is still the second part of the training to go, I must say that this was the best training I
have ever been to.” - Our participant Defne after the first part of the course

“The second weekend completed the goals and gave the message of the course. I
understood better that I grew. Although it was as inspiring as the first weekend, this
weekend, we had chance go deeper and discover more about ourselves and each other. In
my opinion, this effective overall education in a positive way. In this weekend, we were
surrended by reflection and I learned so many things about the things that are in my life, I
have been doing without realising it. The toolbox I gained was incredible and everything
in the toolbox were the things that I did not know I needed. It was significant that the
whole program was able to find fine line between pushing our limits and feeling
discomfort. I mean I think it was great that the trainers helped us to push our limits with
respecting our boundaries.” - Our participant Ilayda
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SCHEDULE
Week 1
WED THUR FRI SAT SUN
- 07:45 Free Time Free Time Free Time Free Time
07:45 - 08:30 Breakfast Breakfast Breakfast Breakfast
08:45 - 09:45 Magical Morning Magical Morning Magical Morning Magical Morning
09:45 - 09:50 Break Break Break Break

Leadership 2: Paradox
09:50 - 11:20 Leadership 101 Communication I: NVC Diversity
leadership/ Power I

11:20 - 11:35 Travel arrivals Break Break Break Break

Group Dynamics I: Five Conclusion & what
11:35-13:05 Value elicitation Feedback I
Stages happens next?
13:05 - 14:30 Lunch Lunch Lunch ¨´
14:30 - 15:00 Service & Care Service & Care Service & Care
Group Dynamics II: Communication II: The
15:00 - 16:30 Motivation
Leadership Way of Council
16:30 - 17:00 Coffee break Coffee break Coffee break
17:00 - 18:00 Travel departures
Sustainable Leadership
Spirit group time Spirit group time
18:00 - 19:00 Group social I: Self-leadership

19:00 - 20:00 Dinner Team building Dinner Dinner

20:00 - 21:00 Welcome Ceremony challenge Free Time Free Time

Week 2
WED THUR FRI SAT SUN
- 07:45 Free Time Free Time Free Time
Mission command
07:45 - 08:45 Breakfast Breakfast Breakfast
starts 7AM
08:45 - 09:45 Magical Morning Magical Morning Magical Morning
09:45 - 09:50 Break Break Break Break
Leading yourself
The challenge debrief Mission command Planning the
sustainably 09:50 -
09:50 - 10:35 debrief 09:50 - 10:35 future09:50 - 11:20
11:20
Break10:35 - 10:50 Break10:35 - 10:50 Break11:20 - 11:35 Break11:20 - 11:35

Travel arrivals Colors of Behavior Defense mechanisms Conclusion 11:35 -

Coaching II 11:35-12:20
I10:50 - 12:20 10:50 - 12:20 12:20

12:20 - 13:45 Lunch Lunch Lunch Lunch

Conclusion cont.(13:20
13:45 - 14:15 Service & Care Service & Care Service & Care
- 14:30)
14:15 - 15:45 Colors of Behavior II Value Alignment The Way of CouncilII
15:45 - 16:15 Coffee break Coffee break Coffee break
16:15-17:00 Coaching I 45 min Feedback II 45 min Space16:15 - 17:15

Bus leaves at 14:45 (at

Spirit group time the latest 14:50)
17:00-19:00 18:30-19:00 Welcome Spirit group time Spirit group time
Lifeline
back!

19:00 - 20:00 Dinner & prep time Dinner Dinner Dinner

20:00 - 21:00 The Challenge Night Free Time Free Time Magic night
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EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK
PREPARING COURSE PARTICIPANTS
The call for participants was originally planned to go out in September-
October 2020. In reality, the calls went out on 7 July 2021 with the deadline of
1 August 2021 and the selections were finalised in early August.

After the selection of participants was concluded, the participants received

introductory information on the course as well as logistical details, including
travel guidelines, accommodation, as well as health and safety policies in the
form of a participant information package.

We strongly believe that participant preparation is key to a successful project,

mostly because it is an immense help for expectation management. Pre-
preparations help ensure smoother logistics and also are a pedagogical help
by starting the participants’ learning process well before they arrive on the
first course weekend (prep tasks).

The welcome pack the selected participants received contained information

on the upcoming course and led them to the official Participant Portal. The
Participant Portal was a dedicated website set up by the team, with all
participants receiving a special login. The purpose was to have a place for
centralising all information and making it easy for participants to access
continuous updates about the course. The preparation information on the
Participant Portal included more extensive course and team introductions, a
reiteration of the course’s expectations on participants, travel logistics and
safety measures.

The course mascot Caticorn in front of the Estonian venue, hotel Ruunavere
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EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK
THE VALE FOLDER & BOOK
The VALE Booklet is a course book designed
exclusively for The VALE Course by The VALE
Team. It consists of 190+ pages, including
introductions and instructions, practical
information and timetables, course materials for
the training weekends and interim period, self-
paced self-development tasks, and networking
“friendship” pages. The course materials and
reflection pages were actively used during sessions
and reflection groups, and all participants have the
opportunity to continuously revisit materials and
exercises even today.

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EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK
SPIRIT GROUPS
We combined whole-group learning, individual reflection, and learning in five
smaller reflection and project groups: what we call the Spirit Groups. The
groups met at the end of each day during the training and kept in touch during
the intermission and follow-up phases - and hopefully long into the future. The
Spirit Groups were guided by a trainer throughout the duration of the course
and formed a cornerstone of the educational framework by allowing us to
closely monitor participant progress and struggles in a continuous and
personal way. These regular check-ins allowed the trainer team to discuss and
plan how to best support participants and make necessary course
adjustments.

I am very happy about our group. I feel that we are in good harmony, there is a
strong trust and understanding. We have a lot of strength in us, everyone can add
something special, but we have also found a common ground.
- Our participant Mária

SCULA
It is good to have a model for
reflection to gain structure,
understand, and find your
thoughts when you later need
them.

At the VALE, we use SCULA,

which has its roots in the
model "SOLA" used by the
Swedish Scouts.
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EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK
MISSION COMMAND
One interactive and challenging
outdoors activity that our
participants experienced was
Operation Hungry Wolf, through
the group explored the concept
of Mission Command that
centers around decentralised
command and communication.

Mission command - this is what I call edutainment :D fun but i also learned a lot.
Thank you for allowing me to relive my girl scouts years haha! Besides that it
was great to see what we'd talked about in action and also reflect on our
behaviour in the light of what we'd learned. For me it was a valuable example of
the fact that doing something that might make people angry isn't the end of the
world. And also of course for me personally the most important thing that
happened was the unexpected "journey" wolf!Michael sent me on... I'm glad I
was given space to work through it. - Our participant Kat

WAY OF COUNCIL
Council is a sharing method, focused on empathy and active listening. It's a
practice of personal storytelling, which it turns out to be very effective
especially while working on topics such as personal development and
strengthening of group dynamics.

With roots in ancient and indigenous cultures, The Way of Council is a intuitive
relational model of group communication that supports authentic expression,
generosity, compassion, equanimity, and courage, reminding us that we are all
connected to and touched by each other’s experience.

“Well I think I learnt a lot about myself which is one of the biggest treasures
somebody can offer you, I learnt a lot or remembered many techniques about
team spirit and most of all and what really touched my heart is that we cried a
lot, we opened up and I was reminded about the beauty in being vulnerable.
During the "Council Session" I had only one thought "we meet people for a
reason" and for me personally it was an eye opening experience to step out of my
red self and to feel and see the reason why I met everybody, and to see the
beauty in every person in that room.” - Our participant Sanziana

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EDUCATIONAL FRAMEWORK
THE VALE CHALLENGE
One of the major assignments the participants were given was a group project
called “The VALE Challenge”. For the challenge, the participants were divided
into groups of 5 to together craft identity a societal problem and then develop
a concrete and feasible solution to it. This solution was then pitched in front
of an external jury, ensuring that participants got to apply their problem-
solving, teamwork and leadership skills to the fullest.

The Jury for the challenge were Martin Arro, Riikka Seppälä and Tauno Tamm.

The challenge night was hosted by Riikka Pasanen and Michael Elver.

I loved the reflexion tasks, the lifeline, coaching and value code as they prepared me
mentally for the weekend and put a little bit pressure to get it done. The new habit +
buddy system was a great way to show me how effective it is to have to report to
someone. I tried keeping a certain routine for a while already but it is hard to keep
up. I will use the buddy system now as well to to follow some more routines. The
virtual team work module was great as well as it gave some concrete actions which I
did not use before. The Vale challenge was the most difficult for me and very time
consuming. However, it was very useful to practice the virtual team work right away.
- Our participant Eva

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SPIRIT GROUP: THE PAPAYAS

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SPIRIT GROUP: THE DIVERS

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SPIRIT GROUP: POSITIVE PRIORITIES

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SPIRIT GROUP: 6¾
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SPIRIT GROUP: THE CHICKPEAS

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IMPACT
The VALE project sought to move beyond the classical leadership training book
by prioritising depth and impact to help participants grow their leadership
competencies and understand the personal values that guided them –
empowering them in their everyday leadership and youth work. In doing this, the
course provided the participants with the context, the tools, and the support to
ensure a profound and long-lasting impact that would strengthen the
participants’ role as leaders, innovators, and shapers of best practices in our
partner organisations.

PROJECT OUTPUTS
1. 25 civil society volunteer leaders with increased awareness of their
personal leadership and consolidated competences in self-leadership,
working with values, management of group dynamics, conflict resolution,
motivation, communication and virtual teamwork
2. A non-profit youth leadership network with multi-country peer support
groups and strengthened transnational volunteer collaboration, facilitating
future cross-national initiatives
3. A final project report
4. 5 solution-oriented project initiatives to real world problems developed by
participants
5. 21 follow-up workshops online and offline for 369 participants (and
counting)
6. Educational module on Virtual Teamwork created and shared openly on
Udemy

“I have never left a course thinking "...Whoa, was I really part of that?"
The experience was fantastic and the topics very interesting and
beneficial.” - Our participant Kadi

“After the training I really can say I feel empowered to make changes in my life an
also environment where I'm living in. I always "knew" that I can, but somehow last
weeks in the training, "hit the home" of my own responsibility. Not only for myself,
but having a constant thought behind "where can I serve others - and help them to
feel in charge of their lives". One of the main reasons was because the training
provided theoretical knowledge and it was very linked with everyday actions and
practical suggestions. In some sense - I would even say that this was more
experience based training than theory.” - Our participant Inese
The VALE Competence Profile
Every graduate of The VALE Course has acquired an advanced set of competencies in the focus
areas of self-reflection, self-leadership, motivation, group dynamics, values, communication,
motivation, and virtual teamwork.

KNOWLEDGE
A graduate of The Course understands:
The distinct dynamics involved in various leader relationships: individuals, groups & teams
Fundamental models of how groups form and how their dynamics change over time
The central role of feedback in successful team development, motivation and goals
Human motivational processes and their connection to group dynamics and self-leadership
Leadership styles and methods, assessing appropriate approaches to a given situation
Characteristics of sustainable and unsustainable leadership as well as possible actions to lead themselves and
others sustainably
The power of diversity in teams and organisations and how to actively counter non-inclusive norms and stereotypes
The role of personality, thoughts and feelings in behaviour and leadership
The dynamics of power and authority in leadership and team interactions

SKILLS
A graduate of The Course is able to:
Elicit and work with their own values over time to become more purposeful in their actions and leadership
Form concrete action plans for implementation of their values, tools and skills in their roles
Identify and apply newfound insights about teamwork and group dynamics and continuously assess and adapt their
team leadership behavior accordingly
Communicate with a clear intention to enhance productivity, team cohesion, and creativity
Draw from communication strategies and concepts like conflict resolution, mediation, and non-violent
communication to apply in leadership roles, organizational contexts, and daily life
Receive and give meaningful and effective feedback as part of a continuous feedback practice
Use self-reflection and goal-setting as tools for self-leadership in their daily lives and leadership roles
Adapt their leadership style and methods when leading virtual teams

COMMITMENTS
A graduate of The Course commits to:
Trust their own capacity to inspire others as value-driven leaders
Improve their micro and macro environments as active global citizens and leaders
Lead others and themselves in a sustainable manner
Advocate for diversity and inclusion and break down barriers for inclusion
Embrace the attitude of humility and the goal of continuous improvement for life-long learning
Acknowledge the importance of tough conversations and the responsibility as a leader of having them
Strategically plan and execute actions towards reaching goals
Lead by example

Value-Driven Advanced Leadership Course www.thevale.eu

THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

IMPACT
IMPACT ON PARTICIPANTS
Both participant, partner, and trainer evaluations reflect that the project
exceeded expectations of providing advanced leadership tools and knowledge
and developing the skill set of everyone involved. Over 90% of participants
reported an increased likelihood of taking on a leadership role in teams after
having participated in and completed the course. All participants have
reported a positive change regarding the sustainability of their own self-
leadership, meaning they now have better tools to lead themselves while
avoiding burnout and being more aware to notice it in others.

IMPACT ON PARTNER ORGANISATIONS

Not only has the project provided a strong base for the development of youth
workers but created an international support network for the participants: idea
sharing, cross-border collaboration, and peer support. The project directly
impacted our partners by providing the training and knowledge needed for
youth workers to engage in and drive existing activities and teams, but also to
initiate new systems, projects, and ideas in supporting youth workers and
young persons. In the conducted partner evaluation, 50% reported that the
participant’s (representing their organisation) quality of work/motivation has
increased after the course, 10% reported similar quality of work/motivation,
and the remaining 40% did not have enough data yet to assess this. No
partners reported a decrease.

IMPACT ON YOUTH WORK

The participants fill various roles, primarily on a voluntary basis, within YFU
network, working with and impacting youth through our educational exchanges,
educational activities, and volunteering programs. Through the course new
skill sets and knowledge have been directly applied by the participants to their
various roles such as educational and orientering organisers, contact persons,
interviewers, regional managers etc. In addition, they have added to the pool of
knowledge amongst other youth workers through the post-course workshops.
In addition: 95% of the participants reported that they have formally or
informally taught others in topics related to the course (outside of the
mandated post-course workshop!).
THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

PROJECT OUTPUTS
LOCAL FOLLOW-UP WORKSHOPS
Starting from when the course took place in 2021, the participants have
organised workshops on selected topics from the course to pass on the
learnings they gained during the VALE project. These workshops have been held
either physically or virtually, depending on the participant’s chosen topic and
logistical situation. Some of the workshops were open for everyone, some were
targeted at a specific context of a local youth organisation. Due to Covid-19,
many early workshops took place online. Originally it was planned that only
follow-up workshops held within three months of the training course would be
counted towards this goal, but due to our participants reporting that they would
have better opportunities to hold workshops in person later in the spring and in
the summer, we decided to include all workshops held by September 2022.

This was a challenging part of the project, because not all participants were
eager to organise their own sessions even though they had promised to do so at
the end of the course. It is also possible that some follow-up workshops were
not reported to us even if they were held. The workshops were assessed by a
participant questionnaire and a short written report prepared by the participant
responsible for the workshop.

We have recorded a total of 21 follow-up workshops that had a total participant

number of 369 people. The smallest follow-up workshop had only 2 participants
and the largest had 68, with an average of 18 participants. Therefore it is
evident that the impact and context of the follow-up workshops varied a lot. We
also asked the workshop leaders to rate their own satisfaction with their
workshop on a scale from 1 to 10. The average grade for satisfaction was 8.47,
which is excellent.

Online workshop on 22
January for 8 members of
regional board at YFU
Germany (all volunteers).

“The goal was to get a deeper

understanding of our work
behaviours using the model
of "Colors of Behaviour" from
the VALE and how we can use
the information for our team
work at the regional board.”
 THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

In-person workshop on 9 February 2022 for 9

psychology students from a psychology student
organization (Youth Department of the Hungarian
Psychological Association) from different
universities and age groups.

“My workshop was heavily based on the "value

elicitation" and "value alignment" sessions, I also used
some elements from the pre-course tasks and
presented the Johari-window. These were the tools
and methods, but the training also contributed to my
own journey with my values and becoming a value-
driven leader. In the process, I revisited the tasks
related to values that allowed me to dig even deeper,
rewrite my personal code again, and keep the
workshop in alignment with my values.”

Online meeting 9 December 2021 for 5 participants:

“A group of young male professionals called Beers &
Tears that gathers to deconstruct toxic masculinity.
The goal of the workshop was to reflect on how
Two in-person workshops in Denmark different behavioural styles affected personal and
for a total of 70 participants aged 18- professional lives, focusing on (possible)
25, recruits for army, sabbatical incompatibilities between different styles in different
between high school and university/ contexts.”
further education, with topics incl.
group dynamics and communication/
constructive feedback skills within
newly formed smaller groups.

In-person workshop on 3 SEP 2022 in

Estonia for 30 participants from the The
Estonian Medical Students’ Association.

In-person workshop in September 2022 for 13

Estonian volunteers with 2-4 years of experience,
who had been tasked with giving feedback to the
school presentations of the beginner volunteers
with less than two years of volunteer experience.
With this 90-minute workshop on feedback skills,
role of feedback and the purpose of feedback, they
were better prepared to complete that task
successfully.

“They really appreciated the idea of feedback as a

gift.”
THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

PROJECT OUTPUTS
THE FIRST VALE LEADERSHIP SYMPOSIUM
The VALE Leadership Symposium took place on 7 March 2022. 68 participants
signed up for the webinar (both YFU and external). The event was spearheaded
by three of the project alumni, Louisa Richter, Inese Bosa and Maria Elekes. As
they tell it: “The main goal was to share some of the VALE course learnings and
increase leadership knowledge and awareness within the YFU community and
beyond.” The webinar topics included: Leadership paradoxes, Tuckman group
stages, sustainable self leadership, power of vulnerability and working with
and for diversity.

The organisers collected feedback afterwards with a Google Form. The

webinar was exactly what the participants expected or better than expected. A
quote: "I really enjoyed when the webinar leaders shared their own personal
takeaways from the training, it was very personal and interesting to hear! Also, I
liked the breakout rooms where we could discuss our own experiences."

We are excited to announce that on 7th of March

2022, we will host a virtual event called The VALE
Leadership Webinar. During the webinar, we will
focus on some of the key principles and learnings
from the Value-driven Advanced Leadership
Course.

The webinar is an open event that gives a chance

to learn or revisit key concepts of leadership. We
hope to see people with varying levels of
leadership experience in the audience: young
volunteers who are yet to discover their own
leadership potential, as well as more experienced
leaders.

Join us on 7th of March at 18:00 CET to hear

inspiring lessons on leadership that can help
expand your skill set, and to catch a glimpse of
The VALE Course. The registration for the event
is open until 6th of March. If you have any
questions, send us an email to [email protected].
THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

PROJECT OUTPUTS
A VIRTUAL MODULE ON REMOTE TEAMWORK
During and for the course, we produced a virtual module on remote teamwork
that was published on Udemy. Its wider relevance is evidenced in the fact that
the course has sparked broader interest outside of the course participants: as
of November 28th 2022, 797 students in total have so far enrolled and
interacted with at least some of the content.

Not counting The VALE participants, the module has received 11 reviews with an
average of 4.63 out of 5.

“This course takes you through key areas of leading and participating in virtual
teams, and most crucially, how to adapt your leadership style and methods when
your work takes off in the digital space. There is a big difference between face-
to-face interaction and online interaction when collaborating in teams. The world
has taken our productivity onto digital platforms to a greater extent than ever
seen before; Especially in the aftermath of the pandemic, but also with
technologies advancing in general.

We look at key areas of virtual teamwork: from planning and scheduling to in-
meeting facilitation, documentation & communication platforms, and how to
building team spirit when you never see each other in real life. The aim is to give
you a toolbox and to avoid the pitfalls of virtual teamwork for you and your team
to enhance your efficiency, productivity, and overall experience of virtual work.”
THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

CHALLENGES
To a very high extent, the project came to pass as outlined in the initial plan, but naturally
there were also challenges. First and foremost, the COVID-19 crisis influenced the
project duration and postponed the start of the first activity by half a year. This also
brought the need to change one of the receiving countries from Germany to Denmark. We
contacted the Finnish National Agency OPH regarding our proposed course of action and
received an agreement from their side to proceed.

Secondly, COVID-19 also brought additional financial and logistical complications, as we

during the second activity in Estonia were required to test all the participants upon their
arrival. This was done before participants entered the bus towards the activity location –
led, guided and controlled by team members using antigen test kits that were distributed.
Luckily there were no infected participants and COVID brought no further complications.

A third difficulty included one participant from Turkey who needed a visa to enter the
European Union. The visa application process was quite long with the visa appointment
being set to a date very close to the course start. Even with an earlier appointment being
requested from our side, unfortunately it was not possible, which put the participant’s
participation in doubt. However, once the appointment was made and the urgency
expressed, we can happily say that this Turkish participant was able to fully take part in
the course.

A fourth difficulty was a change in the organising team, where a long-time organising
team member from Germany was in the end not able to take on the mantle of a trainer
during the actual activities and needed to be replaced. However, he had been open about
his situation for some months already before the decision to switch was made and we
had been able to prepare with contingencies. In the end, we found a way for him to visit
the activity in Denmark for a few days to see the event that he had worked so hard on for
close to a year, even if he in end could not be a trainer in it.

Lastly, we did unfortunately have a Erasmus+ funded participant from Norway who could
not take part in the second activity and therefore decided to quit the course prematurely.
This affected some of the group dynamics and cooperation projects, but all of the
participants were resilient and understanding and managed to finish their group projects
without any major complications. Financially, the timing of her departure from the course
was unlucky, since it was already quite close to the 2nd course weekend and her travel to
the 2nd activity had been bought with project money.
THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

IN SOCIAL MEDIA
Our participant Kinga shared her experience in the Globetrotter 3/2022, which is
a global YFU newsletter with approximately 1300 subscribers:
“The VALE (the Value-Driven Advanced Leadership Course) was a life-changing
experience. Two in-person weekends, 5-week remote work, and dozens of amazing
people from all around. A lot changed for me during this experience as well as
directly afterward. -- It led to more changes -- privately, professionally, and in YFU.
The months afterward were really difficult with long hours, hard work, changes,
decisions, and pushing myself far away outside of my comfort zone. But I believe that
if not for the course, I wouldn't take the chances. It really helped me to be a leader
in my own life, a leader of change, and I am very grateful for giving me this
opportunity. Thank you! ”❤️
THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT
THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT
The best thing about the course as a
whole was that we were not taught
general wisdoms, but we all worked
with and on our own personalities. I
felt that everything was relevant and
carefully planned. We got to know
ourselves in small steps, apply the
knowledge on ourselves, then put all
this into practice, where practice
means very specific, feasible and
realistic actions to improve not only
ourselves but also the world around us.
This course is an outstanding example
of experiential learning. The best thing
about the course as a whole is that it is
very professional and smart, but also
very fun and entertaining. The trainers
were the biggest inspiration: seeing
how the VALE came to life and
experiencing your presence was
invaluable! - Maria

In terms of being a volunteering, there

is the ideal that you should receive
more than you invest. Long days and a
huge workload sometimes can make
volunteers feel like they are primarily
working to keep the wheels of the
organization turning, because if not
them, who else will? This is at least my
observation. At the core of receiving
more than you give, is volunteer-to-
volunteer support, learning and
encouragement. I believe projects
similar to the VALE are key in creating
this environment where volunteers are
building each other up at the same
time as they are contributing to
development of the organisation. -
Aurora K.
THE VALE PROJECT // FINAL REPORT

CONCLUSION
All YFU organisations are first and foremost made possible by volunteer youth
workers. Their motivation, skills, and dedication are the lifeblood of the
successful operations of the organisations, and more importantly, the
successful support and interaction with thousands of young persons going on
exchanges around the globe. The organisations had the resources and
capacity to provide basic training for youth work, but not for training of more
advanced skills to drive, lead, and innovate youth work.

The VALE offered not only a strong base for the development of youth workers,
but created an international support network for the participants: idea sharing,
cross-border collaboration, and peer support. The project directly impacted our
partners by providing the training and knowledge needed for youth workers to
engage in and drive existing activities and teams, but also to initiate new
systems, projects, and ideas in supporting youth workers and young persons.

A crucial shared challenge is retaining experienced youth workers. As

opportunities for growth diminish with accumulated experience, combined with
a stronger pull from one’s personal and professional life, many youth workers
may discontinue their contribution. For organisations, this is not just harmful
in terms of lost skills and knowledge, but also by the loss of critical role
models for younger youth workers. The VALE contributed to addressing this
challenge by providing relevant and inspiring opportunities for growth for more
experienced youth workers and by encouraging them to apply their newly
acquired leadership competencies in their home organisation; many of these
found convincing reasons to stay active longer.

The value-driven element of the course was especially suited for the NGO
sector. Unlike the private sector, for the third sector, leadership and values are
often strongly linked - a connection that is rarely in the focus. Leadership
lessons from the profit-making sector, while sometimes useful, often miss
entirely the fact that leading volunteers, driven by values, versus leading paid
employees, are inherently different scenarios. By having values form the
backbone of the course, the participants returned with essential competencies
to be applied in their national organisations.