“Empowering Cooperation, Connecting Your World” was the theme of this year’s prestigious Yale Model United Nations Conference in New Haven, where 25 LC students experienced the role of the real United Nations representatives for just a few days.

The purpose of the Model UN Conference is to introduce students to international diplomacy and educate them about their world. Through simulation and role-play students participated in caucuses, wrote resolutions, and debated various issues facing the world today. During the Opening Ceremonies, held in Yale’s historic Battell Chapel, students were introduced to the conference motto, “Empowering Cooperation, Connecting Your World” by the Secretary General Natalie Kotkin, a Yale junior. She challenged the delegates to think outside the box and embrace the many possibilities of diplomacy and compromise. This theme was underscored by the keynote speaker, James O.C. Jonah, a former minister for Sierra Leone and the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs to the United Nations from 1992-94. Mr. Jonah spoke about the relevance of the United Nations in the world today, and implored students to think about its role in effecting positive change.

The LC students, representing the delegations from El Salvador, Philippines, and Singapore, learned about how to effect positive change in their committee work throughout the conference. The committees were sorted into three groups: General Assembly, Regional, and Specialized Agencies, including the Security Council, and the Press Corps. Topics included: Anti-Personnel Mines (Disarmament & International Security Committee, or DISEC), represented by LC students Halle Murdock, Lindsay Silverman, Jake Gorman, Teddy Black, Molly Pitegoff, and Monica He); Women in Development (Economic & Financial, or ECOFIN), represented by Laura Iglehart, Tristina Bryant, and Ngoc Nguyen); Legality of Humanitarian Intervention (Legal Committee), represented by Nacho Otero, VP Dao, and Fatema Al Hashemi); Conflict Between Human Rights and Counter-Terrorism (Social, Humanitarian & Cultural Committee, or SOCHUM), represented by Shannon Hearn, Sara Kase, and Bronwen Gregg); The Afghan Drug Trade (Special Political & Decolonization, or SPECPOL), represented by Tyler Anne Isaman, Lucia Zampaglione, Alex Gropper, Heather Reisner, Katharine White, and Belle Jung; Redevelopment of African Nations Devastated by Armed Conflict (United Nations Development Programme, or UNDP), represented by Alexandra Crerend and Kate Fraiman; and Human Trafficking (United Nations Office on Drugs & Crime, UNODC), represented by Tom Barry, Nick Sailor, Kelsey Champagne, and Sarah Patrick. Tyler and Lucia were awarded “Honorable Mention” accolades for their work as the delegates from El Salvador on the SPECPOL committee.

Along with the debates and discussions in their committee sessions, the delegates enjoyed special tours of the Yale campus including attending classes and having lunch with professors, a Delegate Dance hosted by the YMUN Secretariat at the Omni Hotel, and visits to New Haven restaurants. The Yale Model UN is a fantastic experience for students wishing to learn about international diplomacy by experiencing the many facets of the UN and getting the opportunity to meet many people from all over the United States and the world. LC students should watch for announcements early next fall for the 2011 YMUN!