Bermuda High School for Girls student Chelsea Smith has come to a decision: she’s headed for Europe this summer, to represent BHS and Bermuda at the Global Young Leaders Conference.“It will be a chance to meet people from all over the world,” the 16-year-old year 11 student said. “I’m still learning what it has to offer.”Dividing ten days between Vienna, Budapest and Prague also promises a welcome break from her a busy schedule of activities.Chelsea isn’t the only high-achieving young Bermudian to have received a conference invitation: a number of locals have been contacted by its organisers, the US Congressional Youth Council. The group seeks out talented students of 15 to 18 years from all over the world, with the aim of developing their leadership and diplomatic skills in an international setting. Only a limited number attend.In Chelsea’s case, her distinguishing academic interest is science, which led her to volunteer at age 13 in King Edward VII Memorial Hospital’s Candy Striper programme.“I figured because of my school interests that Candy Striping would be good to get involved in, but I had no idea I’d enjoy it as much as I did,” she said. “I get sent all over the hospital, from the Intensive Care Unit to dialysis to administration, so I get to see a little of everything that’s going on there.”The BHS house leader and prefect volunteers at the hospital every other weekend, having been advanced a level after Candy Striping every day over the summer.She’s also received effort awards at her school, performing highly in her January mock exams ahead of this June IGCSEs and getting accepted into International Baccalaureate’s honours programme.Medicine is a likely field of future studies. “I want to keep my options open. There are a lot of different medical fields to choose from. I’m doing the International Baccalaureate Diploma next year, but in terms of colleges I’m still at the stage of looking at websites for different UK colleges. I’d really like to work in healthcare, so Candy Striping helps me learn more about what area interests me the most.”To earn extra money, Chelsea does office work at Arch Reinsurance; she also runs her own Saturday night babysitting service. A veteran of the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute’s summer camps, where she helped out as a camp counsellor last summer, working with children comes easily; the Paget teenager is also the oldest of three her siblings are 12-year-old Connor and 11-year-old Chloe.She enjoys dance, having started again this year at the In Motion school of dance. “I was dancing every single day after school until I had a fall and tore a couple of ligaments,” Chelsea said. “I was doing work study at In Motion and really enjoying it. I’ve been taking it a little easy.”Now, with summer fast approaching, the July 3 to 12 Global Young Leaders Conference beckons. Subjects include global leadership, international organisations, historic culture, global diplomacy plus a little extra time for sightseeing in the three classical European cities.“We put a lot of thought into sending Chelsea to this,” said her father, Edmund, a chef at Ascot’s Restaurant. “We think it’s a great broadening experience for her to meet so many different kids from different countries. I’ve spoken to other people whose children have gone in previous years. They learn a lot about public speaking and come back from it with a lot of confidence, so we’re proud for her to have the opportunity.”lUseful weblinks: www.cylc.org, www.ibo.org