The Youth Exchange “Express & Lead: From Self-Presentation to Youth Leadership” aims to support young people in transforming communication and self-presentation competences into practical leadership, responsibility and active participation within group and community contexts. Building on the successfully implemented Youth Exchange “Express & Impress - Mastering Communication and Self-Presentation Skills”, this project represents a natural continuation responding to identified needs expressed by participants and partner organisations. The project responds to several interconnected challenges identified through the previous Youth Exchange, partner feedback and everyday youth work practice: ● Many young people develop communication and self-expression skills but lack safe and structured opportunities to practise leadership and responsibility in real group or civic contexts. ● Young people often hesitate to take initiative or leadership roles due to low confidence, fear of making mistakes or lack of experience, even when they have relevant skills. ● Young people with fewer opportunities face additional barriers to accessing leadership experiences, international learning and active participation. ● Intercultural cooperation and respectful dialogue require practical experience, not only theoretical understanding. From a youth work practice perspective, the project focuses on learning by doing, peer learning and youth-led processes. Participants are not passive recipients but active creators of the programme, designing, leading and evaluating activities for each other. This approach reflects core youth work principles such as participation, empowerment, inclusion and experiential learning. The project aims to: ● strengthen leadership competences among young people through real responsibility and peer-led activities; ● support active participation, initiative-taking and confidence in group and civic contexts; ● provide safe, inclusive spaces for young people to practise leadership roles and decision-making; ● promote intercultural learning, respectful communication, cooperation across diverse contexts; ● support the transfer of learning outcomes into local youth work and community activities. From a youth work perspective, the project matters because it moves beyond skill development towards empowerment and active citizenship. Young people need spaces where they can experiment, lead, reflect and learn from real experiences in a supportive environment. By offering practical leadership opportunities, peer feedback, intercultural exchange, the project helps young people build confidence, resilience, a sense of responsibility. These competences are essential for their personal development, engagement in youth work and participation in society. The project supports young people in becoming active contributors rather than passive participants, strengthening both their individual pathways and the quality of youth work practices in their communities. By connecting non-formal learning with real-life application, the project contributes to the professional quality of youth work practices within partner organisations and supports young people in becoming active, responsible and engaged members of their communities. During the project, participants will: ● actively participate in a youth-led Youth Exchange, where learning is based on experience, peer interaction and reflection; ● design, implement, and evaluate activities for each other, taking real responsibility for parts of the programme; ● practise leadership roles within international groups, including decision-making, coordination and group facilitation; ● apply communication and self-presentation skills in real group and intercultural contexts; ● cooperate in mixed international teams, strengthening intercultural understanding and respectful dialogue; ● give and receive peer feedback, supporting mutual learning and personal development; ● reflect daily on their learning, behaviour and group roles through structured reflection sessions and tools such as Padlet; ● support each other through a buddy system, promoting inclusion and peer support; ● contribute to dissemination activities, including creation of digital content and sharing project experiences; ● plan local follow-up actions, preparing to transfer learning outcomes into their communities after the exchange.