In the small cosy town of Reims, only a 35-minute train ride away from the hustle and the bustle of Paris. I had the distinct honour to experience what French Model U.N looks like Through the Reims International Model United Nations. Held on the 15th to 17th of February RIMUN brought together hundreds of delegates and staff all over France with attendees and chairs hailing from as far as Canada and even Japan.
Science-Po Paris has 7 campuses and one of them is located in the city of Reims. Sciences-Po is a world-class institution with emphasis placed on disciplines within the social sciences. Prominent politicians and world leaders have emerged out of this University, most recently the president of France, Emmanuel Macron.
Secretary-General Juliette Briey kicked off the opening ceremony, followed by a string of esteemed speakers and executives of the club. Sitting in on the various speeches, one could tell that RIMUN takes their opening ceremonies quite seriously. With speakers which comprised of Diplomats, International Relations experts and United Nations ambassadors, the opening ceremony was dead silent in the large conference venue as eager delegates listened intently to the keynote addresses.
The social aspect of RIMUN invoked a unique delegate experience where events such as the champagne cocktail and black-tie events are well integrated within the conference itself. After conversing with secretariat members, the sentiment we felt was that RIMUN strives to match committee excellence with well organized social events. It is certainly no easy task to fit both work and play in such a tight schedule, but RIMUN certainly pulled it off.
RIMUN team!
Champagne Reception after Opening Ceremonies
Secretary-General of RIMUN 2018
Committee Underway!
Best Delegate had the opportunity to sit down with the Vice-President and head of Scripts of RIMUN Raphaella Heath, a second-year student enrolled in the Sciences Po-Columbia University Dual BA Program.
- Head of Scripts* and Scripts team is basically the branch that deals with anything committee related. (Background guide writing, implementing crisis elements, etc)
BestDelegate: What sets RIMUN apart from other conferences?
Raphaella: “One of the things I tried to implement with my team is to make crisis accessible to everyone … I decided it would be a fun thing for first-time delegates to get a taste of a specialized agency without it being a full-on crisis which requires experience. We successfully implemented mini timed crises in almost all traditional general assemblies.”
BestDelegate: Could you talk a little bit about MUN in France?
“Model U.N is definitely growing in France, but it’s also not per se part of the French culture. Historically speaking, MUN isn’t prominent, but that’s something we are all trying to change!! (Getting first-time delegates involved) … I THINK MUN has to compete with the French tradition of the oratory arts and speeches, especially at Sciences Po. There are two oratory arts associations, who have been historically very prominent and popular. I’m not necessarily saying MUN has to compete with them, but the fact is, people are definitely more culturally drawn to these associations. Which is always a challenge for RIMUN to compete with, so then the question becomes, how do we market ourselves to attract staffers? and again to potential delegates. I’d say that we definitely have one of the biggest presences on campus as well! (And still growing!)
BestDelegate: So, where do we go from here? What does the Future of RIMUN look like?
We definitely want to work with other French conferences to push for a paradigm shift. Although there is contact between us and other conferences (mainly with other Sciences-Po campuses), there is a lack of commitment or lack of initiative to organize a joint-event. Even within Reims, there are other MUN clubs that we speak with on a regular basis. There should be centralized support from us and other conferences which would be the first step to change MUN culture!
BestDelegate: Is there anyone you would like to give a special shoutout to?
Raph: “There were a lot of people I would like to give thanks to, but I would definitely want to highlight the amazing work of my scripts team, they were phenomenal and went far beyond my expectations, so Patrick, Zoe, Rose, Isabelle, Natasha and Lia.”
BestDelegate would like to congratulate the RIMUN 2018 team for putting on an amazing conference!
