Milla wins the Youth Debates North America Final!

Eloquence, listening, expressiveness, fairness - these are the qualities that Milla, Grade 9 of the GISW, demonstrated on Friday in the final of the “Jugend debattiert Nordamerika” (Youth Debates North America) competition in San Francisco—and she emerged as the winner!

Sixteen students from the USA, Mexico, and Canada took part in a series of workshops to prepare for the debates on Friday, from which the top four emerged to debate the final topic: "Should the use of single-use plastic be completely banned?" The students not only learned a lot about debating but also made new friendships!

The ZFA supports this competition, which now takes place in about 30 countries across Europe, Asia, and the Americas and, for the fourth time, in North America. The goals include fostering international connections, strengthening communication skills, and improving political judgment among young people. Across all continents, participants engage in fair competition in German, debating the best arguments. Especially in today’s world, democracies need people who ask critical questions, who stand up and express their opinions, who engage with others’ views, who listen, and who can debate fairly and objectively. This competition provides a place to practice all these skills

And our 9th-grader Milla showed on Friday in San Francisco that she has mastered these skills. We, GISW, are so proud of you, Milla, and your outstanding achievement—congratulations!

We would also like to extend thanks to Theresa Koch, who oversees the competition at our school and—as we can see—leads the students to success! Thank you and warmest congratulations to both of you!