In ASM, Franziska Trautmann ’16 shared stories of her time at Andover, as well as the development of her recycling restoration company Glass Half Full.
Franziska Trautmann ’16 spoke about how Andover students could impact the environment around them in last Friday’s All-School Meeting, sharing stories of her own company’s first days working towards community change and climate action.
Founder and CEO of Glass Half Full, a company that recycles glass into sand for coastal restoration, Trautman highlighted how self-perceived success at Andover could be a misleading picture of their true potential and that all Andover students have the ability to go out and create change.
“The one thing I want students to remember is that we’ve gone to the same high school, and just like I have been able to build a business and have an impact in my region, any of them are able to do that. I want everyone to remember that you have the power to enact change… Andover is one of the richest places and learning experiences so as much as you can, say yes to all those things,” said Trautmann.
Trautmann’s words inspired many students who appreciated her transparency with her life as a former student at Andover. Phillips Academy Sustainability Coalition (PASC) Co-Coordinator Tina Zeng ’24 was particularly struck by the speaker’s journey from uncertainty in her education to success with her career as a young leader.
“She didn’t really know what her purpose or her passion was. In her conversations with me she also mentioned that she originally wasn’t super sure what she wanted to major in, since after science classes here she thought that science was not her thing. By the end of college, she was inducted into their Honors Society and now runs a business based in manufacturing sand, which is so unique because of how young she is,” said Zeng.
Similarly, Lisa de Boer ’26 enjoyed Trautmann’s approach to ASM, as she kept her speech concise to give more students the opportunity to ask meaningful questions. De Boer also appreciated the speaker’s ability to connect with students, being a young Andover alum.
“I like that she was young, and so pretty close to us. She was also an Andover student, so she understands our life which made it easier to connect. It was also very short but I think that was pretty effective because it gave people a chance to ask a lot of questions. This is probably one of the ASMs [that] we had the most questions afterwards, so that showed that people were listening and engaged,” said de Boer.
Brandon Fu ’25 pointed out how Trautmann’s relatability to Andover students helped connect to him personally. He talked about how Trautmann was able to change his perspective on getting perfect grades at Andover and being able to make a meaningful impact on society.
“She got fours, which I think got applause from the student body largely because I feel like there’s an expectation that the only ones that come out of the school that change the world are the ones with perfect grades and extracurriculars and those that get into a really good college, but Franziska is living proof that all of us can make a difference,” said Fu.
Fu also discussed the importance of Trautmann’s message in how everyone is part of the fight against climate change. He hopes that students will also play a part in reducing carbon emissions, and that everyone can make a difference.
“The little things matter. Despite the fact that a ton of the carbon emissions and all that stuff come from big fossil fuel companies, we are the ones that can still make a difference. And climate negligence, I think at this point is as bad as climate change denial. So it’s everyone’s part or everybody has to play their part in that role,” said Fu
Jacob Kaiser ’24 shared a similar opinion, describing the practicality of Trautmann’s ASM. He mentioned how Trautmann’s work could also be applied to areas outside of ecology and environmental work.
“One of the best things that I took away is the idea of finding two problems that kind of are related to one another, and from those two problems creating solutions… It could be something in business, it could be something in politics, it could be something in engineering. I think that that’s just a lesson that someone going into any walk of life should carry with them. Finding two problems that relate to each other and turning that into a solution,” said Kaiser.
Similarly, Sam Clare ’25 spoke on what Trautmann has done for her community and city. She talked about how the team effort Trautmann had with others was incredibly memorable, and voiced her appreciation for Trautmann’s ability to communicate with others.
“The most memorable part was hearing how she worked with her community, how she got funding from her committee, and then was able to talk to them and [ask] ‘Where do you want the fund? What can we do? How can we help?’ To work with both her university community but also the city that she’s from and in Louisiana, it was really amazing [that] she wasn’t doing it alone and everyone was helping out,” said Clare.
