Model UN club members pose for their yearbook photo. Photo Courtesy of Hadley Woods and Addison Parker, Watauga Yearbook
From women’s rights to a fictional Julia Robert’s-led attack on Ohio, Model United Nations keeps members on their toes. The Watauga branch of the club held a “mock conference” on Saturday, February 4 at the high school.
Conferences consist of students searching for solutions to global conflicts, each representing different member countries of the United Nations. Multiple schools usually gather in a university setting to form multiple committees. While topics tend to be specific, Watauga’s Model UN student leadership team decided to focus on the open ended topic of “Women’s Rights” at the mock conference, allowing students to feel confident enough about the topic to focus on perfecting parliamentary procedure.
After the session on women’s rights, the club engaged in a spontaneous conference on a fun topic, a practice known at conferences as holding a “Fun MUN.” Students debated about a fictional war between regions of the United States, united by leaders such as Tom Cruise, Brigham Young, and a vampire version of Ron DeSantis.
Watauga’s Model UN Club has attended one conference during the 2022-23 school year at Appalachian State. The club is planning to travel to at least one more this year because mock conferences are essential to success. To win awards at conferences, delegates must be prepared to speak in their committee and confident about participating.
“In Model UN, much of what we do relies upon interaction with others in a competitive setting, so by simulating this environment with a mock conference, our club members have the opportunity to practice for our real conferences,” said club Co-President Sulli McAulay.
Additionally, any stresses that can be reduced at actual conferences only help students enjoy themselves. Club Advisor, Carrie Boone, said, “We have a young club this year and it gives them the practice and confidence they need to be successful at the ‘Big Show.’”
The club benefits students in countless ways, whether it be public speaking, negotiation, or research skills. According to a freshman member Lila Page, Model UN is “good for getting to know more people” and is enjoyable because “you get to fight with people.”
“I think that students should join Model UN because it teaches you public speaking, leadership, community, and people-skills that are helpful to have in life,” added another member, Brecken Sautoff. “It's also a great chance to meet new people and learn more about the world!”
Students agree that participating in the club helps advance global perspective as they learn about geography and international policy.
“One thing that MUN has really helped me with is being more informed on global issues. Because our conferences demand that we are informed on our topics, I'm incentivized to research topics I'd previously known little about. It has also made me more empathetic,” said McAulay. “It's very easy for us as Americans to only view things from our perspective, but in MUN I'm often assigned a different nation, so I have to think from their perspective too, which definitely expands upon my worldview.”
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