This recap was provided by John Benducci, Chargé d’Affaires of BarMUN VII.
Opening the 2014-2015 collegiate season of Model United Nations with a bang, the 7th Annual Boston Area Model United Nations Conference (BarMUN VII) was held from October 2nd-5th at the Hyatt Regency Cambridge, across from the campus of Boston University. With a theme this year of War & Peace, each of BarMUN’s 13 committees challenged delegates to change the course of both history and the present to juggle the status of security worldwide. BarMUN’s committees were split amongst two tracks: the Modern Track and Historical (1977) Track – with each committee allowed to integrate, acting as a 6-7 way joint crisis!
Committees in the historical track were centered in the Eastern Hemisphere during the start of the Cold War era. No major Western powers were highlighted to allow delegates to not face interference from the United States and other players that have noticeably shaped the course of history. During BarMUN, Indira Gandhi was released from prison and rose to power, Bangladesh learned to sustain itself as a new state free from Pakistan, the Sovet Ministrov paved a road for the USSR to exist into the present, and the SAVAK, Iranian Secret Police, proved that the Shah is here to stay.
Members of the Cabinet of Indira Gandhi express their enthusiasm for all things India.
In the Modern Track, BarMUN introduced its first Ad-Hoc Committee of the Secretary General – simulating the controversial, power-hungry Al-Qaida Shura Council. Delegates were challenged to think in a way that was outside of their traditional comfort zone, interacting with other committees in ways they may have never though they could in Model UN. On the modern track, conference saw constant interaction between the Commissioners of the European Union & the Meeting of the Turkish Ministers, separation movements in Indonesia, and new heights reached by major technology companies like Honeywell International & CrowdStrike.
On Day 1, BarMUN welcomed esteemed speaker Dr. Nazli Choucri, professor of Political Science at MIT and author of various articles and texts centered around the status of cyber security and technology in diplomacy. Opening ceremonies truly set the tone for a great weekend of debate that held its first session later that evening.
On Day 2, delegates made headway in passing crucial directives during Sessions 2 and 3. Delegates also began to integrate amongst their tracks, as Indira Gandhi found refuge in Bangladesh and the Turkish Ministers bombarded the European Union with their demands.
Day 3 saw delegates’ crisis plans come to fruition before the BarMUN boat party set sail! Despite the rain, delegates danced the night away and sailed around the famous Boston Harbor. It was truly a night to remember that marked the beginning of the unfortunate end to a great weekend.
It was a weekend of excitement, and we saw delegates truly bring the necessary heat to this opening weekend of the Model UN season. In the end, four schools proved victorious, clinching delegation awards:
- Best Large Delegation: Georgetown University
- Outstanding Large Delegation: Michigan State University
- Best Small Delegation: Harvard University
- Outstanding Small Delegation: University of Pennsylvania
To sum up the weekend, Secretary General Julie George said, “BarMUN VII was unlike any previous BarMUN conference. While it held fast to the foundation of track-wide integration, BarMUN VII pushed the boundaries with 13 innovative committees staffed by over 150 staffers. The weekend of BarMUN VII was filled with numerous crises updates, laughs shared by delegates and staff alike, and I am so ecstatic with how it turned out!”
BarMUN Secretariat takes a moment to pose for a group picture.
