MUNNING 101: Why you should take part!
MUN is the abbreviation of Model United Nations. It’s a platform created for students from both schools and universities to participate and gain knowledge on how the UN works along with being aware of various global issues.
To put it in simple terms, MUN is just a model of the original United Nations. The students from various institutions come to the event as delegates of various nations to participate and debate. Finally, after the conference, you come out of the event as an enlightened person.
Role of MUNs in the Modern Day World
MUNs have evolved from a mere formal conference to a majestic event, generally hosted by prestigious colleges like fests, with a lot of marketing and planning. It is also an event to show an institution’s ability to manage events, organise, hospitality and a lot more.
MUN is the latest trend in India now, where MUN has turned differently from a mere event of participation to a passionate hobby for many.
Behind the scenes of a MUN
A MUN requires careful planning for fixing the dates, finding the venue, arranging the executive board, calling the delegates, finding the sponsors, conducting the event, giving prizes, providing accommodation, arranging food and lot more.
A MUN consists of four important sets of people:
- The Organising Committee- Responsible for the overall conduct of the event. Collecting Fees, accounting, arranging venue and refreshments is all their responsibility.
- The Executive Board or EB- They are supervisors of different committees, working for smooth conduct of debates, moderating delegate speeches and judging the “Delegate” in them.
- The Delegates- Being the most important part of a MUN, they make up the participants who speak, discuss and debate in the committee(s). They represent various countries.
- The International Press- A vibrant set of Journalists and photographers who observe and capture important proceedings during the conference.
Each conference will have multiple committees, which will have a fixed agenda to be debated upon. The most common committees are UNSC, UNGA DISEC, UNODC, UNHRC, UNGA SPECPOL, CCC, UNEP, G20, OIC etc.
Majority of North Indian MUNs also combine Youth Parliament Committees like Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, All Party Meet etc.
All speeches and discussions are strictly followed according to UNA-USA Rules of Procedure, which are very important and have to be followed by every individual.
MUNs have one noteworthy procedure, that is, by wearing western formals on the days of the conference. On the other hand, many of Indian MUNs do have an Ethnic day where delegates are given an option to wear an ethnic dress or not.
These also come with exciting prizes for the delegates like Best Delegate, Outstanding Delegate, Best Journalist, Best Photographer, Special Mention and Verbal Mention recognition. Also, the most prestigious The Best Delegation award that goes to the most actively participated and most presentive College or School delegation.
Perks of Joining a MUN
So is knowledge sharing the only motive behind MUNs?
Absolutely not, it is just a misconception that MUN is a big formal conference where people wearing suit and tie speak in the western English accent.MUN is just more than a conference, something that doesn’t get restricted to mere words. It’s a feeling that every student must experience.
MUN is not just about gaining knowledge, but improving your weak areas, developing interpersonal communication, and being able to speak confidently in public.
MUN caters totally a different experience for the MUNNERs, as we call them.
- Networking- An opportunity to meet new people, new students who are just in the same city that you have met never before. Talking with professional MUNNERs, people with a good idea of the subject, making new friends, having a lunch with members of the EB.
- Attending A Social Night- An informal session which is not a part of the official conference even though not all MUNs hold one, often kept at evening after committee ends to relax a bit, and enjoy some music, dance, delegate-dinner, DJ party and lot more.
- Being an effective speaker -Being a good public speaker, that too in English, is not everyone’s cup of tea. But this is an event where you will get enough and more opportunity to speak and improve your effective communication skills, without being judged upon. Also, we must remember that there is no one to judge you, it's you who will have to understand from your own mistakes and improve next time you come for a conference. Even Grammar is not a specific criterion.
- Attaining knowledge- Everything you need to know about an issue, you will get it without much effort, just by attending or sitting in the room. From the refugee crisis to denuclearisation, from territorial disputes to climate change; every issue is covered.
- Useful Certificates and attractive prizes- These certificates are an indication that you are an effective communicator and it shows your experience in presenting what you know effectively. The Best Delegate for the conference does get some attractive prizes which will be one of the most priceless things to receive in one’s career.
- Leadership Skills- Being a Secretary-General or EB is not an easy task. You will have to lead a set of people towards a common goal. The same pressure is on the heads of eastern and western blocs as well.
- Ideal Venue for people who are aspiring for Civil Services and Law- Especially IFS and IAS, higher studies, PhD etc.
- Placements- Placement or an interview is where you can show off your soft skills. You can explain to them about MUN, your role as the organiser, your debating skills, your writing skills, your lobbying skills etc. Also, these certificates can shine your LinkedIn profile.
MUNs conducted in collaboration with UYC have international recognition and it will surely sparkle your resume.
MUNNING in India
Munning in India is now a fashion. A gathering where school students, commerce, science, engineering, arts and medical students come together and share the same floor for totally different topics, which is much different from their own academic subjects.
Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Bhubaneswar are the top MUN circuits in India as of now. Kerala is just an emerging circuit. Not surprising, because people in Kerala haven’t heard of it before and also for students to come up for an event, where the medium of communication is English is not an easy task.
Top University MUNs in India are IITB, IIT-M, IITD, IIT Bhubaneswar, KIIT Bhubaneshwar, VIT Chennai, SRM Chennai, NIT Warangal, RU Cuttack, Symbiosis Pune, NIT Rourkela, TISS and many more. The List is pretty endless with all major IITs, NITs and Central and state Universities competing with each other to be on the top spot.
In Kerala, The top ones are UNIAC-18, IIST Trivandrum and NIT Calicut MUN. Others are MACE MUN, CUSAT MUN, GECB MUN, NUALS MUN and MEC MUN. UNIAC 2018 at TKM, Kollam saw national and international delegates coming together for first time in an event conducted by UNAI in India. Top School MUNs in India is RMUN and KERMUN hosted by Rajagiri School and St Thomas School respectively.
MEC MUN is conducted by Govt Model Engineering College, Kochi. Its saw over 110 delegates from various schools and colleges from South India, come together for a fun-filled two days. MEC MUN is coming bigger and better. MEC now has a MUN Society and has a blog on Medium named MUNner’s Daily.
Harvard MUN and Oak MUN are one of the Best School MUNs to participate in India. Schools like Bhavans, Choice, and Rajagiri also conduct their MUNs exclusively for school students.
E-MUN
With lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic, we have a lot of MUN societies and veteran MUNners coming up with the idea of Online or Virtual MUNs.
Students’ experiences with MUN
The first MUN of each and every person is a unique and tough experience. The main issue is speaking in front of a crowd and not being clear about the subject of debate.
“ My first MUN experience was difficulty in speaking in front of the crowd on a sub-topic that I didn’t have an idea on. I went there without any prior preparation. Despite all that, the amount of fun I had and experience I gained outweighed the fear. I realized that I should try to give my best shot in every subsequent MUN I participate in here on”- Aswin Shanil, Second Year, MEC
Still, giving the maximum number of speeches and answering a couple of questions is indeed a great way to start your MUN career.
“MEC MUN 2017 was my first MUN, I was able to learn a lot from the beginner friendly committees and took some great memories back with me. A superb way to be introduced into the world of MUNing”- Rishi Madhav, Third year, CET
The support you get from experts and the joy you will experience will surely make you energized to attend your next MUN, and make you totally a different person, with a thirst to attend more conferences and be like the Secretary-General or even your own EB.
Register here:- http://mecmun.excelmec.org/
Researching is where many of the delegates find it difficult to handle; even experienced munners feel the same. Having a good knowledge of the Agenda is as important as participating in the discussion. The Background guide will be provided by the EB, but the research just begins with it and is not just restricted to it.
It is great pleasure to check out UN sites, Thomson Reuters and Al Jazeera (These two names will be totally unheard by many) for articles and facts.
Proceedings of a committee (Sample Scenario)
Committee begins with attendance and you call it, Roll Call. We are given the scenario of the Cuban Missile Crisis(1962). As per the crisis, the US and its Allies are united in saying that missiles deployed in Italy and Turkey are a deterrence to Soviet missile supply to Cuba.
(The Scenario was written below never happened in history, just added here to educate readers on the topic)
Cuba says that it will come to negotiations only if the US moves its missiles away from these nations.
The Delegate of Italy and Turkey were forced to take a step, surrendering to Cuban Pressure and to the wishes of the Communist bloc. The news comes as Fidel Castro, the President of Cuba, dies in an air raid.
The Fingers were raised against the United States raised by Cuban Ambassador. Without many ideas, the delegate of the US was also under pressure with NATO to make a Peace Deal with Cuba. Now, in the name of Peace Deal, Cuba successfully was able to stage the Death of Castro(which never happened) and lobby the US bloc in the name of Sympathy.
Communist Nations have again shown that they can even beat The United States in the art of Diplomacy even though, much of delegates in the room were US allies.
This the magic a MUN can create. The room has a lot of positive energy to make the impossible, possible. The Delegates are given the freedom to represent the nations and also drive the committees in the way they wish to. Scenarios are not always simple. Debating on a platform is surely enough to help think out of the box.
Conclusion
MUN, just like any other event, is full of fun and enjoyment along with thought-provoking debates and discussions.
The conference has a lot of benefits, much more than just a formal gathering. It focuses to enhance our horizon beyond nationalism, to think and act globally and shed our protectionist ideas.
MUN has its own expenditure, and thus you have to pay for attending the conference. But, the experience you get is worth the money you spend.
I wish to see more participants coming forward into this and taking this forward. My words especially are for the students of Kerala, who are shy to come out of their shells for an event like this.
So, make it for a MUN next time, be a delegate and raise your placards high!
After all, MUN is FUN.
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