The Student International Conference Model United Nations (SICMUN) is an annual, student-led Model UN conference hosted at Southwestern University at Georgetown, Texas.
Students sophomores Cameron Zhang and Hamreet Keer were two of the five students who won various awards at SICMUN. From coming up with debates to presenting at conferences, students are recognized with awards based on their performance throughout the weekend.
Zhang won Best Legislator for his contribution as part of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) committee at SICMUN. The Best Legislator award is an individual honor given to participants who demonstrate superior performance, shown by their knowledge and leadership within their committee.
“Since I joined Model UN this year, my goal was to win an award at a conference,” Zhang said. “Winning the award this weekend was a huge accomplishment for me.”
Zhang’s committee debated solutions for expanding access to mental healthcare for children. Zhang’s delegation that he represented was China.
“I pushed for my delegation’s solution, which was digital mental healthcare and integrating AI in the mental healthcare scene,” Zhang said. “The committee was very hesitant to include AI into mental healthcare, but after debating I was able to convince the committee to integrate AI into many aspects of our solutions.”
The core of SICMUN represents students’ engagement in problem solving and negotiation. Each day, delegates participate in opening speeches and both moderated and unmoderated debates to negotiate resolutions.
“We concluded the committee by launching initiatives that taught teachers and parents how to deal with mental health issues alongside many other digital interventions that reduced mental illness,” Zhang said.
The practice outcomes of the debates with the committee developing actionable solutions are shown throughout the weekend at SICMUN. The overall process aims to equip students with the skills to create real world solutions.
“Following this weekend, I have one main goal: win Best Delegate,” Zhang said. “For me, this weekend is proof of me being one step closer to winning Best Delegate. I plan on improving my speaking skills and overall diplomacy so that next time I will win.”
The Best Delegate award is the highest honor in a Model UN committee, recognizing the student who demonstrated the most leadership, participation, negotiation and knowledge skills.
“I was in the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) committee as the delegate of the United States,” Kaur said. “I won the best legislator award, and I was proud of this accomplishment as this is my second award of the year, and third overall. Winning the award helped me feel as though I have grown as a MUN delegate since I started, and makes me feel more confident for future conferences.”
The conference provided a platform for discussions and problem solving. Kaur’s engagements proposed innovative solutions to global issues.
“Throughout the conference, we discussed the topic of eradicating forced labor and human trafficking in the fashion industry, with a focus on possible solutions that satisfy the needs of all countries present,” Kaur said. “We were given time to write out the working papers that explained how the solutions would be implemented.”
Setting the stage for negotiations requires details and research by students. Formats for the papers are strict and formal, blending speed with good quality material instead of focusing on the length.
“The final aspect of the conference was presenting the paper to the rest of the committee, and voting on whether it should be passed and thus implemented,” Kaur said. “My solution focused on different aspects of eradicating forced labor and human trafficking in the fashion industry. As a result, my group’s resolution was the only one that had passed.”
Once the committee presents the paper, the resolution is only passed through voting by the rest of the committees.
“In future conferences, I look forward to achieving the same level of success, and hopefully even higher, in committees through collaboration with other delegates, taking leadership and writing thorough resolution papers,” Kaur said.
The MUN conference provided a platform for the students to develop their skills, address important global issues and achieve recognition.
