– page 02
deal with the climate change crisis?
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Find out more about an
Meet Louis de Minvielle, one of the four DSGs
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AIDA
conference IT & Database Wizard
How did our delegates
DSG INTERVIEW
Get to know Kelly Hunter, the
PAMUN IN CRISIS
IT WIZARD
February 15, 2016
organization that one of our very own press team members founded
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MUNIFICENCE PAMUN 2015
February 15, 2016
Volume 15, Issue 4
Staying Zen in MUN
ROCK SCULPTURE on sand by Andy Goldsworthy. Rocks were rubbed together to create the chalky white design. All natural materials were used in this creation.
Karya Sexener Staff Writer
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reathing in and breathing out, life and death, arriving and departing, problems and solutions… These are all examples of the universal dualities of life. MUN quite overtly focuses on the last of these. The procedure is very much centered on identifying major problems and creatively engaging in finding resolutions. While doing so, the paramount tool of guidance is logic and argumentative reasoning. The delegates refine the issues through lenses of both national and global interests and judge what could be the most plausible solution to the problem. This is an effective method that has aided human beings on their journey in civilization for ages. Yet, is it possible to have an alternative approach? The philosophy of Zen has taught people many lessons on their journey towards “enlightenment”, so to speak. However, that very statement is in a way, an oxymoron. Zen does not believe in an individual who can arrive at enlightenment, for it does not believe in the existence of the individual. Zen philosophy centers on the idea that there is no ego or a self separate from the overall sea of being. The idea of a separate individual is an illusion and all beings are actually defined as being united in the name of “Brahman” or “the
VOTING PROCEDURE February 14th, delegates in the Political Committee raising their placards to vote. photo by Luigi Maruani
TWIG SCULPTURE by Andy Goldsworthy. Balance is achieved by carefully weaving the branches together.
Self”. It asserts that this intrinsic state of being can be achieved by practice such as meditation and once attained, brings with it a fundamental understanding of compassion and awe. This awareness evidently serves to be a shield against all conflict and misunderstandings due to its gentle and tolerant nature. When one contemplates that he or she does not exist as an isolated being entrapped by the fabric of skin and is actually a drop in the sea of the entirety of consciousness, it is not possible to feel greed, anger, resentment, jealousy or any other self-centric emotion. All that is left is the feeling of presence amidst the collective dance of existence and an innate love towards all there is. With the principle behind delegates’ refrain from using “I” and the idea that everyone is a representative of a larger-than-the-individual-society, MUN has areas which resemble the principles behind Zen. Furthermore, the role-play nature of MUN is very parallel with the Zen idea that all of the world is a grand play of “Brahman”. Still, it is important to remember that Zen is an "anti-philosophy". It is able to articulate the concept of such a totality (which is also described as a “non-duality”). Yet, it states that, by its nature, this understanding can only be attained by experience. It is not easy for such an experience-centric teaching to prevail in today’s global society of constant informa-
tion intake and stimuli of reasoning. We ultimately choose to negotiate, argue and exchange ideas with one another. This is how MUN fundamentally differentiates from Zen in the process of problem solving: MUN involves excessive amounts of judging and intellectual reasoning. Being a platform that is ultimately connected by language, (and not “Brahman”), it is inevitable that vessels of logic are to be used. Silence. Amidst all problem solving, there is always a standing existence of silence. MUN’s sophisticated logical approaches are effective at creating solutions. Yet, Zen’s foundation of compassion and “non-duality” is equally important in order to make those logical approaches sound, reliable and free from individual bias. It seems that in the duality of problem solving lies another duality: the duality between duality and “non-duality”. In order to achieve truly sustainable solutions, it would be remarkably helpful to integrate the two seemingly variant approaches: We cannot articulate what we want to say without reasoning. But we also can’t thoroughly understand one another without the fundamental basis of compassion and our oneness. Philosopher Karl Popper says, “All life is problem solving”. In this sea of life that constantly reaches then leaves the sands of duality, let’s hope we can strive in this central action.
2
THE CONFERENCE
February 15, 2016
MUNIFICENCE
We're Off to See the Wizard!
An Interview with the IT & Database Wizard, Kelly Hunter Henrik Elster
Staff Writer
HE: I know that this isn’t your first PAMUN. How did you get started and what was your role in previous conferences? KH: I first did PAMUN three years ago, and I started because Vivian, the head of admin, her sister was running it. Vivian urged me to join her, and I did! Also, Chloe, the current SG, was a delegate back then and convinced me to join. In my first year, I was an admin, last year I was the IT and Database Wizard, and I’m doing the same thing this year. HE: What exactly does the IT and Database wizard do? KH: Essentially, I’m in charge of updating the PAMUN website with the relevant information for all the schools who are attending. Also, Mr. Reshef sends me the database which has all the delegate information: the country, committee, name, school, etc. Then, I use that information to make badges and certificates for each delegate. HE: What was your role in planning and organizing the conference? Did you work with the Admin Team? KH: I tend to work in close contact with the admin team, especially the head, Vivian. Since I receive all the country names and other info, we exchange information all the time. Whenever I need help, she helps me, and vice versa! Lots of my work is before the conference itself, since I make all the badges and certificates. We give those out on the first day. HE: What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far? KH: My biggest challenge is when schools come to the conference thinking that certain countries are still available, or that certain committees still exist, and they don’t. That can really be quite complicated and stressful at times. Also, I didn’t have the updated list of delegates until quite late, and having to put it together first thing in the morning is honestly really stressful! Vivian and I both had a breakdown because of that, so… it was great! HE: What is the most ridiculous problem you’ve been asked to fix so far? KH: There is a certificate that said ‘Tom’, and they wanted me to change his name to ‘Thomas’, so I had to reprint the certificate. That was pretty ridiculous, and kind of a waste of time! HE: What is your favorite part about your role? KH: My favorite part about the role is getting to spend time with people at school that I usually don’t see much, and also I get to meet many people from different countries. I’ve also learnt how to be really organized, because if I wasn’t then everything would be a total mess! HE: Well, you seem to be doing a great job, so keep up the good work!
The Suite Life of an ICJ Judge Caitlin Fowlds
Staff Writer
H
aving seen Tom Webster defeat his opposition in the ICJ, I knew I had to further investigate the preparation and challenges faced by this delegate. While I was talking to him about the conflicting interests of Spain and England over the control of Gibraltar, it was evident that a vast amount of background knowledge is necessary to be an effective witness. Tell me about the conflict. The current ICJ case was about the issue of Gibraltar, which is a British territory at the edge of Spain. Spain is arguing for increased inclusion into affairs of Gibraltar, which is the Spanish case, and Britain wants to maintain the status quo of not informing them about anything and just doing as they please. They feel that it is sovereign territory, and they have the right to govern it however they choose. Their main argument was national sovereignty - that people there say they’re British, they want
to be British, they’re happy with the British doing as they please. And there’s also a lot of counter arguments, one being, that what is considered the native population has changed, because Britain has forcibly removed what was the Spanish natives who lived there before. As witness, I was called in to play the role of the historian. I just made up my character, so I said I was a lecturer at the University of Edinburgh. First I was asked questions by Spain, who had asked me to come and speak as a historian, and then I was cross-examined by the UK team. Initially, they asked me to clarify how Gibraltar became British, a lot of 20th Century stuff, and the changing attitudes of the British. In addition, the Spanish had a dictatorship, then a republic, and now they’re complaining about it again. Basically, Magda and Hanna cross-examined me so that they could make the points that they wanted to get across. This was just to show that Britain hasn’t been consistent in what they’re saying. (...) Of course, it’s very strategic, and the people
who live on the peninsula have sometimes gone against the wishes of the British government, because sometimes the British government has tried to collude with the Spanish. What did you have to do to prepare? We were studying the Spanish civil war, thankfully, just before I came to Paris, which was really convenient. I know a lot of the background history because it just pops up on the news - British people sort of ask me about it. I had to do a bit of background research - I didn’t know the exact terms of the treaty. I had to learn a bit more about Spain because I’m a bit more Anglo-centric everyone is centric to whatever country they’re from. I had to look a bit more into the Spanish point of view because, although I in general support Spain’s position, I had barely any idea about what their arguments were. Were there any moments where England managed to stump you? I mixed up the Treaty of Maastricht with the Schengen agreement. Maastricht was in 1994 and
the judges corrected me, stating that Shengen was in the 1980’s and I’d gotten them mixed up. They were both in two towns in the Netherlands, incidentally. How did you overcome this? By going on it until they corrected me at the end! What do you think the resolution of this case will be? I think it will be in appropriation towards Spain’s side. (...) I hear from previous witnesses that (...) the judges were slightly in favor of the British side before I came in, although I’m not sure about what happened after. I think it went quite well when I came up. And how does this compare to the real world? In the real world, the UN doesn’t get involved. It’s usually Britain because Spain always wants to have an agreement, and with the British it just depends on who’s in government. Whenever there’s a conservative government in the UK they never want to make an agreement, because it goes against what the constituents in both Gibraltar and the UK want.
FEATURES
asp-edu.net/pamun/
3
February 15, 2016
MUNIFICENCE
PAMUN in Crisis! Kathleen Falconer Staff Writer
“
Delegates, if nothing is done and the current level of global warming continues unabated, it is expected that 100,000,000 additional persons in the world will drop to extreme poverty. Viewed in the prism of the Millennium Development Goals, the additional efforts required might need imagination, creativity and determination.” These are the words delegates of the ECOSOC committee were met with yesterday, after that is the -at first cautious- chaos caused by members of the admin had ensued. Orange papers flew into the air to be scattered (some would say poetically) amongst the delegates. Later the same routine would play out in both the Human Rights and Disarmament committees, albeit with a lot less caution and far more screaming, also falling. The Crisis is a tradition at MUN, whereby delegates are
tasked with improving a resolution to solve an imminentfictional yet entirely plausiblethreat. This year, this meant confronting the “increasingly evident” fact that, “the world [was] facing rising sea levels which might affect more than 300,000 people.” And this was if the temperature rose by only two degrees. Two Degrees. All it takes to throw our already fragile world into entropic chaos. Some would argue the line is actually even lower than this, in fact the originator of the term, Yale economist William Nordhaus believed his estimate “deeply unsatisfactory” (The Economist). For our purposes however, let us make like the European Union’s Council of Ministers, the 2009 G8 and the 2009 UNFCCC and accept it as fact. After all in cases like these, there is little time for the nuisance that is nuance. It’s harder to make policies aimed at preventing a rise of 1.4 or 1.7 degrees for the simple reason 2 is just such a nicer number for people to wrap their heads around.
What would this 2 degree increase actually do other than just generally cause everything to go to hell- to use the scientific term? Apart from the previously mentioned economic impacts discussed by ECOSOC, the Human Rights Committee was made aware of the threat of “Climate Refugees’ whereas Disarmament was asked to alleviate the slightly more abstract concept of ‘tensions’. The Crisis is a whirl of confusion at the best never mind if you happen to walk in slightly late, as Martina Facchin- delegate of Egypt for Disarmament discovered. Some serious improvisation and a clause on Lilypads later, solutions had indeed been conceived. Although while Martina pointed out they had been told to be creative she wasn’t sure “whether the chair appreciated it as much.” Across the hall in ECOSOC, Alessandro Casino- United States delegate, experienced the classic progression of emotion. “I was surprised, I thought it was presented well
obviously and it was exciting.” He followed this up by saying he then felt terrified, or words to that effect. For those looking for entertainment in amongst the gravity of the topic, look no further than the resolution crafted by the Human Rights Committee as explained by delegate of Egypt, Joel George. “Obviously we took this issue very seriously, so our first clause suggested arresting Donald Trump and using his assets to solve Global Warming. The next one was actually a decent clause. And the third clause was one line, it was ‘Unicorns descend on Earth to cool the planet.’” All three passed. Hilarity aside, surely the issue of climate change is not one that can be put off any longer? It is all very well for committees to discuss the various pressing issues society faces, but no resolution is going to be of much use if there is no viable Earth on which to enact it. We do need a miracle of sorts, though not necessarily of the unicorn kind.
CRISIS! Admin floods the various PAMUN committees to announce (in a rather hectic fashion) this years crisis: climate change. Each year, delegates have only a couple of hours to tackle a new, difficult, pressing issue. photo by Luigi Maruani
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THE CONFERENCE
February 15, 2016
MUNIFICENCE
Behind the Scenes of Being a DSG Megumi Sano & Blythe Edwards Staff Writers
An Interview with Louis de Minvielle
MS & BE: How much experience do you have in MUN? LdM: I started when I was 13 or 14 years olf and have been to around seven or eight conferences. MS & BE: What do you like about PAMUN specifically? Well, first of all it’s in Paris. What was really cool about previous years is that it was at UNESCO and that really brings a realistic dimension to the whole conference. This year it's at the Maison de la Mutualite, it's great to be in a really nice part of Paris, with a lot of French restaurants, and people just having lunch wherever they want. So that's amazing. I also really enjoy the coffee breaks and everything, because we didn't have that at previous conferences. PAMUN is also a conference that has the highest level of professionalism because of the quality of each committee and of its venues and in all the services that it brings. No other conference has such high quality, so many admins or the committee quality. MS & BE: How did you end up being the DSG? LdM: I really like MUN and I've been doing PAMUN for a many years. Basically I got into ASP's debating club and really enjoyed it I wanted to be more involved in it. MS & BE: What does an DSG do? LdM: Approximately a year ago we would meet in cafes deciding what topics we would be debating in the committees and choosing the theme of each conference. Ultimately as the DSG you are supposed to be the president's minister. The SG is responsible for the whole thing whereas you're responsible for the different parts. Every DSG is responsible for one or two committees, I am responsible for Human Rights and was also responsible for UNESCO which we had to cancel because of the attacks. But physically what you do is write up the reports during the summer. The paper that the delegates read in their research is written by you. You need to try to be objective but at the same time make people realize what the problem actually is and why it's so important. For some issues it’s self-explanatory and for others it’s quite complicated. MS & BE: What is your favorite part about being a DSG? LdM: For a bit I had to replace a Chair who dropped out last minute so I wasn't able to fully run around but I've been replaced at times which is great. Probably seeing the work that's been accumulated for a year. It's actually being realized and when you see ninety people debating about that essentially what I came up with and what I wrote about. What they're saying is based on what I researched for them gives you a huge sense of accomplishment and you know it makes you think Wow! this is worth it! ...and the worst part? The specifically worst part is yesterday in ECOSOC we were too slow at the beginning of the day so we had to pass five clauses in an hour and a half. That was quite intense to deal with. MS & BE: Any funny episodes? LdM: Having a walkie talkie is a lot of fun! MS & BE: What are your hobbies outside of MUN? LdM: Ballet for ten years. And I had to stop that because it was too time-consuming. I really like vinology so that's like everything that involves wine (I'm not saying that I like drinking) but I actually enjoy wine. And astronomy. That's pretty much what I like.
INTERNATIONAL CHILDHOOD CANCER DAY 24 HOURS TO RAISE AWARENESS
Lea Moukanas
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Staff Writer
e are all attending MUN conferences because we wish to make a change in the world. What if that life changing attitude continued after PAMUN? Discover a cause you could advocate for and how you could help improve children with through Aïda, a non-profit organization gathering a hundred young volunteers between the ages fifteen and twentyfive. Did you know that nearly 100 000 kids die from cancer every year? Childhood cancer refers to all cancer occurring in children under the age of 15. Although childhood cancer is considered rare, it is a leading cause of
childhood mortality in developed countries. For instance, in France, 1 child out of 440 will be diagnosed with cancer yearly before the age of 15. Worldwide, 96 400 children died from cancer in 2008 according to the American Cancer Society. Created by Childhood Cancer International (CCI), International Childhood Cancer Day is a collaborative campaign aiming to raise global awareness to support children and families as well as provide deeper understanding of the issues concerning childhood cancer. Are you looking for an exciting way to support children with cancer? Get involved in Aïda! The association Aïda is a French non-profit organization created in January 2015 after the
death of Aïda from leukemia. Winner of the Young and Volunteer Prize 2015, the charity gathers nearly a hundred volunteers between the ages of 15 and 25 years old, acting on three different points: Fulfill children going through cancer’s dreams and support the families Finance research on leukemia Raise awareness about childhood cancer among teenagers Wondering what you can do to help Aïda? Well, it’s actually really simple. Donations are important for sure, however volunteering to help organize fundraisers is just as effective. Initiatives from schools and teenagers from all over the world are being done for Aïda: bake sales in London and the US or even charity concerts
in Lebanon and Morocco. Also, running (or walking!) for Aïda with the Aïda T-Shirt is also a wonderful way to help us raise money and awareness. If you’re going through a busy year – we understand. It is important to know that helping Aïda can also be as simple as following them on Facebook (Association Aïda Pour la Lutte Contre le Cancer), Twitter (@ assosaida), Instagram (@associationaida.lc) or checking out our website: www.associationaidalc. org to help us raise awareness. It is because so many young volunteers join and support Aïda that the non-profit is proud to say that in their first six months of activity, they have been able to raise more than 30,000 euros to support children and teenagers going through cancer. Alone, we can make a difference. Together, we can make a change.
asp-edu.net/pamun/
OPINIONS
5
February 15, 2016
MUNIFICENCE
The Struggle Is Real: The Lives of International Students
PAMUN DIVERSITY An illustration of the diversity within PAMUN - a multitude of nationalities is represented by the delegates. graphic by Oksana Nikitenko & Caitlin Fowlds
Oksana Nikitenko Staff Writer
A
s many of us have noticed by now, the term “world citizens” is very applicable to our generation, more so to international students. And yes, it is fun and you do acquire many experiences, but there are also a lot of predicaments we face. One of the most disliked questions of international students is, “Where are you from?”. It takes us at least five seconds to mentally assess what exactly we are being asked, after which we reply with an unsure tone, filled with possible phrases like “it depends” and several “umm”s. This question entails the consideration of the location of your birth, where your parents are from, all the countries you have lived in, how long you have stayed in them, your passport country, as well as which country you identify more with, or which you call home. But over the years you choose to pick one country because explaining your life story takes too long. “I’ll get by with a little help from my friends”. This is not true if you do not have any. One of the difficulties of an international student is making new friends, but you get used to the process, and soon you master this ability. Moreover, when you
find someone from the same country as you, you automatically feel a connection. The best feeling ever is when you are able to speak the same language as someone and to be able to relate. But all good things come to an end and we have all had to say goodbye to at least one of our friends, because everyone is constantly moving. Whether you first learned to say “Hello”, “Bonjour”, or “Merhaba”, we have all definitely had to learn another language, and can probably speak at least two. Even if you do not know the language of your host country, we all gradually start to develop a vocabulary of slang words. Not only that, but we start to have slightly altered accents because our experiences Adapting to a new country is also a gradual process. We sometimes have to adjust to the different order of the weekdays and weekends, or school hours, as well as time zones. Due to the different cultures and traditions of the host country, we have to figure out the different holidays and what they mean. Speaking of traditions, we must almost respect the dress code of the country, whether it be board shorts and a t-shirt, or conservative clothing that covers most parts of your body. However, clothing also depends on the type of climate and therefore affects the amount and variety of clothing we have. Additionally, trying the
traditional food for the first time is like a roller coaster ride, as well as finding out about the unusual local delicacies. International students also know that you can only “make it rain” very easily in some countries. Changing currency always takes some getting used to and we have to use our mental math skills in order to convert the money into something we understand. Lastly, we are not easily impressed. We have seen so many different cities and have been immersed into so many different cultures that we can sometimes be oblivious. However, that does not mean we are not thankful for the amount of opportunities we have or the experiences we have gained. International students do have quite a few struggles, but they are some of the nicest people you will ever meet. So do not be afraid of moving to a different place to live because being an international student is one of the best experiences of your life.
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February 15, 2016
NEWS
MUNIFICENCE
A Day in the Life of a Chair ft. Anibal Gomez, the Alpaca Megumi Sano & Blythe Edwards
the delegates time for caucus. I gear myself bit of time to pass the final resolution. I feel up for a long day of work. like my eyes are gonna fall out any minute but Staff Writers I try to maintain an aura of professionalism. aturday, February 13th 2016 11:30 AM: We move into open debate, al7:50 AM: There are knocks on my lowing the delegates to submit their clauses. 7:00 PM: Finally finished! I leave the centre door. It’s already time to wake up. I It’s my job to sift through the clauses and skimming the second issue of the MUNifdrag myself from the warmth of my bed, pick the good ones. The delegates debate the icence. IT’S SO GOOD! It hasn't warmed and gobble down some some freshly baked clauses for a while. They are either passed up all day but now I’m not just cold, I’m French bread. I sleepily brush my teeth and or rejected. tired. As I head back home alone through put on my suit and tie (Rule #1: ALWAYS the persistent Parisian rain, I can’t help but iron the suit). 12:20: It's getting a bit dry. When I catch look forward to tomorrow where the whole a break from approving clauses I stare out process begins again… 8:20 AM: I step outdoors into a halfhearted into the crowd at the ninety four delegates shower of freezing rain and make the long (but not for too long -- I don’t want to arouse 7:30 PM: I’m already stuffed (from heavy journey to the MUN conference centre. All suspicion!). carb-packed lunches) but still manage to I can think of is getting INSIDE. consume half a pizza for dinner. Where did 1:00 PM: It's finally lunchtime! I head out the idea of a French cuisine experience go? 8:30 AM: Along with the masses of similarly with my Co-Chairs (avoiding interaction with dressed students I shuffle into the building. A those below me in the MUN hierarchy) to a 8:30 PM: I relax on the couch and check out MUNificence paper is shoved into my hands, nearby French café. the PAMUN Snapchat account (where I’m I simply can’t wait to read it!! featured EXTENSIVELY). I post a story on 3:30 PM: Back to work. It’s my turn to chair. my own Snapchat account with a caption: 9:30 AM: It's SHOWTIME! I am seated on Summoning all my concentration, I try to "Had to go up in pink alpaca onesie in front the main stage at the Opening Ceremony, move things forward as quickly as possible, of 500 people" ––just so people back home overlooking the 500+ students sitting below (not even listening to what the delegates are can experience my glory. me. I feel a bit self-conscious but also rather saying!). I have newfound respect for all powerful. those chairs I’ve met in the past. It’s harder 9:00 PM: I also check out my Instagram acthan it looks! count to see if people have liked the filtered 9:55 AM: I secretly put on the Alpaca onesie pic of my alpaca outfit yet. Yay, 60+ likes in experiencing a strange mixture of nervous- 4:00: Coffee break = 30 minutes of freedom! 60 minutes! ness and excitement. I’m worried about the I make my way out of the room to go grab reaction… what if no one laughs? a few cakes and make small talk with some 11:30 PM: I hear people talking outside and admins. look out the window to find some MUN-ers 10:00 AM: Triumphantly I make my way up going home from dinner. I wave and they to the podium. I channel all my energy into 6:00 PM: I hear hundreds of delegates filing wave back. I’m already a celebrity. keeping a straight face. Everything's a blur out of their conferences to go home. We still and all I hear are cheers. SUCCESS! have an hour to go! 11:45 PM: It’s almost midnight and drows11:00 AM: Time to actually start working. iness finally overcomes me. I hop into bed I head to my committee (political) and give 6:30 PM: In the last half an hour we leave a like an alpaca.
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DANCE BREAK! Delegates in the Human Rights committee take a little break to dance with one another. photo by Luigi Maruani
SPECIAL CONFERENCE Delegate proposes an amendment to combat climate change photo by Caroline Klaey
HARD AT WORK Secretary General, Chloe Olsen, chairing for the ECOSOC committee. photo by Luigi Maruani
Features
asp-edu.net/pamun/
7
February 15, 2016
MUNIFICENCE
What the Teachers Think We asked teachers to describe their PAMUN experiences and here's what they had to say Sonja Milekovic Staff Writer
How long have you been participating in PAMUN? DAN BIXON: I would say about five or six now. Most likely six at this point. Paul Mooney: I’ve been participating in PAMUN since 2012. CATHERINE LENCIONI: Many years but I’m a French teacher so I accompany the MUN directors… yeah I’m the social coordinator. It’s been at least four years but I’ve been part of MUN for over ten years. SIOBHAN ROSTAING: I couldn’t tell you that. It goes back at least six or seven years. How do they differ from each other in the past to now? DAN BIXON: Here’s the thing, every year I feel the group of students is different. Sometimes I feel like they’ve been prepared and then they don’t show it when they’re here. Then, there’s other times when I’m really impressed. Or there’s individuals that I’m impressed with. I’ve gotta say, this is the first MUN conference in which a whole delegation impressed me and I couldn’t get out of committees or the ICJ to do my work. There’s some groups that are fun to travel with but I think this group stands out because I really enjoyed coming out to watch them. They stood out from the rest. I also want to say that I was really impressed with the president of ICJ and the chair at COP21… very decisive. I’m also impressed with another chair but she’s from my delegation so I can’t show favoritism. I think this PAMUN is my favorite one, I can never get my
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work done because I’m always in the committees.” Paul Mooney: “Well obviously the venue is different. The UNESCO building lends a certain authenticity to the conference. To sit with students and hear them say ‘I’m sitting where actual diplomats sit’ and you know, it’s got the ambiance. But this is also very nice, the modernity of this building and way it’s put together the fact that you know there’s something unique now. Although there’s a certain degree of comfort that’s lost in now I don’t know where anything is and I have to ask somebody but I’ve been really happy with this venue. I’m happy we were able to reschedule at all. CATHERINE LENCIONI: All good. I really like the UNESCO of course. All been good. Good this year too. I think this year is great because the committees are smaller and I love the neighbourhood. It’s just fantastic. The only disadvantage is that the kids like the UNESCO facility because the kids think they’re like diplomats. And the cafeteria, because we didn’t know we had to eat out. I don’t know I’m kind of divided, personally. As a teacher, I prefer to be in this neighbourhood and the two venues are beautiful. The Bernardins is just gorgeous. Just incredible. I don’t know, I’m torn. SIOBHAN ROSTAING: I think there is a different atmosphere because of the place. Some of the rooms are not as conducive but that’s something you have to learn to live with. Some of them are a little more conducive. I think that because it’s smaller it’s better for our students because they can participate more. But I think that’s always a frustration, it’s always going to be a frustration. Tell us a funny story or the most memorable moments from your tenure at PAMUN. DAN BIXON: Every year someone has gotten sick… but no one has gotten sick this year so far. I’m keeping my fingers crossed. Last year, a student got sick and broke the sink. Two years ago, two
students went to McDonalds and they got sick. I mean, we got lost but that’s not too funny. PAUL MOONEY: There’s too many to choose from. Our kids really come ready to do battle, so to speak. Although our kids still want to have fun, for us it’s more often little inside jokes that happen like one thing that one of our … I won’t say what she’s chairing but it’s the COP21 conference. Liza is sitting in the French restaurant we sat in the first night and she’s looking around and says ‘I just love how French Paris is…’ you know like people will say things, there’s nothing wrong with that at all. I’m teasing her because I get to. A lot of our kids, there’s things that just slip out and maybe they’re not even funny but the timing, who it was, when it happened, it just busts everybody and becomes part of the legend of that year at PAMUN. We have such a good group of kids each year and they’re bright so there’s no end to the jokes. CATHERINE LENCIONI: I think it’s nice just to see shy kids speak in public and just that satisfaction when they come back. I’m really happy that we came. I think that our two students, one is a judge in ICJ and one is in Security Council, they are really getting a good… they have a lot of experience but they just feel like they’ve accomplished something. SIOBHAN ROSTAING: “Probably the first one that I attended, one of our students who when she came into tenth grade she was very, very shy and unsure of herself. By the time that she was a senior she was… I think she spoke at the Security Council and she received a prize. So to see the evolution of our students becoming more confident in those types of settings is a real encouragement to see the change in them. And what’s really cool is that a couple weeks ago she came back and spoke to our group. Oh, our kids were laughing about the clause where a unicorn was going to come and save the world. I don’t know that wouldn’t be one of the memorable things, I don’t know.
GLOBAL STUDENT SQUARE
8
GAMES
February 15, 2016
MUNIFICENCE
Final Goodbye from Press As many have you have seen on the Buzzfeed post, no one knows what press does. Not even the press team. Most of the time, we’re in a haze and flurry of speed walking and typing our little hearts away to meet deadlines. But here is a little glimpse of all of us together, except Hamza. Maybe you’ll never find out exactly what we do, but that’s okay because #squadgoals. Photo by Kelly Hunter
Press Team Via Emojis Ana Madero Sofia Camacho Svenya Braich Lea Moukanas Caitlin Fowlds Kathleen Falconer Sonja Milekovic Henrik Elster
Hamza Sait Karya Sezener Megumi Sano Blythe Edwards Oksana Nikitenko Caroline Klaey Luigi Maruani
GAMES
Alpaca Press Admin Delegates Gavel Advocate
Notes Clause Disarmament Crisis Witness Valentine