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Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy: Day Six (Part 2)

Well, today I was in heaven! We combined two of my favorite things here at the Academy: working with passionate young people and spending a few hours with new and old recipes in the kitchen.

If you can believe it, we convinced the hotel management where we were staying to "loan" us their kitchen for a "National Dinner!" Then, before the participants arrived, we asked them all to find a recipe that reflects the values of their culture and upbringing—something that they love to eat!

After a lot of consultation with mom and grandma, almost all of the participants brought recipes and secret ingredients. On the day of the dinner, a bunch of us went grocery shopping, armed with lists and lists of needed ingredients. This is exactly the kind of adventure that I love!

The result was a feast like you've never seen before! We all had an amazing time, including the really wonderful hotel chefs (who still had a restaurant full of people they had to feed) who took time to help our participants perfect their recipes.

If you want to know more about one of these dishes (or if you prepared it), please post the the blog—names and recipes would be great! And, don't forget that there are hundreds more photos on Facebook, the Common Ground website, and online here.

Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy: Day Six (Part 1)

We've reached one of my favorite days at the Academy ... it begins with Street Speaking and ends with the National Dinner and Dance!

In developing the schedule for the Leadership Academy, we identified a number of critical skills that would benefit the participants as they develop their leadership potential. Among the most important were communications and advocacy skills.

Before coming to Kosovo, I had been asked to plan workshops related to these topics and several others. Following some particularly good sessions on understanding power, community organizing, and a little bit on public speaking, I suggested the group might benefit from a very powerful activity called, Street Speaking.

I first encountered the activity when I had the chance to work with George Lakey, director of the Philadelphia-based, Training for Change and the amazing young people from Empty The Shelters, an organization co-founded by Claudia Horwitz, now the director of Stone Circles.

The idea behind the activity is to prepare young people to take a stand by sharing deeply (and publicly) from their hearts and minds about the issues in the world that move them to action. Following several workshops that helped the students uncover and discover their own passions and deeply held values, I gave them a homework assignment that asked them to free-write at least a page or two about what they want to see change in Kosovo. The instructions were understandable, but intentionally vague. I told them they would be using this homework to prepare 2-3 minutes of remarks that they would share in the middle of the town-square in Prizren, near where the training was taking place. This provoked quite a lot of excitement and anxiety among the students.

Today, it was clear that the participants had taken the homework very seriously. We used our Opening Circle to hear about what the participants were intending to share and we reviewed the central comfort zone concept which was introduced at the start of the Academy. We also talked about groundrules and safety; and what it might be like to have people gather and listen (or walk by ignoring what was happening).

With anxiety and excitement both high, we jumped in the bus and drove 30 minutes to the center square where we chose the most visible location. It was lunchtime and there were a good number of people hanging out in local cafés and others on the street. We gathered everyone, breathed together, and I stood up to introduce the activity to the crowds and invite the students to speak. Our friends Betsy and Faton from the U.S. Embassy (who helped make all of this possible) joined us, too!

It was amazing. The activity is always powerful, but with this group, even I was awestruck by how much it seemed to move people. Our groundrules during the week allowed participants to opt out of an activity and many had said they would watch, but not speak. Once we got started, however, all of this changed. Almost everyone stood to speak. They used the power of their voices to demand change, to bring attention to the issues that affect young people in Kosovo, and they got people thinking. We had little kids and mothers, teenagers, and seniors all stopping, listening, asking questions.

In our debrief at the Restaurant Renaissance, it became clear that this activity had powerfully affected all of us, even the training team. We talked about all kinds of new learning, emotions, power and passion. Students talked about what it was like to step fully outside of their comfort zones . . . and not only survive, but feel that comfort zone expanding.

This experience was certainly one highlight of the Summer School for me; and I hope that others will write here about what it meant to them.

Craig's Homemade Cookie Recipe!

One of the things I made for tonight's National Dinner (more on that later) was my "famous" cookie recipe. I pre-mixed all of the ingredients before I left the U.S. last week and brought enough to make two batches here. I promised I would share the recipe with everyone at the Academy. I've baked all kinds of cookies over the years from many different recipes. This is my favorite! If you have any questions or need help substituting an ingredient, please let me know!

The Most Amazing Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies Ever!

Ingredients:

0.5 Cup (4 Ounces) Unsalted Butter
0.5 Cup (3.25 Ounces) Solid Vegetable Shortening (Like Lard)
1.0 Cup (8 Ounces) Brown Sugar
0.5 Cup (3.5 Ounces) Granulated Sugar
2 Teaspoons Liquid Vanilla Extract
.75 Teaspoon Salt
1 Tablespoon White Vinegar (My Secret Ingredient!)
1 Large Egg
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
2 Cups (8.5 Ounces) Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
3 Cups (18 Ounces) Chocolate Chips (If Available)
2 Cups (12 Ounces) of Peanut Butter Chips (If Available)*

Optional: 1 Cup Chopped Peanuts

*If Peanut Butter Chips Are Not Available, Replace .25 Cups Vegetable Shortening with .5 Cups Peanut Butter.

1. Preheat Your Oven to 175˚C (350˚F)

2. Lightly grease two baking sheets

3. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the butter, shortening, sugars, vanilla, salt, and vinegar until it is creamy and pale yellow in color.

4. Stir in the egg.

5. Then gently mix in the baking soda and the flour.

6. Finally mix in the chocolate and butterswcotch chips (if using); and the nuts (if using).

7. Drop the dough by large spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes until they are golden brown

8. Remove from the oven and transfer to a rack to cool.

Eat them while they're still warm with a big glass of cold milk!

Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy: Day Five

It was a pretty quiet group this morning—clearly impacted by the powerful Lifestories activity from last night.

After breakfast, our day began with an Opening Circle, of course. Today, however, we focused the discussion to allow us to debrief last night. What struck me with the comments was how many people felt honored to have been a part of the experience. "It was really hard," many people said ... "And, life-changing."

I'm always amazed by the depth of the sharing that occurs when we take the time to create a safe and sacred environment. The power of a story really does affect how people treat each other and how they work together. My advice to them last night was to be gentle with one another after the activity. This morning, I suggested that in sharing an important part of themselves they claimed the power from their story, the good and positive, letting any pain or hurt fade a little more quickly. When it comes to drawing the learning out of an experience, this group is extraordinary.

Next up, the Daily Evaluation for yesterday and then our group two Icebreaker Team lead us in an activity which required a lot of coordination (and a fearlessness when it comes to being embarrassed!). The idea is to position an orange between the foreheads of two people and then do a whole bunch of crazy dancing. It was a lot of fun and they were once again able to link the idea of this kind of teamwork activity to the concept of leadership.

The rest of the morning was all about their Group Leadership Projects. A few more intense hours focused on design and planning. We were joined during this time by Radovan and Refki from ISC-Kosovo (and later, Valton), who seemed to enjoy observing the youth in action.

After lunch, we continued in their work groups, focusing now on Budget Development. We've created some new tools for this project work and were all so impressed by how hard the teams are working. Yesterday, we were able to secure 2,000 euros to support these projects. I can't believe the seriousness with which they've approached their work since then. It's more impressive than many groups of adults I've seen!

After a quick coffee break—during which time most of the groups kept working—we asked the groups to create a Presentation describing their projects. They presented both a high-energy pitch for their projects as well as a kind of print poster that they might use to market them. While they were presenting, Molly was transcribing all of their worksheets so they'll have a more formal document to guide them through the next stages of their work. A couple of participants who didn't find the right project, used their time to create a really terrific Facebook group, inviting all of the participants and creating a great hub for all of our social media.

We ended today with the Daily Evaluation and a Closing Circle, which tonight focused on the "Ripple Effect." I asked the participants to tell us with whom they would share highlights of the Academy when they returned home. I spent a lot of time talking about the power of one person affecting so many more through our Social Circles and used this picture of waves in the ocean to help make the point about how a simple action—like tossing a pebble into the water—can impact so much more.

Following a quick meeting of the Listening Team and then dinner (moussaka!), we held the first annual KSYLA Talent Show. You'll have to check out the pictures to see all of the acts, which included everything from guitar playing and singing to comedy and the "Thriller" dance. When the performances were through, we all watched the movie Ratatouille, to prepare us for the cooking we'll be doing for tomorrow night's National Dinner. The movie was made a bit more exciting by a mountain bat which flew in through one of the giant windows in our training room. Fortunately, the internet provided us with all the information we (I should say they ... I hate bats!) needed to safely catch and release it safely back outside.

This, was a crazy day!

Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy: Day Four

It was another absolutely beautiful day on the mountain today!

Even after such a long day (and night) yesterday, everyone seems awake and ready to work. We started the day as always with our Opening Circle, which today consisted of the participants' reactions to the Global Village slide (below). It is an eye-opener for most people and it generated a lot of rich conversation here as well.

Following the opening, the first group of the three we created yesterday lead us in an Icebreaker. Today, it was a version of Simon Sez and they did a terrific job of linking it directly to our conversations about leadership.

Next up, our special guest trainer today was Srećko Šekeljić (from ISC Serbia), who will also be with us through the end of the Academy. Today, Srećko was leading discussions about the Basics of Youth Advocacy and Understanding Power in the context of leadership and activism. The group was able to see how some of the things they care about might be turned into campaigns for change; and they did a really great job linking the lecture and theory to the practical aspects of their project work from last night.

After a short break, we came back into a room we had transformed for a quick Team-Building Competition. The idea is to break the full group into two teams and line them up shoulder-to-shoulder and foot-to-foot. Each group must then figure how to move as one block to the center goal line, without ever losing touch with each other's shoulders or feet. This one is really hard and though we had a winner eventually, we also had a lot of visible frustration.

The Debriefing Discussion that followed was very rich with a lot of emphasis on the role of leadership when it comes to giving instructions, motivating a team, and addressing the members of a group who are not as strong as others. This conversation flowed well into the second half of Srećko's workshop.

Also at this point, we were also joined by Suzanne Reed and Armend Bekaj , the Chief and Deputy Chief of Party for ISC in Kosovo, as well as the newest staffer at ISC, Teuta. The participants introduced themselves and shared their favorite moment in the Academy thus far.

Following another terrific lunch, the entire Academy spent a relaxing afternoon in Prevallë, enjoying the views from the beautiful Sharri Mountains. A few hours of relaxing conversation, a little bit of sport, and some hiking, were just what this crew needed.  

At the end of the day, I had scheduled one of my favorite training activities: Lifestories. This high-risk activity has a number of intended outcomes, including building a powerful sense of community among training participants. It is always a highlight of a program like the Academy.

Prior to the beginning of the training, we sent this email to all of the students:

Hi Everyone!

As you are packing for your trip to the Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Acedemy, please take a few moments to think about an object or item that means a great deal to you. It should be something that represents your life story so far. Perhaps it is a photograph of someone close to you who is gone now; or maybe it is a book you read as a child that changed your life. Perhaps it is poem you know by heart or a piece of clothing, or a stuffed toy, or a musical instrument, or a piece of sports equipment . . . It can be anything that tells us more about who you are in the world. We'd like you to bring this object and we will use it in an activity that helps us all get to know each other better. Please bring something that is very important to you.

Thanks and see you at the Academy!

During the activity we work hard to create a safe and sacred space where people can talk about what they brought with them, explaining what it represents about who they are and how they walk in the world. It is always a tremendously powerful experience.

Tonight was no exception.

After three hours of talking and listening, the participants started a lobbying campaign for a later curfew. They worked so hard and after an activity like this one, hanging out and talking together makes a lot of sense. We all headed off to bed about 1am.

Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy: Day Three

I'm going to try writing the blog post as we go along today, so the first thing I'm noticing is that these folks are EXHAUSTED!

We've been working them really hard and they're playing hard ... all night music jams and lots of conversations that last well into the morning. They have a curfew, but we also know they're teenagers.

To start the work day, I added the Arrow Game, which is basically a fun way of doing quick aerobics. My thinking was to get the blood pumping and the energy moving. Then we did our Opening Circle—today it was one word that represents how you're feeling right now.

So far, so good.

Next up, Roommate Introductions. They've spent a few days and nights together now, so we learned some new things about each other. At the end of this activity, Jeton (from ISC-Macedonia) showed up right on time. He'll be here joining the training team through the end of the week. He's a great guy and will make a terrific addition.

Following his introduction, we jumped into an activity called the The Human Knot—a really cool game that requires a lot of patience. All of the participants circle up and then hold hands with two different people across from themselves, creating the "knot." Then, all they have to do is untangle themselves. It wasn't so bad when the groups were 5-6 people, but when we put everyone into one knot, it was quite a sight! We've got lots of photos and video of their successful effort!

This example of a Learning Icebreaker (which we discussed in the context of teamwork and leadership roles) laid the groundwork for three groups of participants who will lead an icebreaker each morning theough the end of the Academy.

We moved into a workshop on the "Economics of Trust."I've been doing a version of this workshop for a very long time now and find it critical to any discussion of leadership. The basic idea is this:

⬇ Trust = ⬇ Speed & ⬆ Cost

⬆ Trust = ⬆ Speed & ⬇ Cost

The workshop included a lot of small-group work focused on the value of taking the time to cultivate trust in both our personal and professional relationships. For this group, we added a series of interactive trust games including the classic Trust Fall and the less well-known Conveyor Belt, which basically requires two lines of people to pass one very brave participant down the line and above their heads. We had a lot of volunteers making us late for lunch!

When we came back, we debriefed all of the trust activities, which helped set the stage for an intense afternoon. The discussion is called "Inherit the Wound." It asks a lot of very personal questions about how we've been socialized around human differences. Here in Kosovo, ethnic issues are as difficult as race issues in the U.S.

At this Academy, we did something that is rarely (if ever) done here—we recruited an intentionally diverse group of participants—Albanian, Serbian, Roma, Egyptian, Bosniak, and Turkish. Many people told us it could not be done, but with a tremendous effort on the part of the ISC staff in Kosovo, we achieved it.

Being intentional about this was scary for many of the participants, especially the two-thirds of them who are from minority communities here in Kosovo. Inherit the Wound only increased anxiety, but it also lead to some amazing breakthroughs.

These are a few examples of the types of questions the small groups had to answer:

• What is your earliest memory of recognizing that people were racially, ethnically, sexually, physically, religiously, financially or different from you?

• While growing up, what messages did you receive from your family, friends, and community about racial or other differences? Were the spoken and unspoken messages consistent?

• When was the first time that you became aware that your identity affected the way you would be treated by society?

The discussions in the small group and then our larger debrief were amazing. Many of the participants recounted some really tough experiences, as well as their own struggles with prejudice and bias. We heard some truly powerful and courageous stories.

We finished the afternoon with a little more work on their Personal Mission Statements, had a Closing Circle (focusing on A-HA Moments), and completed the Daily Evaluation. The Listening Team also came together briefly before dinner.

Following an Italian Spaghetti dinner, we had one more session!

We came together to convene the first meetings of the Leadership Project Work Groups. All afternoon, our team put together groups based on interest areas, geography, and diversity. We ended up with two teams focusing on Discrimination and two groups focused on Creating More Opportunities for Local Youth.

Noah presented a Project Design Template that we designed to help guide the groups and then the groups met to brainstorm and then complete drafts of the template. THE GROUPS REFUSED TO STOP MEETING! Even though they were eating into their social time. It was an amazing thing to witness.

We even saw some budding lobbyists pitching their ideas to other groups!

All in all, today was the best day yet!

Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy: Day Two

Today was another great day at the Academy!

We began early and on-time at 9am with an Opening Circle, a ritual that will continue all week. We also selected our "Listening Team," a smaller group of participants who agree to help the trainers ensure that we know all we need to in order to make the training as successful as possible. We'll meet together at the end of each day to discuss the all aspects of the training. We've already agreed to implement some of their great suggestions.

Next on the agenda was the chance to share what each of the participants is passionate about; and then we created a tool that will allow them to communicate what they appreciate about each other as the week progresses. Then we pushed them to really tell us their expectations for the week and to begin to set some collective goals for achieving them.

The morning ended with a major breakthrough as the entire group really jumped into a heated conversation about what it means to be a "Change Agent." As a trainer, it was one of those moments when you know things are going to really get exciting. I wish you could have heard some of the comments as many of the participants really claimed their own power for the first time.

The conversations continued over lunch and when we came back we talked about setting SMART goals and everyone answered the question: "I Want to Change __________!" The answers were amazing and our team transcribed them all, using them to create Issues Groups. A Values Voting Process helped us to narrow the list to four key areas where they'd like to work: Drugs, Discrimination, Employment, and Youth Activities. We'll work with these issue the rest of the week.

Also in the afternoon, we did our Team Types activity, which provides a framework for understanding one's leadership style in the context of a team. Participants determine whether they are primarily Take Charge Activists, Analysts, Nurturers, or Visionaries.

We also selected Secret Friends, a fun way to strengthen relationships among the participants.

The last major activity of the working day was an intense personal reflection that will lead to a fully-developed Personal Mission Statement. We finished up with a Closing Circle and our Daily Evaluation.

Following Dinner, things got crazy ... we did YOGA! It was hysterical.

Check out those pictures and many more by clicking here.

Finally, as I write this, some of the participants are hanging out and playing guitar. Others are watching last year's best picture, Slumdog Millionaire.

I'm looking forward to curfew and a good night's sleep!

Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy: Day One

Well, today was quite a day!

With an early (and on-time) start, parents and participants met our bus in Prishtina and we traveled most of the morning picking up students in Theranda/Suhareka and Prizren. We ended up at the Hotel Sharri, in the Prevallë region of Kosovo.

Following lunch, we jumped right into the start of the Academy with a really energetic and engaged group of young leaders—TOMORROW'S LEADERS TODAY—to borrow a phrase from my old organization Public Allies.

We began with a formal welcoming ceremony, moved into lots of introductions, the crazy name game, and a workshop in which the participants created their own artistic definitions of leadership.

Following a amazing dinner, the mountainous region in which we're working was hit by one of the most powerful storms I've ever seen: gale force winds, golfball size hail, the loss of power, and so much rain and lightning! It was amazing and a bit frightening in its intensity.

The participants responded by breaking out the guitars and hanging out together singing and talking. When the storm ended, we convened again to play all kinds of "Games Without Borders." They were a bit competitive, a little off-the-wall, and a whole lot of fun.

My favorite of course is what Zana (from ISC-K) dubbed "Flour Power." The goal of the game is to blow all of the baking flour out of a glass first. It sounds a lot easier than it is and it makes for awesome pictures!

Curfew is at 23:00. Wish us luck!

Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy

Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy

24-30 August 2009

Prevala/Prevalac, Sharri Mountains

Academy Overview

The Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy is a unique residential program for high-school-age youth. Its goal is to prepare young people to be effective leaders and agents of change, dedicated to improving the lives of their peers in Kosovo. The Academy is a program created and designed by Common Ground Consulting in partnership with the Institute for Sustainable Communities and and funded by the U.S. Government.

The Academy will unleash the power of a core group of young people whose creative and leadership potential has been, until now, untapped by their communities.

Youth will participate in experiential learning activities and dialogue sessions designed to increase their understanding of human relations issues and of their own responsibility to create a community based on inclusion, trust, and mutual respect. Specifically, young people will:

1. Develop a clear understanding of their unique leadership profile through participation in a set of highly-participatory group and individual activities;
2. Develop new skills in public speaking, conflict resolution, goal-setting, time management, and peer education, among others;
3. Forge lasting bonds with each other, addressing areas of conflict arising from stereotypes and negative socialization, and forming a cooperative, multi-ethnic network of young leaders.

In addition, a variety of social and recreational activities are part of the Academy such as different games, sports and other team activities.

Background

Whether Albanian, Serb, or Roma, the majority of Kosovo’s young people face the same challenges: inadequate education, few job prospects, and little access to practical skillbuilding or career counseling services. Secondary school drop-out rates are high, and those who do complete training programs still lack the skills to succeed on the job. According to 2005 data, the majority of unemployed graduates of vocational training provided via the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare (MLSW) tend to be under 25 and possess no more than a secondary school degree. These young jobseekers make up the vast majority of Kosovo’s youth—and its future.

For these young people, their poor economic prospects are intensified by their disengagement from civic life. The generation who grew up during the political limbo of the past decade lacks clear ties to a larger civic community. The result is growing feelings of mistrust, anger, and despair, fueling high levels of cynicism and the tendency to blame others for their misfortune. Anxiety about their future makes them particularly vulnerable to those who exploit fear and mistrust: extremist and nationalist groups, human traffickers, criminals, and drug dealers.

A critical generation is coming into its own, a generation that faces systemic divisions stemming from ten years of separate ethnic schools and systems, ten more years of U.N. administration, and the lack of a common language. In order for Kosovo’s youth to move beyond their grievances, many of which are legitimate, meaningful reconciliation must be grounded in shared opportunities. We believe that camp programs like the Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy are an excellent way to build these bridges and help these young leaders chart a new course for their future.

A Trip to Priština in August

I'm taking a trip to Priština between August 21st and September 3rd.
Common Ground's team will be working strategically with public, private, and nongovernmental partners, including the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) to create and conduct the Kosovo Summer Youth Leadership Academy (KSYLA). The Academy will empower diverse and passionate young people across Kosovo with an entrepreneurial spirit and the tools to involve themselves and their peers in Kosovo’s economic and political future.

The Academy will unleash the power of a core group of young people whose creative and leadership potential has been, until now, untapped by their communities. The program will reach beyond Pristina to engage a new generation of highly-motivated young people with skills that enable them to work across political and ethnic divides, building a powerful network of future community, business, and political leaders.

I'll also be staying on in Kosovo to work with the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) and their Civil Society Strengthening Program (CSSP) which is helping to help ease the country’s transition to an inclusive and democratic government. After years of conflict and political uncertainty, Kosovo’s newly independent status poses great challenges, including healing ethnic and political rifts while rebuilding the nation’s economy and infrastructure.