Shamar Morris Excels at Commonwealth Day Youth Summit
Bermuda Youth Parliament Commonwealth Day Youth Summit - Winning team - Team Political - Luis Correia, Marcus H Bean, Cameron Holdipp, Tariq Brown, Shamar Morris, Hamish McNiven, Kaelyn Castle, Brandon Sousa, (Photo by Mark Tatem).
March 15, 2012 — While two young people were representing Bermuda in London for Commonwealth Day, other young people from across the Island gathered in the conference room of the XLGroup on Bermudiana Road to debate, share ideas, and consider challenges and solutions confronting Commonwealth countries, including Bermuda. Organised and moderated by the officers of Youth Parliament Bermuda, the day-long Commonwealth Day Youth Summit explored the theme ‘connecting cultures’. The focus was on the challenges preventing cultures from connecting in various Commonwealth nations and potential solutions to overcoming these issues.
“They improvised; they worked together; they sought information and they created presentations,” explained Youth Parliament Premier Ryan Robinson Perinchief. Divided into groups of eight or nine, the representatives had to address issues such as social, political, economic, religious, or environmental factors that hinder cultural connections between Commonwealth countries, including Bermuda. They also considered how these challenges impact the achievement of the eight Millennium Development Goals aimed at reducing global poverty.
In the morning, students from The Berkeley Institute, Bermuda High School, CedarBridge Academy, Impact Mentoring Academy, Saltus Grammar School, and Somersfield Academy researched and worked on their presentations. After lunch, they debated the topic, “This House believes persons in this country should be made by law to vote,” and then presented their findings to the judges: Miss Bermuda Jana-lynn Outerbridge, former Youth Parliament Premier Samuel Bean, and Craytona Smith. The presentation by the team examining political issues related to illegal immigration in the Commonwealth—Luis Correia and Hamish McNiven (MSA), Markus Bean (CBA), Shamar Morris (Somersfield), Tariq Brown and Cameron Holdipp (Impact), and Michaela Ratteray (Saltus)—was deemed the best.
Prizes were awarded based on participation in the groups and presentation skills. The top eight presenters of the day were also recognised and received awards. “It was a good turnout,” Ryan observed. “Almost every school was represented, and it was amazing how the participants improvised.” He expressed satisfaction with the planning and execution of the event and mentioned hopes to organise a similar conference next year.
Originally published in The Royal Gazette