On Saturday 20th January, six students from Cheadle Hulme High School (CHHS) and Sixth Form (CHSF) took part in Model United Nations (MUN) at Stonyhurst College in Lancashire.
Three students from Year 11 and three from Year 12 attended the event.
The Stonyhurst MUN conference is an annual simulation of the United Nations, with the aim of enabling students to discuss and think critically about world issues.
The conference also aims to raise awareness about current world issues and sharpen students’ debating skills.
This year’s conference saw students from 12 schools, sixth forms and colleges represent different countries as they worked together to solve issues under the theme of Security.
Before the debates, students listened to guest speaker Dr Dirk Glaesser, Director of Sustainable Development of Tourism for the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).
Dr Glaesser introduced the day, discussing the importance of MUN in raising awarenss of world issues. He told students to remain curious and be willing to ask difficult questions.
Students from CHHS and CHSF represented Malta in their respective committees, acting as delegates for their given nation.
Under the theme of security, the students’ focus of the committees included: Security Council, Environment, Human Rights, Economics and Social, and Politics and Ethics.
Students spent the day debating resolutions of issues within their chosen committee. A resolution is a document submitted by a country on a given issue.
Collaborating with delegates from other schools, they worked to pass as many resolutions as possible to address and resolve the issues they were presented with.
At the end of the day, all delegates came together to resolve the crisis that they had been given – this year’s crisis was a national cybersecurity attack on banks in Pakistan.
Year 11 student, Tom, had the chance to ask Dr Glaesser about the link between the severity of pandemics and the climate crisis.
Tom was given a commended delegate award for his contributions.
The Stonyhurst MUN Conference 2024 was a fantastic day of debate and discussion of important issues.
It was a great opportunity for our students to sharpen their debating and public speaking skills.
Well done to all who took part, we look forward to the next one!