TIME has been choosing different young people every year as the next generation leaders. These young people hail from different countries and have different backgrounds and interests. However, there's one thing common about them that got them on the list: the conviction to express their individuality and create positive changes in their communities.
This year's list includes the U.S. gymnast Simone Biles, who made waves during the last Olympic games. Aside from his gymnastic prowess, Biles caught the attention of many for beating the odds that could make anyone a candidate for failure. Born to a drug addicted mother, her grandparents adopted her together with her sisters. Under her grandparents' care, she became a confident young lady who took the world of gymnastics by storm.
What's more remarkable with her is her attitude towards the sport. More than her remarkable record, Biles hopes to influence fellow and future gymnasts to have fun without compromising excellence.
Aside from Biles, another young person made it to the list. Ruben Doblas Gundersen, otherwise known to his fans as "El Rubius," a popular Spanish YouTuber with more than 20.9 million followers on YouTube. He started making videos at the age of 16 for fun but when one of his game videos racked 600,000 hits within a week, that sealed his fate.
Doblas knows that his popularity has made him a role model, especially to young male kids. Thus, he made a vow to keep a clean image online and to promote good online behavior and ethics. One of his advocacy is to give more protection for people against cyberbullying.
Other people who have made it on the list include Lotfullah Najafizada, a news director from Afghanistan; Heloise Letissier, a singer from France; Saoirse Ronan, an Irish actress; Feng Zhang, a biomedical engineer from China and many more.
