By Olivia Hicks
Do you want to develop your critical thinking and public speaking skills? Consider CISMUN! Although sign-ups are closed now, maybe this article will convince you to join in the following school year.
What is Model United Nations?
It is a simulation of a United Nations conference, where students can act as delegates of a country. They work both as an individual and as a group to help develop ideas to solve global issues. For example, a student may be a delegate for the United States, and attempt to find a solution for food insecurity from the perspective of their respective country. These problems can be anything from climate change to cyber security.
There have not been any topics decided yet, but there have been some committees established:
- Human Rights Campaign
- World Health Organisation
- Security Council
- Historical Community Council
- Disarmament and International Security Committee
- Special Political and Decolonization Committee
- Association of Southeast Asian Nations
- International Criminal Court
Procedure
A critical aspect of MUN is the procedure, called THIMUN. The procedure goes as follows:
10-20 delegates debate about three real-world issues. These can be from past or current events. Each delegate takes turns debating and talking about resolutions. Sessions are dedicated to solving and agreeing on each resolution, and there, the main submitter adds a resolution and explains why it should happen. The other delegates then debate and give their supporting or opposing views. Delegates may also make amendments to the resolution. There has to be a vote to make this amendment, but it can happen. After this, the person who suggested this resolution then decides whether the resolution gets passed or not. This might take up to 3 hours to complete.
Another part is SASMUN conference, held at the Singapore American School.
Brief Overview of Roles
- Press: Article writers or photographers of the debates
- Admin: Set up the council room and make resolutions between debaters
- Delegate: They are at the forefront of the debate and speak from the perspective of their assigned country.
- Chair: Run the debate
MUN can help develop many different skills such as public speaking skills. In addition, it helps develop collaboration and communication skills, given that you have to work with others with similar ideas to establish a final conclusion on how to solve the global problem. Lastly, it’s a good SA/CAS opportunity, as every conference you participate in can be included in your portfolio.
Thank you to Luka, who is a part of the MUN leadership team, for helping me with this article. If you have any questions, please contact [email protected]