First think, second believe, third dream. And finally, dare!

Like so many of the younger generation Expat Girl wants to make a difference. She believes in actively protecting the environment and helping those less fortunate. It started by wishing Father Christmas would bring her a differentiated garbage can. Next she ask us to donate money to a charity instead of buying her a birthday present. She wasn't even a teenager at that stage.

As a young adolescent she is ever more conscious about what goes on around her and is adamant to be part of change. She has endless energy and can be very convincing in her arguments!

Last year's school project involved a 4 month research into a field of her choice. The outcome was to be finished product.

Living in the world's leading tourist capital she focussed on the waste caused by 250 million plastic water bottles sold annually to the city's 85 million visitors. Her vision of sustainable tourism was that each tourist would be given a reusable water bottle at his/her arrival at the airport with a QR code printed onto it allowing to locate the city's 1200 public water fountains for refill.

She managed to get a renowned Swiss manufacture of recyclable bottles to back her project and submitted an eco-friendly water bottle prototype to the city of Paris in a competition of participatory budgeting. "Le budget participatif de Paris" allows its citizens to identify, discuss, and prioritize public spending projects, and gives them the power to make real decisions about how 5% of the city's budget is spent.

Expat Girl managed to get past the first round with top votes thanks to a great deal of rallying and neighbourhood support.

Yesterday the verdict came through that her project was rejected by the city of Paris with the following statement: The "Eau de Paris" project generates too much operating expenses. Indeed, the distribution of bottles to tourists generates significant operating costs in terms of human resources. However, the participatory budget of Paris is dedicated specifically to the financing of investment projects having a lasting impact on the heritage of the community.

Although disappointed about the decision of the Ville de Paris, Expat Girl will continue to support and work on the causes she strongly believes in. Never the one to give up, her actions will continue protecting the environment and her contribution towards improving sustainability in all parts of the globe will persevere.

She is now preparing to help build a boarding house for a school in Namibia this summer. You go girl! As Eleanor Roosevelt once said: "The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."