There was little time for silence, or apathy, this weekend at the U of A when 480 High School Students from Northern Alberta gathered at the 2012 High School Model United Nations Conference. Students spent their Thursday, Friday and Saturday discussing possible “resolutions” to many contemporary global issues.
The U of A High School Model United Nations Conference (HSMUN) is an annual event run by U of A and hosted at the University’s North Campus. Each high school student attending the conference has the opportunity to take on the role of a UN delegate, representing a country or non-governmental organization. Seven multilateral committees worked individually to draft resolutions to various international issues before presenting them at a plenary session on Saturday afternoon.
The conference was run entirely by student volunteers, the majority of who attend the U of A. After being recruited in early September, some of these volunteers spent their time researching and blogging on the topics of debate. Others were involved with writing stories for an HSMUN newspaper that is published during the conference, or creating a fake “international crisis” that the high school delegates needed to address during their three days at HSMUN. All of the volunteers were present at the conference itself in order to help facilitate the debate.
HSMUN was founded in 2002 Andy Knight, chair of the Department of Political Science. The organization’s mission is to enlighten high school students about the complexities of international relations while encouraging them to become active participants in policy discussions internationally and locally. This year marked the beginning of a three-year collaboration between HSMUN and the Rotary Club of Edmonton Riverview. The generous support of this club has allowed HSMUN to greatly increase the size and reach of the conference.
For information regarding the HSMUN 2012 conference, please contact Nolan Sawatzky at 780.964.1010 780.964.1010.
There was little time for silence, or apathy, this weekend at the U of A when 480 High School Students from Northern Alberta gathered at the 2012 High School Model United Nations Conference. Students spent their Thursday, Friday and Saturday discussing possible “resolutions” to many contemporary global issues.
The U of A High School Model United Nations Conference (HSMUN) is an annual event run by U of A and hosted at the University’s North Campus. Each high school student attending the conference has the opportunity to take on the role of a UN delegate, representing a country or non-governmental organization. Seven multilateral committees worked individually to draft resolutions to various international issues before presenting them at a plenary session on Saturday afternoon.
“It’s an excellent opportunity for high school students to learn about some of the really hot button issues that are affecting our world,” said conference organizer Nolan Sawatzky. “Not only do they get to learn about a lot of topics from a multitude of perspectives, they get a chance to see what things are like at the U of A and can ask our volunteers about what it is like to go to school here.”
The theme of this year’s conference was the Lester B. Pearson quote, “The only failures are those who fail to try.” The delegates were encouraged to try and stay involved not only in the weekend debate, but also in the world around them. Guest speaker Ilona Dougherty, executive director of Apathy is Boring--an organization that educates Canadian youth about democracy--addressed the students at a banquet on Friday night. The focus of her address was ways that students could get involved in political discussion here in Canada.
The conference was run entirely by student volunteers, the majority of who attend the U of A. After being recruited in early September, some of these volunteers spent their time researching and blogging on the topics of debate. Others were involved with writing stories for an HSMUN newspaper that is published during the conference, or creating a fake “international crisis” that the high school delegates needed to address during their three days at HSMUN. All of the volunteers were present at the conference itself in order to help facilitate the debate.
HSMUN was founded in 2002 Andy Knight, chair of the Department of Political Science. The organization’s mission is to enlighten high school students about the complexities of international relations while encouraging them to become active participants in policy discussions internationally and locally. This year marked the beginning of a three-year collaboration between HSMUN and the Rotary Club of Edmonton Riverview. The generous support of this club has allowed HSMUN to greatly increase the size and reach of the conference.
For information regarding the HSMUN 2012 conference, please contact Nolan Sawatzky at 780.964.1010 780.964.1010.