Pace University New York City students visit Edinburgh Castle during the 2017 Scotland Model UN conference. The blog post’s author, Mary Lynn Hearn ’19, is second from the right.
In March I was given the opportunity to travel to Edinburgh with my Pace University classmates to participate in the 2017 Scotland Model UN (SCOTMUN) conference. This trip was by far one of the best college experiences I have had. There was much to learn on this trip and I am glad that I was able to participate.
The conference itself and the process leading up to it was very educational. The preparation was very fast and close to the conference, so we had to be on our toes at all times and willing to work hard. The style of conference was also different from others I had attended. I was constantly learning and developing new techniques. My chairs were also very helpful and were more than willing to walk us through the rules and procedure if anyone was unsure.
My committee ended up choosing to discuss the topic of Palestine’s membership in the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). I was representing the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), so the likelihood of me having any major influence in the committee was small. Nevertheless, I was prepared to bring up unique ideas that would help benefit both Israel and Palestine.
I was the fifth speaker in the first round of speeches and no member states had brought up World Heritage Sites. When it was my turn to speak, I mentioned World Heritage Sites and proposed a new policy to the committee. After that, the committee’s discussion focused largely on the issue of World Heritage Sites. Since I had a policy proposal in place, I was able to write it into the working paper, which eventually made it into the eventual resolution.
I was happy to see that one of my proposed solutions had made it into the end product. Often one’s proposed solutions are redundant or get lost during the merging and resolution writing processes. To see mine make it to the end was really special and made me think that if I was able to do it at this conference, I can definitely manage to do the same at other conferences.
Overall, this experience was a great one and I look forward to the conferences in coming semesters. Model UN has taught me much and joining the class has been one of the best decisions I have made in college. Going abroad also taught me about other cultures and provided me with a new perspective and outlook on the world.
— Mary Lynn Hearn ’19