By J1 Reporter Abby McGuire

Model United Nations is a new club at Marian. It was created for students who have an interest in global politics and who plan to attend Model United Nations in Chicago. However, all students are welcome to Model U.N-even if they aren’t going to the conference. In Model U.N, students are assigned to be a representative of a certain country and express their countries views in a congress style debate. 

On Thursday, Nov. 2, Marian hosted its first model United Nations conference. Creighton Prep’s Model U.N club was invited to participate. Senior Grace Sparwasser was grateful for the opportunity, “I think that the model u.n club with Creighton Prep was a lot of fun and a great opportunity to interact with guys our age in an educational setting.”

The topic of Marian’s first conference was censorship, free speech, and the protection of journalists. Students were assigned to be delegates of various countries from across the globe. This caused students to face the challenge of defending countries that went against the American ideals many students have believed since childhood. Model U.N. gives students the opportunity to develop empathy for stigmatized nations and gain a larger perspective on global issues. 

Senior Martha Engel explains why Model UN is important, “I really think Model UN is such an important thing to learn about and get a better sense of because the actual UN is so important and does so much humanitarian work around the world. It’s not something you’d learn about in class, but the issues that the UN faces and how it works is so interesting.” Participation in Model UN helps students learn what kind of careers they might want to go into one day. 

  A basic conference looks like this: All of the delegates sit in alphabetical order based on their country name. They then are given the opportunity to say their opening speeches. Opening speeches can only be a minute wrong and they are used to introduce other countries to their position on the given topic. 

After the opening speeches, delegates make the decision to move to a moderated or unmoderated caucus. During the moderated caucus, the delegates are given an opportunity to do a structured debate with each other and give speeches based on each other’s points. An unmoderated caucus is mostly the same, but it is not as structured and is a bit messy. 

Delegates then have the opportunity to disperse and create blocs with other delegates. Blocs are groups of delegates that have the same stance on a given issue, and they form resolutions to the given issue. These resolutions are then debated. At the end of the conference, delegates vote on the various resolutions created, and a solution is made based on the number of votes for each resolution. 

Creating blocs and working towards a solution helps students to strengthen their collaboration and communication skills. It also leads to new friendships and exposure to different perspectives on issues that may not have been considered before. Senior Mia Ramirez enjoys learning about different points of view, “I think it is a great way to get other perspectives, and stand points from non familiar faces that will prepare us more for the actual conference in February.” This creates an environment where students work together for change and form new friendships. 

Model U.N is moderated by Dr. Renee McGill and Mrs. Katie Salzman. The club is still accepting new members, so if you are interested, shoot them an email.