Hundreds of thousands of students worldwide take part every year in Model UN. They research national positions, draft resolutions and hold debates. But the UN isn’t just about governments and processes. It’s about people.
The UN was created to help people. And it’s also made up of people.
UN diplomats and staff work hard to make our world a better place. And their stories can give Model UN participants a better picture of what the UN is really about.
That’s why the UN Department of Global Communications (DGC) launched “The Real United Nations: An Interactive Briefing Series for Model UNs”.
Following a pause in in-person sessions, due to COVID-19, “The Real United Nations” traveled to the NYC iSchool’s Model UN club in New York on 7 June.
Participating briefers included two Deputy Chefs de Cabinet from the Office of the President of the General Assembly – Saada Hassan, who previously served as acting Deputy Permanent Representative of Djibouti to the UN, and Fernando Marani, who previously worked at the Permanent Mission of Argentina to the UN. The third panelist was Brenden Varma of DGC.
Following the session, Saada said, “I’ve worked in New York for a number of years. But this was my first time visiting a local high school. It was rewarding to interact with young New Yorkers and share my experiences as an African woman working in diplomacy.”
Fernando added, “I was impressed by how engaged the students were – and by the insightful questions they asked. Seeing the level of young people’s interest in international affairs reminded me of why the work we do at the UN is so important.”
According to a survey completed after the briefing, 96 per cent of respondents agreed that their understanding of what it was like to work at the UN had increased, and 76 per cent said they would apply what they had learned to study-related or Model UN activities.
