Coding is the language of the future. It’s the first step to launching that innovative app or program that will change the world, but as Karlie Kloss discovered, not enough women speak it. In an effort to create a level playing field, she launched Kode With Klossy, an organization that arms women with the tools they need to enter the tech world. What started as a free summer coding camp became a powerful network uniting women in tech. Now it awards career scholarships to young female developers and touts itself as a national community. Kode With Klossy’s success proves what we’ve known all along: When women support each other, incredible things can happen. In a candid conversation with Kode With Klossy camper Torie Pfau, 18, Karlie shares her thoughts on coding, succeeding in a male-dominated field, and why it’s important to get into your panic zone.

TORIE PFAU: Why did you want to learn how to code?

KARLIE KLOSS: I wanted to understand the secret language of code and how things worked. Whether it’s social media, apps, software, or hardware, to understand how technology built it is fascinating. I also wanted to know if this was something that I could learn. I started Kode With Klossy because as my mind opened to understanding how mighty coding is, I wanted to share that with you.

TP: I remember how nervous I was on my first day of Kode With Klossy but also how supportive and communal the environment was. It’s so exciting and empowering that while I entered feeling nervous, I left feeling endlessly inspired. How did you feel at your first coding class, and how important was building a community like that?

KK: The community component of Kode With Klossy is one of the most powerful parts of the whole experience. That aspect was something that I never realized was going to be a part of what we were building: this idea of wanting to create opportunities for other girls to learn how to code and understand the capability of tech and how it can open doors for anyone. It becomes this network, this family, this community of like-minded, passionate, determined young women, and that is something I am so inspired by.

TP: It’s like we build programs, but we also build friendships that hopefully last even longer. There’s real magic in a room where girls are constantly aiding and investing in each other. How important is women backing one another to you, and how do you see it influencing the future for women in this male-dominated field?

KK: It’s such an important and necessary thing. I feel really lucky that I’ve had the guidance of my sisters, my mom, the strong women in my family my whole life. But also throughout my career, I’ve had the support of friends, whether they’re my peers or mentors, women older than me who have been incredible friends and advocates. They’ve really shaped who I’ve become. It’s important to share that kind of friendship and mentorship. It’s like this amazing gift that keeps on giving, because when you are that friend or mentor to somebody else, that is a gift that they then want to share. Do you feel like there was a lot of help in the classroom?

TP: One hundred percent, in the classroom and then outside. We talk a lot about the panic zone and the learning zone in Kode With Klossy, the learning zone being the ring directly outside your comfort zone that’s challenging but still manageable, and the panic zone being miles out, where you’re panicking but pushing yourself beyond your wildest dreams. When do you find yourself in those zones, either professionally or in the classroom, and what have you learned from them?