On Aug 6, the U.N. Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), the content partner of the ‘Climate x’ Pilot, present a special class focusing on leadership for GAUC Global Youth Ambassadors. 

At the beginning of the lecture, Mr. Jérome L'host, Senior Consultant at UNITAR, introduced the sources of leadership power, namely expertise/knowledge, achievement, hierarchy/assigned/inherited, charisma/presence, and relationship/network. He mentioned that leadership is largely related to motivation theory. There are two styles of management: authoritarian (Theory X) and participative (Theory Y). X-type people prefer to be assigned while Y-type people tend to initiate their own activities for work. The art of management is different between these two types of people.

Mr. L'host further described four types of leadership that are categorized according to the importance of relationship and task, namely directing, coaching/supporting, participating, and delegating. The criteria to choose between the different types is based on the readiness level of the particular staff. While the level of the staff can be divided as passive, receptive, resistant, and driving force/star, based on their motivation and competence. Mr. L'host emphasized that one will meet people with different levels of readiness at work, so there is a great need to target the right type of leadership.

He also concluded that leadership does not emphasize "Do", but "With”, so we have to go deeper into teamwork. To become a "Situational Leader" who can choose the right leadership type, one should have three capabilities: diagnosis, flexibility, and partnering for performance. At the end of the lecture, Mr. L'host shared three elements of success with the ambassadors: a clear strategic vision, effective leadership, and excellent execution.

Co-initiated by Sciences Po and Tsinghua University, the ‘Climate x’ Pilot is a joint educational project of GAUC’s 15 member universities and the world’s first youth climate leadership training project that convenes the strength of global leading universities across 6 continents. Composed of interdisciplinary lectures by leading experts and cross-culture group projects, the pilot program aims to provide a systematic curriculum to help the next generation to take the lead in tackling climate change challenges, especially with an interdisciplinary perspective on SDGs.

To convene the strength of youth, GAUC will hold a series of events in the following months to facilitate the success of COP27, with the support from UNESCO and UNITAR.

Reporter: Yu Han Soo
Editor: Jeffrey Tykot

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