Canterbury’s fledgling Model United Nations (CSMUN) is embarking on its second year. With Mr. Johnson as advisor, and Sabrina Capodicci ’20 as the Secretary-General, the club is beginning its work towards identifying which conferences it might participate in later this year. A conference involves several possible committees to choose from that discuss different topics. An example of a committee that might be modeled at a conference is the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Participating in a Model U.N. conference means participants represent either a specific person, historical figure or act as a country’s U.N. delegate. They then engage in debating particular issues. Model U.N. participants learn the proper way to conduct meetings and debates, as well as develop public speaking and negotiation skills. For this reason, Sabrina says students can benefit from joining even if they don’t have an interest in current events or politics.
“I am not too interested in current events,” Sabrina said, who participated in last year’s MUN. “But I enjoy the debate, the back and forth among delegates, the public speaking and the process of negotiation.”
New to the school and to MUN as the officer Lead Delegate, is JiWon Lee ‘20.
“I am interested because as an international student my childhood dream was to work for the United Nations,” said JiWon. She is also interested in UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) and the International Court of Justice.
Before coming to Canterbury, JiWon took a class on International Relations in her home country of Korea. This helped spark her interest.
The third officer is Giselle Bradshaw ‘21, also a Lead Delegate.
MUN is recruiting new members and welcomes all students. According to Sabrina, “it’s a fun process, a way to learn team work and to make friends.”
MUN will meet every Tuesday at 6:30 in the Steele Lecture Hall. If you are interested in joining, come to a meeting, or e-mail Sabrina at scapodicci20@cbury.org.
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