Model UN society represents StFX at Harvard conference
February 25, 2010 2:00 PM
The StFX Model United Nations team recently returned from Boston after participating in the 56th session of the Harvard National Model United Nations from February 11 to 14.
This year’s team consisted of President Issam Rizvi, Ryan Blood, Maya Breau, Hilary Feltham, Gabrielle Fiore, Michael Greguol, Brigitte Hartt, Philip Jones, Christine Krause, Rory MacDonald, Natalie MacLean, Christopher Millar, Brendan Riley, Ellen Wiken, and faculty advisor Dr Steve Holloway, a political science professor.
The conference was a simulation of the workings of the real United Nations. Participants take on the role of an assigned country and engage in debate and discussion about international issues.
Teams are broken up into different committees, and students act as representatives of their country in these areas. For example, the StFX delegation had one to two members in each committee discussing a single specific topic like the world financial crisis or the militarization of the Arctic.
“The idea is that over the course of a couple of days [representatives] try to have a debate and try to draft, just as the real UN does, a resolution making certain recommendations about what should be done about that particular resolution and problem area,” explains Holloway, who has been involved with the society since 1986 and often acts as the faculty advisor.
This year, the StFX Model UN team was assigned as Egypt.
Holloway gave the team a general lecture on Egypt’s policies and issues, but beyond that, the students had to research and craft a policy position which outlined how their country would respond to each committee issue.
“What you have to do as a delegate is research your country’s perspective and your country’s policies regarding this issue. So, for instance, [a couple of years ago] we were Israel. I was on the disarmament committee and the whole topic that was being debated was should Iran be allowed to have a nuclear program,” explains Issam Rizvi, president of this year’s Model UN team. “It doesn’t matter what I think, the fact is that I would have to argue on Israel’s behalf.”
As the StFX team researched Egypt’s stance on global issues, they also spent that time fundraising money to get to Boston. They ran two coat checks, held a raffle at Sobeys, sold Subway cards, and asked faculty and administration for donations.
They were able to raise enough money to cover registration fees, hotel accommodations, and have a little bit of spending money for food. The cost of airfare had to be covered out of the students’ pockets.
The conference took place at the Park Plaza hotel in downtown Boston. One Model UN session was held on Thursday, with four more being held on Friday and Saturday.
Each session lasts about three hours and delegates spend that time debating issues, crafting resolutions and convincing other countries to support their cause.
“The first day of sessions is when the countries discuss the topic at hand. The second day of sessions is when people come up with resolutions. These are basically proposals about how to fix the issue. The more countries you have supporting [your resolution] the more influence you will generally have. The third day of sessions is when these resolutions get voted in or voted out,” says Rizvi.
Some universities offer Model UN as a credited course. StFX has it as an extracurricular activity. Holloway believes that this can cause some delegates to monopolize the discussion.
“They’ve got a big incentive to try and do a lot and kind of show off for their faculty advisor because he or she is going to give them a mark for it.”
Rizvi believes that this encouraged StFX participants to be more relaxed while at the conference. “There wasn’t as much pressure on us to pass resolutions as there was on the other [participants]. It gave us a lot of leeway to have a good time while we were in Boston. We were enjoying it as much as we could.”
The conference also hosted social events every night for the students, from reserving a club strictly for Model UN delegates, to the Harvard Jazz band playing a live show over cocktails, and even hosting a dance at the hotel.
StFX students were also able to explore and discover Boston during breaks between sessions. This is the only conference the StFX Model UN team attends because other conferences take place during exams or too early in the school year.
“I think it was a great trip and a big success. I really want to thank everyone who participated, and I’m really proud of [how we did]. And Dr. Holloway, we really couldn’t have done it without him,” adds Rizvi.
