Model United Nations has recently made a resurgence on ONU’s campus. The former club has been reborn after two years of delay due to COVID and other logistical difficulties. Model UN meets every Monday from 5:00-6:00 in Hill 200. During meetings, its members learn about and discuss world issues, often within an adapted version of the oral and written style of the real-life United Nations. Everyone is welcome, regardless of experience level. Covering much more than just political science, here’s why you should consider joining:
Not to open with something boring, the educational value of Model UN often goes underappreciated. This doesn’t apply only to the immediate information learned about international relations, government, economics, world cultures, and geography. Model UN also provides an even more useful educational value in the passive acquisition of essential life skills. These include critical thinking, debate, compromise, time management, research, and effective writing. While less direct in their application to Model UN, these are more important because they are universally valuable. In this way, your experience with Model UN will benefit your performance in other classes as well as society as a whole.
Even more subtle than any of these proficiencies, there is a simple value inherent in cultural awareness. In addition to making oneself a more well-rounded citizen, addressing global issues from multiple perspectives requires a level of open-mindedness which will benefit you in other areas of your life; sometimes, being assigned a position to defend helps us to identify our own biases. Constant introspection and re-evaluation is healthy, and Model UN provides a mechanism incentivising exactly that.
Apart from these reasons, you may feel compelled to try Model UN for the sake of the engagement; it’s important to be involved on campus, and this provides one more community you could connect yourself to. It’s also low-commitment, allowing room for you to engage to the level of your comfortability. Many of the in-club activities are structured in a way that they do not demand an exceptional level of skill in order to succeed, while at the same time providing opportunities for heightened engagement to those who want to challenge themselves.
Perhaps most importantly, Model UN is fun! It fosters an inclusive and kind community of students who bond over shared interests and lively discussion. Speaking from personal experience, Model UN has provided some of my best memories from high school and I can proudly report that the current executive board is committed to recreating the same experience for any interested student. If you’re interested and want to learn more, follow Model United Nations on the Northern Network, and stop by a meeting!