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"\"I'm going to get a selfie with Hillary Clinton!\"\n\nIf there's any sentence that encapsulates what it's like to be a teenage girl who wants to rule the world, it's that one. Sixteen-year-old Rebecca Sobel is in Washington, D.C. for the ANNpower Vital Voices leadership forum, a joint partnership between Ann Inc. (the company that owns Ann Taylor and LOFT) and Vital Voices Global Partnership (a non-profit founded by Clinton and Madeleine Albright). Among the week's many events are the Global Leadership Awards, where the 50 fellows will meet the former Secretary of State\u2014and Senator and First Lady\u2014and honor women who are affecting serious change around the world.\n\nRebecca isn't just there to get a selfie with a presidential hopeful though; she was chosen to participate in the program because of her own leadership potential. Each fellow came to the forum armed with a cause, with the goal of conceptualizing a project around it by week's end.\n\n\"My idea is to have children who are victims of domestic abuse paint murals, both as a form of art therapy and also to send a message that abuse isn't something that should be considered acceptable,\" Rebecca explains. \"The murals will brighten up spaces, empower kids, and educate communities.\"\n\nNew York City native Elanie Paredes's passion is sexual health education. \"This is a global problem, \" she says. \"We don't talk to young girls about sex because of cultural or religious reasons, but you can easily prevent pregnancy and disease just by educating these girls.\" And what is it like being part of a new wave of female leaders? \"A little overwhelming! Once you know that you're different and you want to change the world, it's scary because the world is so big, but then you realize you can actually do this, and there are so many people willing to help. It's amazing because once someone helps you, you want to pay it forward just like they did.\"\n\nAmong the girls' mentors for the week are Kah Walla, a political leader in Cameroon who was the first woman to run in the country's presidential election; Adi Tafuna'i, an entrepreneur focused on economic development in Samoa; and Panmela Castro, a women's rights activist and graffiti artist in Brazil. These women shared their stories and wisdom with fellows like 16-year-old Teresa Gaspar from Oceanside, California. \"As a girl, you have qualities men don't have, and you can exhibit different kinds of leadership\u2014it's much more collaborative,\" she says. \"I definitely consider myself a feminist. Last week I was doing a project in school, and I actually had to make the point that more girls attend Stanford than guys. All the girls in the class started cheering! Ultimately, we're all sisters, and we have to support each other in a world where men think we're inferior.\"\n\nThis kind of girls-helping-girls mentality is what willed the ANNpower Vital Voices initiative into existence, explains Ann Inc. CEO Kay Krill: \"We all know the statistics: Three percent of CEOs at public companies are women. Fourteen percent hold board seats. As a female CEO, I felt it was my responsibility to mentor young women to be the next generation of female leaders.\"\n\nKrill humbly and candidly discussed the difficulties\u2014and rewards\u2014of being a girl in charge, as the fellows furiously scribbled notes and asked questions ranging from how to deal with setbacks to if men feel threatened by a woman running the show. One of her key takeaways, though, was that it's OK if you're not quite sure how you'll make your impact: \"You will find your passion, you will find your dreams, you will find your life's work. Leadership is a journey.\"\n\nAnd it's a lesson the fellows are taking to heart. \"I haven't picked out a career, but I know I want to serve people with whatever I do,\" says 16-year-old Stuti Mishra, a spelling bee champ who's working to bridge the language gap for immigrant parents. \"This week I've learned so much from all these female leaders. It's really empowered me, and I can't wait to go back to my community.\"\n\nYep, it's safe to say the fellows will be riding a girl power high for quite a while. \"It's amazing to be part of a generation that's going to expand opportunities for women,\" says Rebecca, \"and we might just change the world doing so.\""^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.teenvogue.com/story/annpower-vital-voices>