Over 700 Delegates Attend UCLA BruinMUN Conference

BruinMUN 2011 Best Large Delegation winners Laguna Hills High School

Over 700 high school delegates from schools through California and across the United States attended this weekend’s BruinMUN at the University of California – Los Angeles.

UCLA MUN Club President Ethan Scapellati began opening ceremonies with a speech encouraging delegates to continue with Model UN throughout high school and college. Opening Ceremonies also featured a keynote speech by Dr. Paul Kyo Jhin, CEO of the United Nations Information Technology Corps, who called upon delegates to be the world’s future leaders and challenged them to “ring the bell of world change.”

Dr. Paul Jhin, CEO of the United Nations Information Technology Corps, was the keynote speaker, challenging delegates to "ring the bell of world change"

BruinMUN featured almost all UN-related committees. The UN Security Council was open agenda and delegates initially voted to discuss Somalia, but the actions of the actual Arab League on the first day of the conference prompted the Security Council staff to release a series of crisis updates that directed delegates to discuss ongoing human rights violations in Syria. I was also pleasantly surprised to see a simulation of the International Civil Aviation Organization, which is an uncommon committee amongst MUN conferences but certainly a part of the UN system. The only non-UN-related committee was a historical US National Security Council simulation on Cuba and the Bay of Pigs.

Bosnia and Herzegovina (Gulf Coast High School) writes down talking points on a pink writing pad in the Security Council on the topic of Somalia

I had a chance to interview Ethan about the conference’s highlights, and he pointed out how the BruinMUN staff focused on implementing advisor feedback from last year’s conference. This included a heavier emphasis on rules of procedure training — staff were required to attend 6 five-hour training sessions in order to chair — and topic synopses, which were posted back in May and reviewed thoroughly for accuracy. The staff put a lot of effort into “making sure advisors were happy and constantly having their questions answered,” and from my conversations with other advisors, the BruinMUN staff’s sincerity and attention to detail were noticed and much appreciated.

The BruinMUN Secretariat (left to right): Director of External Affairs Emily Savastano, Secretary-General Vicki Nee, Director of Conference Services Andrew Odom, and MUN Club President Ethan Scapellati

Finally, at closing ceremonies, the Best Large Delegation award went to Laguna Hills High School, with Best Small Delegation going to Florida’s Gulf Coast High School, the Best California Delegation Award going to Huntington Beach High School, and the Bruin Award going to Chadwick High School.

BruinMUN 2011 Best Small Delegation winners Gulf Coast High School

Congratulations to delegates, advisors, and staff on a wonderful conference! And a special thank you to Ethan, Vicki, and Emily for having me visit!

Check out more pictures of the conference below!

Did you attend UCLA BruinMUN? What did you think of the conference? Let us know in the comments below!