Welcome to our next edition of conference recap articles about Best Delegate’s VMUNC conferences! This past fall, Best Delegate launched the Virtual Model United Nations Conference (VMUNC) initiative. With training conferences and advanced invitationals scheduled for the 2020-2021 academic year, VMUNC is a way for students to continue participating in Model UN conferences virtually during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic that has rendered in-person conferences impossible this year.
In January, Best Delegate hosted more than 500 students at the Southern MUN Invitational (SMUNI), a conference for intermediate to advanced delegates primarily in the Southern United States, and at the January Training Conference, a conference for beginner and intermediate students to discover MUN and practice their skills.
On February 20, Best Delegate hosted over 110 students at the Midwest MUN Invitational, a conference for intermediate to advanced delegates in the Midwestern United States. To round out the weekend, on February 21, over 230 students attended the February Training Conference. Read on to learn more about students’ experiences at these fantastic conferences!
Southern MUN Invitational (SMUNI) and January Training Conference
The January conferences featured a total of 15 committees! We featured UN Oceans 4 times at the January Training Conference with the topic of reducing pollution of the oceans. We felt this was a super pressing topic going into the new year and featured it across the middle school and high school level. We also simulated a WHO committee addressing access to Vaccines which is a very current issue being debated on world stages and at the UN everyday.
We had 4 AMAZING student leaders who acted as co-chairs for 4 committees, UN Oceans Blue, UNICEF, WHO Blue and WHO Purple. These were all students who went through our programs last semester and in the summer who wanted to take on larger leadership roles. They were a vital part of the success of the conference!
We also welcomed 3 Yale students who assisted as co-chairs for the weekend to help them prepare for their high school conference. It was an awesome way for us to continue connecting with the college MUN community!
“I only have positive things to say about this conference. The chairs were wonderful and executed the entire thing with enthusiasm and made sure everyone was comfortable and they were also very flexible.”
– VMUNC Delegate
“Thank you to Sarai and student leader co-chair Anish, you were so understanding with all the students and fostered a positive learning environment.”
– MUN Advisor
Southern MUN Invitational (SMUNI) Awards
Disarmament and International Security Committee (DISEC)
Best Delegate: South Africa
Outstanding Delegates: Israel, Greece
Honorable Mentions: Syria, Iran, Colombia, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Canada, Ethiopia, China
UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
Best Delegate: Germany
Outstanding Delegates: Ethiopia, Finland, Japan
Honorable Mentions: Australia, Greece, India, Mexico, Republic of Korea, Turkey, Vietnam
UN Security Council (UNSC)
Best Delegate: Vietnam
Outstanding Delegate: Canada
Honorable Mentions: France, St. Vincent and the Grenadines
UN Development Programme (UNDP)
Best Delegate: Philippines
Outstanding Delegate: United Kingdom, Pakistan
Honorable Mentions: France, India
United States Cabinet
Best Delegate: Administrator of the EPA
Outstanding Delegate: Vice President
Honorable Mentions: Secretary of Health and Human Services, Secretary of Labor, Secretary of State, White House Chief of Staff
UN Women
Best Delegate: Sweden
Outstanding Delegates: Saudi Arabia, Republic of Korea, Greece, Brazil
Honorable Mentions: Canada, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Rwanda
February Training Conference
The February conferences marked the first round of conferences with our new Spring 2021 VMUNC Staff. After a week of training, our staff put their all into both the February Training Conference and MMUNI, sharing their skills and unique experiences with the students. Our new staff members come from advanced college MUN teams from the United States and Canada and provided a wonderful conference experience for the delegates.
The February Training Conference had 11 committees and 46 different schools attended! The committees were focused on a wide array of topics. This conference, we featured the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII), where delegates discussed the rights of indigenous peoples. The February Training Conference allowed new and intermediate delegates to expand their knowledge on public speaking, resolution writing, and bloc formation.
“Our chair was outstanding! Even if it was some of our first conferences, they effectively explained the different functions of a conference, each debate, etc. The level of debate was also great. There was a lot of differentiation between delegates based on experience and skill, and it was interesting to see different ideas come together. This entire experience was very enjoyable, and I would definitely recommend it to a friend. Thank you again!”
– VMUNC Delegate
Midwest MUN Invitational (MMUNI)
As an invitational conference, MMUNI was geared towards intermediate and advanced MUN delegates. Unique committees included a United States-North Korea Summit committee focused on denuclearization, and UN Women focusing on the topic of Achieving Gender Equality. Overall, MMUNI was a great opportunity for more advanced delegates to further hone their Model UN skills and level up their strategic thinking.
The MMUNI staff were impressed with the level of debate in each committee, especially given the challenging topics and crisis situations. Delegates were all constantly encouraging others to listen to their peers, and were active in summarizing the needs and requests of their fellow delegates. Almost everyone had their cameras on and wanted to participate. The delegates were eager to learn and debate, it was so refreshing to see! Amazing job to all participants at WCMUNI. Your dedication to honing your Model UN skills is admirable, and we hope to see you again soon. Here’s a message from one of the conference chairs:
“Through all the trials and tribulations of crisis and having to write directives and resolutions our delegates wrote incredibly detailed and advanced resolutions that rivaled some of the better clauses I’ve seen in my career. They were then able to put their differences aside to merge the two directives with incredibly respectful and efficient diplomacy. So cool to watch!”
– VMUNC Chair
Midwest MUN Invitational (MMUNI) Awards
Disarmament and International Security (DISEC) Red:
Best Delegate: Niger
Outstanding Delegate: Pakistan, United States
Honorable Mentions: United Kingdom, Cameroon, France
Disarmament and International Security (DISEC) Silver:
Best Delegate: South Korea
Outstanding Delegate: Saudi Arabia, United States
Honorable Mention: Ireland, United States
Disarmament and International Security (DISEC) Yellow:
Best Delegate: Russia
Outstanding Delegate: United Kingdom
Honorable Mentions: Norway, Albania
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Blue:
Best Delegate: United States
Outstanding Delegate: China, Mexico
Honorable Mentions: Chile, United Kingdom, Pakistan
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) Green:
Best Delegate: United Kingdom
Outstanding Delegate: Cameroon, Niger, Norway
Honorable Mentions: Brazil, France, Mexico
UN Development Programme (UNDP):
Best Delegate: France
Outstanding Delegate: Canada, Mexico
Honorable Mentions: India, Niger, Paraguay
UN Security Council (UNSC):
Best Delegate: India
Outstanding Delegate: Ireland, France, China
Honorable Mentions: Tunisia, Estonia, United Kingdom
US-North Korea Summit:
Best Delegate: Director of National Security South Korea (Suh Hoon)
Outstanding Delegate: Leader of DPRK Brother (Kim Yong-Chol), President of China (Xi Jinping)
Honorable Mention: Leader of DPRK (Kim Jong-Un)
UN Women:
Best Delegate: Norway
Outstanding Delegate: France, United States
Honorable Mention: Saudi Arabia
