and she had done some research on buried land mines around the world. so she just didn't sit back. she wanted to do something. so she went out and she created, actually, an alternative. a device that actually goes out there and identifies where these mines are buried. she won a $25,000 fellowship, and her invention is a great thing, because people can produce it at a cheap cost in other countries. so the point is this. that when you inspire girls, when you give them -- when you support them, when you mentor them, they're going to get on their journey. because they truly know the path. sometimes adults, we kind of put barriers in their way. we put stereotypes. we put negative images. but if you're truly sitting there with a girl and you start kicking those barriers out of the way, they're going to jump to where they need to get to. you know, i'm very fortunate. i had a lot of people in my life that mentored me. from a very young age in arizona, where apparently i was

poor. didn't know it, because we were rich in love. but i remember thinking, the only thing i wanted to be was a girl scout. and when i had the opportunity to become a member of this movement, i moved to san antonio, texas, dragged my husband and my son and we moved, sight unseen, to work for the girls in southwest texas. and i remember sitting there and thinking about girls. and, you know, for a girl it's very simple. they see our organization, it's iconic. and one day, we were doing this recruitment event, because in girl scouting, we still work in partnership with school districts across the country to recru recruit girls. and we do the brochures to announce a recruitment event, hope it gets into the teachers' boxes, hope they put it in the girls' backpack and hope it gets home and a parent finds the form. that worked one day in san antonio, texas. and as a little girl, she was 8 years old, and she had the form

in her backpack. and she showed up at one of her recruitment events at a elementary school one night. after everything was done, my staff and the volunteers looked and there was one person left, and it was the 8-year-old girl. beautiful little girl. they were like, honey, where is your parents? she said, oh, no, i came by myself. there's my bicycle. and they're like, well, honey, it's late. it's like 8:30. she's like, i know, and i've forgotten my way, can you take me home? what we found out is this. this little young lady was living with her father, single parent, who was working two jobs because he had been laid off. and they scraped and scraped, because it's only $12 to be a girl scout. that's all it costs, one year to be a girl scout, $12. but for them, that was a heavy lift. so they looked under sofa cushions, looked under the refrigerator, and she found $12 in change. she brought that change in a bottle. and she put it in front of my recruiter and said, you know, we

may be poor, we may be alone today, but i want to be a girl scout, because i know i'm going to be able to change the world. i got to tell you, she changed my life. because i knew at that time it wasn't about just girl scouts. it was about girls changing their lives, but changing the world. you know, and they're ready. it's up to adults. it's up to adults to step up and say, you know what, let me pay that $12. let me buy you that sash. let me give you the opportunity to integrate with amazing women and men who want to support your journey. come on, now. go ask the flying monkeys. go ask angela. or merriam. you know, for us, we sit here in the nation's capital, where innovation and creativity and governance happens. can you imagine if we doubled

the number of girls in that pipeline of leadership here in the nation's capital? is because right now, look at our roster of girl scout alumni. theresa read the list, and it goes on and on. and imagine if right now we only serve 8% of girls in this country, imagine if we doubled that percentage. you know, in our study, recently, we found that if you compared girl scout alumni to nonalumni, they outperformed in almost every single measure. they were making more money per year. they had a higher educational attainment than nonalum. they were happier. and they were contributing to their community. they were volunteering, and they were voting, and they were voting often. and what we also discovered is that currently we have 59 million living alumni in this country. approximately one in two women

has spent time in our organization during her lifetime. and what i love about it is that it is going to give us the opportunity to connect with that alumni, to bring them back in to mentor other girls. because our system is simple. it's worked for 100 years. it's called discover, connect and take action. allow a girl to discover the issues around her in her local community or around the globe. connect her to other people who are interested in that project, and then allow her, with her imagination, to take action to make a difference. so it works. 100 years. stood here today, that it works. because, again, we're not only in every zip code in this country. but we're in 92 countries in the world making a difference, not only for girls, but again, for their communities. but i need your help. because we can't do it alone. so we're going to create an opportunity for you.

and it's called to get her there. it is the largest, boldest advocacy campaign for girls' leadership in the nation's history. what we're trying to do with your help is to create balanced leadership in this country in one generation, so that every single girl has the opportunity to step into that leadership role. because we're going to need her smart ideas. we're going to need her to sit next to boys in the classroom and contribute. and, you know, it's not about boys against girls or men against women. i'm a mother of a 10-year-old beautiful boy. but what it's about is this great country. and it's about this girl scout movement that needs to continue. because we need to help more girls. now, the issue for us is scale. we can't do it by ourselves. it's going to take every nonprofit that serves youth. it's going to take every government leader, every business leader, every faith leader, every parent, every

entrepreneur, to invest in girls. because unfortunately today, only 7% of the philanthropic dollars go to girl causes in this country. it's not enough. we've got to invest in girls. because i am convinced that somewhere out there, across this beautiful country, there's a girl sitting there with a cure for alzheimer's. there's a girl figuring out, how do i make other lives better, like danielle? but the question is, well, we get her there. will we? do we have enough passion around these issues? will we dedicate the time to sponsor a girl, to mentor her? and will we be strong enough in our moral finetory stand up and say, today, not on my watch, will you make a girl feel less than. and yes, when people start casting aspersions against an iconic organization, will you stand up and say that is not true.

you know, i'm going to end just with a simple story. the fact of the matter is, i stand before you as a product of this great organization. but for girl scouts, i probably perhaps would have been on a different path. i was on all of the indicate or lists, right? i was latina, agricultural rural community. my parents hadn't gone to college. but you know what, somebody, an adult, in a rural community, reached out her hand and said, you matter. today on my watch, you matter. and along the way, my path was filled with adults that understood the potential of a girl. what i ask you today and the country watching, is that you invest in one girl. it could be your neighbor, it could be your daughter, it could be your niece. it could be a daughter of somebody in foster care. or in child protective services.

just take the time. because there's a girl sitting in memphis, tennessee, ames, iowa or birmingham, alabama who needs us. and i am convinced that with a girl succeeds, the country succeeds. thank you. you talked with reaching out to just one girl. if you could speak to younger girls, what would you say, and

what does being a girl scout mean to you? >> wow. there's a lot i'd love to share with girls. and, again, i have this great opportunity. what i would tell them, honestly, is to be a girl. you know, i had the great opportunity to work for two great governors in arizona. one of them gave me the opportunity to work in the child protective services, so where girls, unfortunately, had issues that had impacted their lives. and i met this young lady who was 15 years old, and she had lost her youth. and i said to her, if you could talk to other girls, what would it be? and what she said was tell girls to be girls. stop being in such a hurry to be an adult. enjoy life. you know, go out, create friends. create positive environments. don't let the social pressures bring you down, because you're going to have a mortgage one day. don't worry about that. you know? that's okay. you know, just be a girl, and

enjoy life. because that's what's really going to make you happy. >> what do you think are the two or three biggest barriers to girls becoming girl scouts? is it different in urban versus rural areas? >> you know, surprisingly, what a lot of people don't realize, the barrier is financial. and even though -- i will -- i'll put this out there. it's only $12 a year to be a girl scout. you know? that's two lattes. but where i came from in san antonio, texas, we had about 20,000 girl scouts, half of them were on scholarship. that meant that i fund raised every year to pay for half of their, you know -- the girls in girl scouts. so if -- again, that can be a barrier. but adults can obviously step in to help them. i think between rural and urban, i think it's just a different experience. i grew up in a rural community with one girl scout troop so we were very tight. we did everything together. in an urban community, they may

have more opportunities to, you know, field trips around different things. but i think what's great about girl scouts, it's like a leveling field. once you enter, whether, again, you're in san antonio, texas or arizona or here in the nation's capital, you're entering a national movement. so your experience will be the same, because it's the same girl scout leadership experience with 15 outcomes. >> can people contribute directly to pay a girl's $12 deuc dues, and how do they do that? >> absolutely. absolutely. we can start today. you know, our website is girlscouts.org. you can also go to our cause campaign site called togetherthere.org. you can contribute, there is a button. we would love for you to invest in the future of this country. but not only that, invest in the promise of a girl. they're going to do great things. >> the girl scout gold award is

compare able to the eagle scout rank, yet no one knows what it is. will that ever change? >> absolutely. a little history. so in 2016, the gold award will turn 100 years old. but what i think the issue is, is a branding issue. we have changed the name of the gold award. the gold award is the highest award a girl can achieve and earn in girl scouting. and so it excused to be called the golden eaglettes, first class scout, so over the decades, there are women out there that earned the highest award but it was named a different thing. so you're going to see in the next few months a ramp up around a campaign around the gold award. because we are going to show the country all the amazing women who have earned the highest, you know, award in girl scout, and we're going to honor them ask show them, again, what i would love to see, right, as with the

eagle scout award, that girls walk in with their resume, and it says gold award recipient, and they're hired on the spot. you know? wouldn't that be great? but it's an educational process, so we can tell people, again, that if a girl receives this award, she is only -- represents 5% of girls in all of girl scouting. so it is the pinnacle of their girl scout career, and we should support them. >> how do you think participating in girl scouts will help women achieve leadership positions in all sectors and levels of society? >> for girls in girl scouting, it's an opportunity to learn different things. whether it's about educational issues, whether it's about some of the societal issues in their community around homelessness issues, domestic violence, and through, again, community service, they're constantly giving back. they're constantly raising funds through their cookie program to fund other nonprofits. actually just solve community

issues. i think again with girl scouts and being involved, it can expand their horizons and help other people. >> speaking of the cookie program, how does that fit into today's modern girl scouts? >> well, you've got to meet some of our amazing cookie sellers. you know, they -- they're hard-core. they go out there, and they've got a goal. but what i love about the cookie program, first of auto, a lot of people don't know. it is the largest entrepreneur program for girls in the country. i meet women in the highest positions of corporate life, of government, and the first thing they'll tell me is, i learned my business skills making the pitch, selling my girl scout cookies, setting goals, tracking inventory, oh, and by the way, i volunteered my mom to be the do coc coc cocky cookie mom, and my dad had to help so the family was involved. what the cookie program does for girls, allows them to set a goal, as early as 5 years old.

our littlest leaders are called daisies, they're 5. and what they do is, they sell the cookies, and they get a percentage of the revenue. they get to decide what they're going to do with that of the a lot of them travel internationally to visit with other girls. again, a lot of them have -- either they're bronze, silver or gold award project to help other people. and then ultimately, it gives them the self-confidence. i mean, how many of you have done a gold call in business? how hard is it to knock on a door, you know. but what the girls have also told us, come on, eagle 1, bring it up. we want a technology side to the cookie business. and so -- because they're online, right? they have a technology background. so they want us to integrate our traditional cookie program, which is iconic, with the future of business. and the future of business has an e-commerce platform. so just a preview. you may see something in the future around some of these technology advances that girls are going to help design around their cookie program.

>> what percentage of girl scout cookie sales does a girl scout troop retain after deducting expenses? is. >> yeah. again, it depends on the sort of where you live. a little trivia question here. actually, there are two companies that make girl scout cookies in this country. so depending on where you live, you may buy from a particular company. thin mints are iconic, sold by both companies. in some states, samoa is called a samoa, some states it's called a caramel delight. but long story short, again, the money -- so it could be $3.50 per box, 80 cents goes directly to the cookie baker to pay for the product. and then a girl gets a percentage. and then the other piece goes to either the troop or it goes, again, to the local council to fund their camps, their programming during the year, after school, and it really provides support network. what's most important, and what i want to say to you today is,

thank you. thank you for supporting the girls in the cookie program. because it's funding their leadership development program. and all of the money they raise stays local. it does not come to headquarters. it is actually invested back into your local communities. so thank you for supporting them. >> i was a top cookie seller. with a mother that was a cookie mom and dad that hauled them around. so my family appreciates that. on the other hand, with the level of childhood obesity, does the girl scouts have any concern that the best identified girl scout program is cookies? >> well, what i always say is, everything in moderation. yes. you know, by i have to admit, our cookies, because they're only sold once a year, people get very excited. so, you know, i also like to tell the story, and i'll get to your piece about healthy living, very important. but, again, the cookie program, you know, the first girl scout troop started making girl scout cookies in 1917 in oklahoma. and that's how it started.

and over the years, actually, a lot of the cookie revenue is donated to the troops, meaning -- so a person can walk up to a cookie booth site and say i'm not going to buy cookies today, but i will donate those cookies back and our girls will ship these cookies overseas, and so one of the amazing pieces i get in the mail are letters and e-mails from men and women serving overseas who are hunkered down in a bunker in the middle of battle, and then the mail comes after two months of waiting, and is what they get is a care package. and that care package are girl scout cookies. and all of a sudden, they are transported back to being 12, sitting in their grandma's kitchen, eating girl scout cookies and milk. and for them, it's just a respite. it's a peace and a time where they connected ba being to this great country to say we're there to support you. so our girls are doing that, they're supporting military families. and then we think about healthy living, and all our girls know,

it's all about moderation, because, again, we're about the whole stiistic view of girls. we want to ensure that time whe are connected. it's all about moderation because, again, we are about the holistic view of girls. weapon want to make sure that they are living, active, that's a critical part of our work with girls. >> one girl scout here today said what she's enjoyed most about being a girl scout are the many opportunities and experiences that she has gained from that and is wondering if girl scouts from around the world are getting those same opportunities. >> yes. we are very honored, actually, to have girl scouts in 92 countries. because, again, the girls are living with their families and their family may be in the military or they may be living abroad working for an american company. so the girls are girl scouts. they are part of the girl scout family. they are working on the same

badges. what we are doing out of our national headquarter office, we are able to connect the girls working here domestically. we recently were in houston for our national convention last fall and saw girl scouts from all overcome together and it's a great site because, again, their girl scouts are part of the same family and they are having funning together. >> a lot of people ask me, come on, i want to help but i'm not a camper. but i get that. here's the thing. we have tons of volunteer opportunities. talk to the table of girls here today. i bet if you ask them, every single one of them has a different area of expertise. one of them may be a musician, a budding scientist, one into drama.

so we need adults to volunteer to support those paths. so if you're not a camper, we can -- based on your expertise, maybe if you're a judge -- and i've recently recruited a judge in southwest texas who said, come on, how can i be a girl scout? and i said, sir, this is how you're going to help me. first of all, first of all, you have the juvenile justice bench, don't you? he says, yes, i do. i said, if you volunteer with me, we're going to divert girls from your bench. did you ever have a girl scout before your juvenile justice bench? he said, no. you're right. how he volunteered, said, okay, here. he wrote a check to become a member that day. we pinned him and since then he has sponsored a series, a legal series, where he's working with local lawyers in his rural community and they are literally teaching girls about the law, the professions in the law from

being a prosecutor to a defense attorney to a judge. so, again, if you're over the age of 18, male or female and want to volumen tear to support these girls, we would find a way, even if you're not a camper. >> as children being more connected through devices like tablets and smartphones, how does an organization like the girl scouts adjust to not only keep pace but to attract new members and interest girls on those interactive team and building activities that makes it the developmental tool that it is? >> long question. well, again, speaking from a mother's perspective a. 10-year-old, who has every device manageable, i understand that connection. but i also understand, interestingly enough, that this is the first generation that has spent most of their time growing up inside. right? my mother would say, go play. we'd go off and be playing in

the cotton fields and run around. so it is this balance of making sure that they are technologically savvy, that they are interested in all of those things that come online and through computers so they can compete in schools and careers and also understanding the environment. i think, again, one of the benefits of being a girl scout is it is about the environment for us. for us green was cool way before it was cool for the rest of the country. we own green. ask juliet. we own green. they have been connected back to the environment. they are out there. they are taking them camping, horseback riding. we have camps where they can go and sort of understand about earth and where that stands and galaxies. we're constantly bringing them back into the nature but connecting it back to science, math, and technology so, again, in the context of their lives, girl scouting makes sense for

them. >> with your new project to get her there, how do you plan on not only getting younger girls inspired to work towards their futures but to make sure that they stay on the right path as they get older? >> for us it's very, very clear. and i will tell you, a lot of people are like, well, anna, that's an audacious goal. changing the leadership landscape of this country in one leadership of girls. i said, it's time. how can we wait for another generation to pass by without getting those opportunities? you know, when my mother was growing up, her opportunities were limited compared to mine but she did everything in her power to kick down those doors and barriers. it's her obligation as adults, again, to engage more girls and to make other people aware. so i'm hoping that all of you here, now that you know about "to get her there," you're going

to educate your colleagues at work. you're going to say, have you heard about this campaign? it's powered by girl scouts but everyone is involved. did you know that girls need mentors around science, math, and technology. our goal is to engage adults, one, becoming aware, advocating on behalf of girls, saying this is what girls need and then donating to donating to the cost. and organization coming together to support the leadership path. >> the girl scouts have a long history of being inclusive to less bee yechbs and gays and those that don't believe in god. the boy scouts is different in that respect. how has that changed what the girl scouts organization is today? >> our organization, girl scouts s. a very inclusive organization. it's always been.

you know, i was very fortunate. i recently was able to go to savannah, georgia. march 12, 2012, we turned 100 years old as a movement. i was there. i was sitting there and reflecting, as i was reading her personal diaries, the challenges of creating an organization around girls. imagine, this was before women had the right to vote. this is -- she created scandal throughout savannah because she had the girls marching through the streets and they were going to play basketball in her backyard. it was, again, how do we engage all girls? and during my visit there i actually got to meet with the leaders and it shows the archives, presents and letters supporting them for the support of the synagogue. some of the girls from that synagogue were actually members of the first troops of girl

scouts. so, again, you look across the country from the very beginning of girl scouting, our troops were diverse. all girls of all faiths, of all racial background, geographical background. i believe that is our true strength. because, again, we are creating opportunity for girls to know that we all matter. >> the u.s. conference of catholic bishops recently filed an official inquiry to investigate concerns that the girl scouts have problematic relationships with groups like planned parenthood. what is the group's relationship with planned parenthood? >> thank you for the opportunity to set the record straight. i think, you know, with social media and opportunities to post things, there are certain myths and misconceptions about our organization. we stand in a place where, again, we serve a broad demographic of girls in this

country, imagine, conference of bishop, to the answer questions thoo they've had and we look forward to that and we've been very clear, we do not take positions on some of these issues that we are being alleged to take positions on. because those issues are clearly within the family decision making. you know, again, we are leadership development program. that's what we've been founded to do. that's our mission to create girls of courage, constant character who make the world a better place. we clarify any questions that they may have, and, again, at the end of the day, to clarify any myths and misconceptions about our organization to set the record straight. >> so he