Public institutions shape the conditions under which communities can live well, trust one another, and participate meaningfully in society. Understanding public value requires looking beyond effi ciency or technical performance to the outcomes that citizens experience as fair, inclusive, and responsive. This perspective reframes government action as a contribution to collective well-being and institutional legitimacy. Creating public value requires aligning public action with what communities genuinely value. A multidimensional approach, extending beyond economic measures, helps organisations account for social, cultural, political, and environmental expectations. Frameworks like Moore’s strategic triangle support this alignment by linking citizen aspirations, operational capacity, and legitimacy. Municipalities play a central role, as their closeness to daily life makes visible how services and decisions shape public trust. This learning unit introduces public value across its many dimensions. Through examples such as participatory budgeting and Local Digital Twins, learners explore how value can be co-created with communities using frameworks and tools that support thoughtful, outcome-oriented governance.