By Brian Wheeler
The United Nations General Assembly met on BYU campus Saturday in the form of the BYU Model United Nations; a conference for area high school students.
?It?s an interesting opportunity to go to every conference we can,? said Aaron Albro of Brighton High School. ?And BYU is a different experience than most of the conferences we attend.?
Ana Loso, in her third year as the BYUMUN conference education director, said there are hundreds of model United Nations programs around the world. She said BYU?s program is not associated with any other national program, however. Loso said BYU creates their own program which draws the greatest number of participants of the three Utah simulations. She said 58 countries were represented by 22 schools and about 600 students at Saturday?s 15th annual BYUMUN.
?We know what our country would want; it seems logical to us, and often it might be the best option,? Loso said. ?But it is great for these students to have an opportunity to think like Cuba does or like North Korea would, ?Why do they think the way they think, and how can you argue in their favor???
Loso said the students only discuss real issues the UN is either discussing now, has discussed in the past or will discuss this calendar year.
?They?re based on factual information.? Loso said, ?The only thing that is imagined is the simulation of the UN. We discuss solutions to the real problems.?
Miranda Lindburg of Brighton High School said she likes BYU?s MUN conference because it is close to home.
?Even though it?s a small conference, it?s a great experience,? Lindburg said.
Linburg and Albro represented France on the UN Security Council. The council discussed such issues as humanitarian and military aid for Sudan and the African region.
?Conflicts can be resolved by compromise,? said John Armstrong, a Chinese delegate from Woods Cross High School. ?What China would like to see is a compromise for Sudan.?
The BYUMUN staff is primarily made up of BYU undergraduates who are enrolled in the MUN preparation course, IAS 351R. BYU students enrolled in the class organize and prepare a delegation to compete nationally against other universities.
Drew Ludlow, head delegate for BYU?s MUN team, is in his third year of MUN competition. Ludlow said the high school conference is an integral part of the process for his team. He said he believes the conference not only serves as a great experience for the high school students but as an important training for his delegation which will be competing at the New York nationals in March.
Students in the MUN prep class also provide regional training workshops in parliamentary procedure, persuasion, diplomacy and resolution writing for the high schools in preparation for the conference. Loso said they try to provide as much support as they can to the schools. She said some of the schools are just beginning an MUN program and it can be difficult to get started. BYU also conducts one practice mock session MUN in November for the students to attend.
?I hope that have developed a sense of what it is to be a citizen of the world,? Loso said. ?Not just a citizen of Utah or a citizen of Provo, but to be a citizen of the world and know what their responsibilities are as such. I hope they?ll have that desire and that knowledge.'
The conference closed with an awards ceremony for the participants in the WSC Ballroom.