A day-to-day recap of the Global Leadership Summit in Italy

On July 7th-9th 2017, EF Academy Ambassadors from three campuses: New York, Oxford, and Torbay, had a chance to be a representative of EF Academy in the Global Leadership Summit in Milan, Italy. The topic for this summit was the Future of Food.

On Day 1: We met Stephen Ritz who is the writer of The Power of a Plant: A Teacher’s Odyssey to Grow Healthy Minds and Schools and founder of Green Bronx Machine. He talked about how he turned an empty and dirty area in the Bronx to an amazing green garden. He got inspiration from seeing children who were born and raised in that area and ate unhealthy food. The story was inspiring and heart-touching to all of us. At the end of the day, we had dinner in the tent alongside challenges with peers  from all over the world. My group mates were from Texas, Missouri, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and more!

Day 2: This was a big day for everyone. The innovation started and of course, we had brainstorming. Sharing and hearing stories from others really gave me a better view of the world. Open-mindedness was key for the days’ activities. We also learned the difference between sympathy and empathy. To be able to find a solution for people in need; sympathy is needed. Throughout the day, we worked on innovation and did workshops.

Day 3: This day went by fast, believe me. It was the final day which included:  showing the final prototype, announcing the winning team, bidding farewell, and dancing away at the GLS party. All this took place on the last day. In the morning, we finalized the team project and in the afternoon – one team was selected from each team color. In the evening, the selected team went up on stage to present their amazing idea that solves a problem for people in need. The winning team was called ‘Hydrone’.

Since my role during the summit was to updating our Instagram @efacademylife – the moments I captured still run through my mind over and over agan. The summit was really memorable and valuable experience that I could never get anywhere else.