Many people associate success with talents or achievements. Over the years, has your definition of “success” changed? What does it mean to you today?

My understanding of success has changed profoundly over the years. When I was growing up in rural Zimbabwe, success initially meant escaping poverty, receiving an education, and creating a different future for myself and my children. Education was my pathway to freedom, dignity, and self-determination. Today, I understand that personal achievement is only the beginning. Success is not measured simply by degrees, awards, recognition, or the doors that open for us. It is measured by the doors we open for others. For me, success means using everything I have learned, earned, and experienced to create opportunities for children and communities that have been denied them. It means building schools, providing scholarships, bringing clean water and educational resources to rural communities, and creating institutions that will continue serving long after I am gone. My vision is not simply to educate one child or transform one village. It is to build sustainable pathways through which generations of children—especially girls—can discover their potential, pursue their dreams, and become leaders in their own communities. Success, therefore, is not only about how far I have travelled. It is about how many people can travel farther because I helped clear the way.

You pursued a dream that many would have considered impossible. How did you stay true to yourself and your ambition when everything seemed to be telling you to give up?

I learned very early that circumstances may describe where you are, but they do not have the authority to determine who you can become. As a young girl growing up in rural Zimbabwe, I was married early, became a mother as a teenager, and lived in circumstances that made education appear almost impossible. Yet I carried a vision within me. My mother encouraged me to write down my dreams and bury them beneath the earth. That simple act gave my dreams a physical presence. They were no longer wishes; they became a promise I had made to myself. There were many moments when the journey felt overwhelming. I studied while raising children, endured hardship, and continued moving forward even when progress was painfully slow. I stayed true to my ambition by remembering that my dream was larger than my immediate circumstances. I also understood that pursuing an education was not an act of selfishness. It was an act of liberation that could change the future of my children and, eventually, my community. When the world tells us that our dreams are impossible, we must return to the quiet voice within us that knows why we began. Courage does not mean that fear or exhaustion disappears. It means taking the next step despite them. I did not accomplish everything at once. I moved forward one lesson, one examination, one opportunity, and one courageous decision at a time. The dream remained alive because I had many people who supported me and encouraged me never to abandon it.

What role do the people who believe in you play in your ability to succeed?

The people who believe in me saw possibilities that I was not yet able to see in myself. Their belief became a bridge between who I was and who I have become. My mother was one of the first people to affirm my dreams. Although she had very little materially, she gave me something priceless: permission to imagine a different life. My family, teachers, friends, mentors, donors, and partners have also helped sustain the vision at different stages of my journey. No meaningful success is achieved entirely alone. Behind every accomplishment is often a community of people who offered encouragement, opened a door, shared their knowledge, made a sacrifice, or simply said, “I see you. I believe in you.” That belief also carries a responsibility. When people invest their faith in us, we must honour it through integrity, perseverance, and service. Their support should not end with our own advancement; it should multiply through the lives of others. This is the spirit behind the work we are doing today. Every school we build, every student who receives a scholarship, and every rural community that gains access to water or educational resources represents a circle of belief. Someone believed in me, I learned to believe in myself, and now our work helps children believe in their own possibilities.

Have you always been keen on giving back? At what point does success stop being only about your own achievements and start becoming about helping others? What does giving back bring to your life today?

Giving back has always been deeply connected to my journey because I have never viewed my story as mine alone. I come from a community where the dreams of many girls were interrupted by poverty, early marriage, and limited access to education. I knew that if I found a way forward, I had a responsibility to return and help create that pathway for others. There was no single moment when success stopped being about me; rather, the meaning of my success expanded. As I achieved each educational milestone, I became increasingly aware that a degree hanging on my wall would have limited value if another girl remained unable to enter a classroom. When I first wrote down my dreams, they were personal dreams. That was when my mother said something so profound that it changed my entire perspective. She said, “Tererai, your dreams in life will have greater meaning when they are tied to your community.” That understanding led to the establishment of the Tererai Trent International Foundation and, later, the Tererai Trent International School. Our vision encompasses scholarships for both girls and boys, quality education, clean water, solar-powered infrastructure, libraries, science laboratories, and sustainable opportunities for rural communities. We are also working toward an endowment that can protect and carry this mission into future generations. Giving back brings purpose and wholeness to my life. It connects the girl I once was—the child who longed for an education—with the children whose dreams we are nurturing today. Each time I see a girl enter a classroom with confidence, a family regain hope, or a community begin to imagine a new future, I am reminded that transformation is possible. To me, giving back is not charity. It is justice, shared humanity, and Ubuntu: I am because we are. It is the understanding that our individual success becomes truly meaningful when it contributes to the collective good.