East Campus hosts first in-person MUN Conference in three years
Katherine Wallace, MUN Director (interim), East Campus
17 October 2022
Model United Nations is an academic simulation of the actual United Nations. In these model conferences, students take on the role of diplomats, known as “delegates”, representing different countries and engaging in constructive discussion about current world issues.
Over the weekend of 7–9 October 2022, UWCSEA East Campus hosted the first face-to-face, in-person Model United Nations (MUN) conference since the pandemic began. For some, it was the first live conference in three years; for many, it was the first time taking part in a conference in person! We hosted nearly 300 students who assumed roles as delegates, Chairs or Deputy Chairs in a range of United Nations committees where they debated different geopolitical issues in our world today.
The theme of our MUN conference was 'Back to the Future’ – an acknowledgement of the need to reflect on how life has changed as a result of the pandemic, but also a consideration of what work remains to be done as we look ahead to a future where, in the words of the United Nations, we strive for “peace, dignity and equality on a healthy planet.”
There were some excellent debates and lively discussions across committees from energetic, passionate, informed speakers who examined topics such as how to increase access to healthcare in conflict zones (WHO), how to support and involve more women in governance on a global level (UN Women) to considering the opportunities and challenges posed by China's growing global influence and international policies (NATO). We thank all of our delegates for the time and effort spent in the weeks leading up to the conference researching and preparing their assigned country's stance on these matters, in addition to the Chairs who published detailed research papers on these geopolitical issues for delegates to use.
We hosted students from:
- UWCSEA Dover
- Singapore American School (SAS)
- Tanglin Trust School (TTS)
- Overseas Family School (OFS)
- Stamford American International School (SAIS)
- International French School (IFS)
- St. Joseph's Institution International (SJII)
- The International School of Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) (ISHMC)
We also had the honour of welcoming our Keynote Speaker Professor Francesco Mancini (Vice Dean, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy; Columbia University), a world expert on international relations, peacekeeping and conflict resolution. Professor Mancini gave a superb address on the past history of the United Nations and the future importance of the organisation.
Many thanks to our outstanding MUN Student Executive for organising and managing the conference: Ananya Nayak, Aarush Yendamuri, Aayush Garg, Advaith Maganti, Smita Raman, Jason Hausenloy, Aryan Prasad, Kabir Kashyap, Niranjana Sriramagopalan, Maira Gupta and Jeenaev Shah. Many thanks also to our wonderful musicians and Mr. Eivind Lodemel from the Music department who played a marimba piece from Somalia to open our ceremony, followed later by a number by Hozier from our rock band.
Thanks also to Mr. Tim Pettine, Mr. Paul Sharry and Mr. Shaun Ryley for their assistance with the conference.