Bermudian Yasser Baia was stunned when he was selected to represent the Island at the Global Young Leaders Conference.

Over the past week, he has met politicians and diplomats in preparation for a presentation at the United Nations in New York.

“The experience has been quite exciting,” he said. “I’ve met with people from all over, like Japan, China, South Africa and Australia. It’s been wonderful and I’ve learnt so much about the world.”

The 15-year-old Berkeley Institute student said the adventure began in January when he received a letter inviting him to take part in the international leadership development programme, which brings together accomplished students from across the US and 145 other countries.

“It said I was chosen by the George Mason University for my academic and leadership potential, and they really wanted me to come and try the GYLC experience,” he said. “I was overwhelmed with joy, to be honest.

“I was so excited because it was just an average day for me. I was in town with my mother, we were coming home not expecting anything, and there we have an option to represent Bermuda in this Global Young Leaders Conference.

“I talked to a couple of teachers and they said this was a tremendous, rare opportunity.

“That this University which is in the top 100 in the US, found me here on this little Island and asked me to represent Bermuda is kind of amazing.”

He was scheduled to leave the Island last Monday but a missed flight meant he arrived in Washington DC a day late.

“I missed out the opportunity to meet and greet people,” he said.

“When I arrived I was quickly rushed to the hotel to get changed into professional attire seconds before they took the group picture. By the end of that day I made tons of friends and I’m still making friends now. “To learn about people from different cultures and you know how they live life, the different views on things has definitely open my eyes. I quite enjoy it.

“We’ve also been able to meet with some very important people.

“We met up with a representative of the head of communications for the World Bank yesterday, along with a diplomat who worked in Afghanistan, Thailand and multiple other places, and he shared with us his experience.”

“It has been wonderful and I’ve learnt so much about the world.” Yasser said that when he was younger he had been a bit “mischievous”, getting into trouble, but primary school principal Gladstone Thompson helped to turn him around by introducing him to debate.

“He saw that even though I might not have been the brightest or most well rounded student, but there was a potential within me,” he said.

“He took me under his wing and I’ve been debating ever since.

“I was an unruly child. One of my teachers actually told me that the only future she saw in me was a trash truck driver. Now I’m a year level prefect, head of a chain reaction and heading off to the Global Young Leaders Conference.

“Whenever someone says you can’t do something, you should put your best foot forward and prove them wrong.

“If you just put your mind to it, you can do anything.”