On May 21st, Menlo-Atherton Model United Nations Club (MAMUN) attended the Davis Model United Nations Conference, which was run by UC Davis. MAMUN performed exceptionally well, winning four individual awards along with a delegation award.
Model United Nations is a simulation of the United Nations (UN) where delegates are assigned countries to represent in different organs and committees of the UN along with specialty and crisis committees. The job of the delegates is to accurately and successfully represent their country while also collaborating in the spirit of the UN. It’s an activity for students who are interested in learning about foreign relations while practicing public speaking, writing, and researching.
Prior to the conference, delegates wrote position papers and conducted research on their assigned countries and committees. Sophomore Alegra Hoddie said, “I wrote multiple opening statements, so I could prepare for different scenarios. I spent a lot of time making sure I knew everything and reading up on my assigned country. We also spent time planning for logistics like getting to the conference.”
Sophomores Lilah Chen and Celine Chien won Best Research representing the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Laos) in the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Sophomore Varsha Sripadham won Outstanding Delegate representing Laos in the World Health Organization (WHO) and sophomore Allegra Hoddie received an Honorable Mention. The MAMUN delegation also won the Outstanding Small Delegation award. Sophomore Arden Margulis represented Indigo Twinlake, a pseudonym for IIhan Omar, in a designated survivor special committee. Senior Walden Hoddie represented Laos in a specialized sustainable cities committee. Sophomore Morgan Baudler and Ella Thomson represented Honduras in the Economic and Social Council.
MAMUN co-president and sophomore Ella Thomson said, “Some of our club members had suggested going to the Davis Conference, and we had never been to a conference run by a university, so we thought going to Davis would be a great way to stretch some boundaries for us.”
Co-president and sophomore Morgan Baudler said, “The conference was our first opportunity to travel as a club. We thought it would be a good opportunity to gain more experience. It was a well-organized conference and everyone had a good experience.”
The club does not have any more meetings for this school year, but meetings will start again in the fall semester. Hoddie said, “Model United Nations is a great experience that I would recommend to anyone who wants to gain more experience in their speaking and writing skills. Even if you don’t come out of the conference with an award, the experience itself is really rewarding.”
MAMUN will meet every Monday at lunch in G-13. Prospective delegates can join the club’s Remind using code @mamun22 and follow their Instagram @ma_modelun.
