Zonta International believes that young women are the key to women’s advancement in the field of public service. To support this belief, the organization offers the Young Women in Leadership Award, which recognizes young women, ages 16-19, who take on responsibility and leadership in volunteer roles and are committed to empowering women worldwide. This year, 4 students from Munich International School participated in the Zonta program. One of them, Elisabeth Schusser (Elli), is a Grade 12 student from Germany.
Elli did not discover what inspired her in a moment of certainty, but through challenge:
At MIS, students are encouraged to step into unfamiliar situations and reflect on what those moments reveal. For Elli, one such moment came far from the classroom, during the 2024 Tanzania Project Trip. MIS has a decades-long relationship with organizations and schools in Tanzania. Since 1990, MIS students have raised funds and visited our partner organizations each summer. During the summer trip of 2024, Elli was assigned to lead a tree-planting initiative. She worked alongside local women to plant 300 trees under the hot sun. The task itself was simple, but the process was not. language barriers and cultural differences slowed progress and tested patience. Yet it was precisely within that discomfort that Elli felt most engaged.
“I realized that impact doesn’t come from having control", Elisabeth reflects, "but rather from learning how to work with people whose realities are different from your own.”
As the trees took root, so did a clearer understanding of sustainability. It was no longer an abstract concept discussed in class, but something inseparable from women’s labour, environmental responsibility, and long-term community well-being. “Sustainability only works when it includes the people most affected by it,” Elli notes, connecting environmental action with social equity.
This experience clarified something Elli had been progressively learning at MIS: meaningful change depends on collaboration across differences. Back on campus, she recognized the same pattern in student council. As a Student Council Public Relations member and later co-head, she helped create spaces where students with different strengths - design, organization, communication - could contribute meaningfully. Her role often involved listening first and then translating concerns into action. Whether promoting mental health awareness or finding ways to support Pride beyond a single month, she learned that progress happens when perspectives are gathered.
“Leadership isn’t about being the loudest voice, it’s about making sure everyone else’s voice is heard.” - Elli explains.
That instinct to bridge viewpoints followed her into the classroom. In Model United Nations, she represented countries with opposing political interests that challenged her to step outside her own assumptions. Defending unfamiliar policies required empathy and critical thinking rather than agreement.
“Understanding a position doesn’t mean accepting it,” Elli explains, “but it does mean taking it seriously.”
This mindset shaped her academic curiosity, beginning with a mathematics assessment in which Elli explored factors affecting gender inequality by analyzing the statistical relationship between happiness, GDP per capita, and gender equality. That same lens led her to examine urban systems, where she recognized how policies designed without diverse perspectives can quietly but systematically exclude certain groups.
The MIS focus on nurturing students through challenge helped Elli recognize what truly motivates her: uncovering overlooked perspectives and working collaboratively to improve societal well-being. Rather than narrowing her interests, these experiences taught her to connect them. “The problems that matter most don’t fit into one subject,” she says, “and neither do the solutions.” This realization has drawn her toward interdisciplinary fields that combine the humanities and sciences.
Through challenge, Elli discovered that what inspires her most is building bridges - between people, ideas, and systems. “When different perspectives meet,” Elisabeth believes, “that’s where real change begins.”