VICENZA, Italy -- If you have ever wanted to solve the world's problems but never thought you would have the chance, you may be envious of 12 students from Vicenza High School who had an opportunity to do just that in February.
The students paid a visit to Jan Neruda High School, Czech Republic, to participate in the Prague Model United Nations conference (PRAMUN). It was the ninth time JNHS has hosted the conference.
The Model United Nations assembly gathers international students to discuss, debate and construct resolutions that aim to solve current global issues.
The overall contingent, more than 300 students strong, came from Russia, Italy, Germany, France, Czech Republic, Egypt, United States, Belgium, England and Turkey. This diversity aids in emulating the United Nations atmosphere, by simulating a U.N. General Assembly. PRAMUN features 11 committee types, each with different topics that reflect recent events in the actual U.N.
Representing France this year, Vicenza High School's Model U.N. class debated topics ranging from establishing post-war relief in African countries to questioning whether offshore tax havens are ethical -- specifically, should they be banned globally or do individuals have the right to deposit money in such accounts?
Delegates are allotted seven hours over the course of two days to debate topics and construct resolutions.
Besides time constraints, delegates are obliged to put personal views aside in order to respectively represent the country's views-- not always an easy task. This process of the conference is vital, however, when trying to simulate actual United Nations assemblies.
"I was tasked to represent China," said Canaan York, a VHS graduate, who participated in Model U.N. when he was a student. "Being from the United States, there were a multitude of differences between the views, beliefs and values.Although this was challenging, I knew the mock trial would not be successful without my full commitment to representing the country at hand. Therefore, I performed several months of research beforehand to successfully represent the views and beliefs of China."
After construction of resolutions, delegates representing various countries presented their committee's resolutions to have them voted on by the General Assembly.
Vicenza's Model United Nations class not only represented France at the PRAMUN international conference, but also represented their school and the Vicenza Military Community.
At the conclusion of the trip, students were given the opportunity to visit the Jewish Quarter in Prague, where they learned about Operation Anthropoid. The operation resulted in the killing of Reinhard Heydrich, the third highest-ranking German Nazi official under Hitler. Delegates were able to walk through The Church of St. Cyril and Methodius and witness a historical moment for the city of Prague.
VHS participants and the committees on which they served are as follows:
Kikki Sibila -- Human Rights I
Annika Srinivasan -- Human Rights II
Michael Collier -- Disarmament I
Jessica Thomas -- Disarmament II
Amber Duron -- Environmental
Haylee Thorson -- Social and Cultural
Yoonbeam Lee -- Economic and Financial
Lena Benson -- Humanitarian Aid and Refugee
Nicholas Galles -- International Drug Control
Samantha Hughes -- Historical
Timothy Ney -- Security Council
(Gallegos was selected as the first student from VHS to chair at the PRAMUN conference. She chaired the Humanitarian Aid and Refugee committee.)
Social Sharing