There was a time when MUNs used to happen once a month, but now we have MUNs popping around almost every weekend. The MUN culture has seen an obvious shift from being debate-centered to a 100 other things.
MUNs (Model United Nations) were from the start a fun place to be, and being a simulation of the United Nations, they centred around tackling the big issues of the world, teaching young changemakers the importance of research, and transforming them into better leaders of tomorrow. But somehow, all of this drifted to being dressed incredibly well, finding yourself a date, or enjoying the really expensive food.
There is, fortunately, more to it than meets the eye.
From finding yourself a good agenda and dates that suit your schedules on the many Facebook groups to getting yourself ready for the same, you learn a lot. Going for an MUN builds you up as a person; it helps you shape your personality and helps you gain clarity on various issues. It boosts your confidence to an extent where you can make your stand clear and make your presence felt in any sphere of life.
On top of that, if debating isn’t right up your alley, you have plenty of other areas to explore, say you can go as a photographer, a cartoonist, or even a reporter.
From doodling on papers to capturing a delegate’s raw emotion, and eventually reaching a conclusion to the various crisis situations that are presented before you, an MUN offers you a plethora of opportunities. On top of that, MUNs teach you how to deal with people, which is what you’ll require to do a lot for the rest of your lives. An as an icing on the cake, it even helps you build a lot of contacts, and you may never know that you’d just find lifelong friends along the way.
An argument which I have heard a lot against the emergence of unconventional committees is that they don’t belong here or that they are just a marketing strategy to attract people. This may be true up to some extent, but these unconventional committees can be interpreted in a way that they give the fanboys, of the various movies and books, a pedestal to come together and have a healthy debate. From arguing on topics like “What Jon should do to protect everyone from the White Walkers” to “How can Thanos be stopped before everyone bites the dust” (literally), you’d be lying if you said you didn’t want to rant about why your favourite character is better than the others.
The argument about cash prizes – how delegates enquire about how much money they’d be getting instead of talking about the agenda – can be substantiated using the phrase “Time is money”. The world today is as fast-paced as ever and if students are taking out time to research, I think they deserve to be awarded for their dedication and commitment to the topic.
All said and done, I think MUNs are a great place to socialise and help you build your personality.. On the plus side, it might just make your day when you get the “you are too cute” anonymous chit.
Feature Image Credits: Consillium Education
Dev Chopra
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