Grace Makwaza, a student from Lesotho used to believe that she didn’t have the power to do anything before she joined Model United Nations. She found her purpose in Model UN as it helped her raise her voice and speak her mind. She found herself serving her community to her fullest potential.

Through this presentation, she made us realise how we as individuals can create an impact in society. Her definition for quality education is ‘an education that offers the holistic academic and mental growth of a student by moulding them into individuals that are not afraid to change the world.’ 

Quality education doesn’t mean achieving academic success, it also means being aware of and using the received education to bring about a positive change in one’s surroundings. She  talked about how the SDG 4 affects all the other SDGs and helps in their easy implementation. It plays an important role in making students global citizens thereby opening their young minds and enabling them to question their environment and the policies enforced upon them. Schooling opens up our minds and enhances our problem-solving skills. 

She addressed some problems which the youth face in their daily lives. Problems like peer pressure, lack of motivation, societal stereotypes stop the youth from using their voice. They start thinking about how others would judge them if they present them their views. In other words these problems act as a hindrance to effective communication with the society. To tackle these problems, one must never hesitate to participate in debates as they enlighten oneself with knowledge. Choosing wise peers who encourage them to break out of their shell is another way to remove these barriers.

Before participating in an MUN, her academic performance was par excellence and she had never thought of making a change as an individual. Being hungry for debate, she participated in one of the Model UN’s in her region. Model UN opened her mind and made her ponder upon global issues and how she can do something worthwhile. ‘It felt like my voice did something to shift someone else,’ she said. 

The participants were curious to know as to how the less privileged communities could raise their voice and play an active role in policy making. She answered that the more privileged groups who have more power and influence should support them and encourage them to speak their minds.She added that ‘quality’ education in itself can bring them to speak up and demand justice. 

She said, ‘We don’t need to be a Malala to make our voices heard. We need to be ourselves.’ We as individuals are talented in one or the other way and use different ways to express ourselves. She said that some of her friends use different mediums such as songs and dance to spread their messages and raise their voices. 

To initiate action we need to be thoroughly educated about our planet and it’s beings, because our action as an individual will impact several others. Don’t hesitate to raise your voice, don’t hesitate to fight against prejudice.

On the final day of the Global Summit, three rising seniors at John Burroughs School in St. Louis, Mo presented their project End Period Poverty to 30 participants. Katherine Holkamp, Kate Smith, and Nathaniel Doty are leaders of the Gender Equity Organization at their school, frequent MUN conference attendees, and leaders of the MUN IMpact club at their school. 

The presenters began with an introduction to what period Poverty is. Explaining how periods cannot be ignored, and are not a choice, yet the costs are enormous and 60% of women in developing countries lack access to menstrual hygiene products. This statistic can have lasting medical repercussions. They made sure to highlight that even in developed countries on average women are spending $18,000 on period supplies throughout their life. An enormous cost to a necessity. 

Presenters highlighted specific cases where period stigma is high. For example, in Nepal, menstruation women are isolated in mud huts with no access to running water and clean supplies. They talked about Ethiopia where women often skip school or even drop out of school when they get their period due to lack of access to a bathroom and to avoid embarrassment at school. And talked about the luxury tax in the UNited States, driving the prices up and leaving many girls without access to supplies. 

This discussion led into End Period Poverty’s first step: destigmatizing periods. Holekamp highlighted how End Period poverty connects to 7 SDG’s and 17 subsections of the SDGs including SDG 1 no poverty, SDG 4 Quality Education, SDG 6 Clean Water and Sanitation.

Doty went on to stress how “when there is any discrimiation against women, it will hurt the wellbeing of our society as a whole.” But urged the participants that there is hope and shared projects and organizations working towards improving these conditions and stigma in their own communities. 

The three presenters dove into their process of creating their own Period Supply Drive and increasing awareness in their own school. Smith emphasized their 4 main goals 

1. Increase awareness, decrease stigma
2. Advocate for women and girls, especially those prevented from reaching their potential by period poverty
3. Provide menstrual products to all women and girls affected by period poverty. 
4. Search for long-term sustainable solutions to period poverty. 

Their solutions: frequent announcements at their all school assemblies, hanging posters in their school, bringing males in their school to buy products, organizing a drive in the school community, and partnering with associations in their city such as The Women’s Safe House and donating the products there. 

This group then turned to encourage others to take action. To pick an idea and jump on it. Take Action! Combine Service work, activism, and donations and use MUN connects and resources to make an impact. 

During the question and answer section it was clear these three presenters had encouraged the participants to start their own drives and initiatives. The questions focused on how to get your school on board with something like this, how to take their first steps, how to get male peers on board, and more. 

The group then split up into breakout groups. To get smaller conversations going and more participation for the students. In one breakout session, the group talked about how period poverty is apparent in their own schools and communities. Students shared their stories of their school pushing back against articles in their school newspaper about periods, embarrassment and secrecy about periods, and more. 

MUN Refugee Challenge-Promoting Refugee Awareness through Model UN

Pauline Eluère works in Strategic Communications for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The UN Refugee Agency is mandated to protect the 70.8 million people who have been forced to leave their homes. Ms. Eluère presented other statistics to educate her presenters. There are currently 26 million refugees- people who have had to leave their homes due to violence. There are 45.7 million internally displaced people who have been forced to move within their home country and need protection. There are 4.2 million asylum seekers- people who are in the process of getting their refugee status in a country.

The UNHRC headquarters is located in Geneva, and their priorities are explained by 3 pillars. Ms. Eluère presented a graphic that showed three boxes, saying “help, hope, home” respectively. The first pillar focuses on “help,” which is providing humanitarian aid, right to territory and asylum to victims. The second pillar focuses on “hope,” which is providing solidarity, education, jobs for those in need. The last pillar is “home,” which focuses on the return, resettlement, and local integration of refugees.

Next, Ms. Eluère showed a very poignant video explaining the refugee crisis around the world. The video was very informative and titled, “where do refugees come from?.” For example, it stated that in 2014, most of the world’s refugees came from Syria. Furthermore, another main country where refugees come from is Myanmar. This was due to the Rohingya crisis in 2015. The crisis included the forcible displacement of Hindu and Muslim Myanmar nationals. Ms. Eluère stated that the majority of refugees cross the border and escape to neighboring countries. In fact, 73% of refugees are hosted in neighbouring countries, and 85% of refugees are hosted in developing countries. Ms. Eluère explained that refugees are “just like us.” Anyone can be in a situation where war or conflict requires them to flee their homes to seek protection. 

Then Ms. Eluère focused her presentation on the impact of Covid-19 on the refugee crisis. Many of the displaced communities are “particularly vulnerable to the virus due to overcrowding, limited access to health systems,” and hygiene. She mentioned that the virus has been identified in dozens of refugee camps across the globe, and so this is a very major challenge in developing countries. To prevent the spread of the virus in refugee camps, UNHCR members ensure the availability of sanitation facilities and testing kits. 

What can governments do to help with the refugee crisis? Ms Eluère explains that they must give refugees access to hospitals and health care. Furthermore, they must include refugees in economic recovery plans, as refugees are civilians and need support. Governments should also donate to improve conditions in camps and support local organizations working to alleviate the refugee crisis. 

Ms. Eluère mentioned that refugees are “not just victims, they are also real people.” They are resilient and are fighting for a better world. “They are part of the solution,” and must be protected for a better, more united, and peaceful world. To conclude her presentation, Ms. Eluère talked about how students can help. Some tips she gave was to “volunteer locally to help refugees integrate,” “learn a language with a refugee,” and donate to organizations tackling the refugee crisis. 

Everyone can participate in the MUN refugee challenge. Students can find solutions for refugees during their MUN conferences and submit their resolutions to UNHCR. So far more than 20,000 students have been involved. The best ones will be shared with policy makers. 80,000 students will get to meet UNHCR colleagues or refugees.

Many MUN delegates dream of working at the UN and that is one reason why Mr. Brenden Varma’s session was a popular segment of the Global Summit’s line-up. Following a presentation to MUN Impact’s MUN@Home program a few weeks ago, over 70 participants joined Mr Varma to hear his experiences from working at the UN for 18 years. His presentation not only told his story, but his work to bridge the gap between MUN delegates and the real United Nations.

Brenden’s UN journey started when he received a magazine in his high school in Pennsylvania, the cover of which depicted the collaboration and constructive debate that occurs within the UN. This inspired him to seek a life working at the United Nations and he has since served as Head of Communications in the Office of the President of the General Assembly and the President’s Spokesperson. He has also worked in the Department of Political Affairs as a Political Affairs Officer and has served as an Associate Spokesperson for former Secretaries-General Ban Ki-moon and Kofi Annan.

Currently, Mr. Varma is a part of the UN’s effort to interact with MUN clubs from around the world. He also leads a program called ‘The Real UN’ which gives MUN delegates information about what life at the UN is really like. Initially exclusive to the New York area, Real UN sessions consist of a panel of three experienced UN workers who share their experience and advice to MUN delegates. Now, the COVID-19 pandemic has meant that Real UN sessions are reaching MUN delegates from all corners of the world. Mr. Varma explained to attendees some of the differences in procedure between MUN and the UN. One of the most prominent differences is voting, where in the UN assembly voting has become more unusual. Additionally, MUN is generally found to be a more competitive environment than the UN. 

A vibrant Q&A session further inspired attendees. When asked about qualifications needed to join the UN, he explained that most UN applicants speak two of the UN’s official languages and hold a master’s degree. He also explained the importance of having knowledge of the UN’s workings and knowing where in the organization you would want to work.

When asked about the rise of cyberattacks and security, Mr. Varma explained the recent expansion of the Office of Counter-Terrorism. He highlighted how this is particularly important since the definition of a terrorist can be very blurred between nations. When asked about financial aid, he also explained how the UN’s Central Response Fund is critical in helping nations who are affected by natural disasters such as earthquakes. Finally, he told attendees how the UN is trying to work to combat the spread of misinformation through their ‘Verified’ campaign. This includes the recent misinformation spread about COVID-19.

To round the session off, Mr. Varma explained how the United Nations often gets criticized for its ineffectiveness at combating global issues. However, Mr. Varma argued that the UN can only be as effective as its member states allow it to be, which includes the issue of funding. The UN needs member states to give guidance on what they want, and the UN also needs the resources to be able to do what the member states want. The UN has a very complicated structure and quite often solving global issues is not as easy as it can be made out to be. He explained how the UN plays a crucial role in providing nations and agencies a place to communicate and find solutions, and therefore plays a unique role in international politics.