Author: Sarah

Editor: Noah

Graphics: Asma

Those who have yet to experience the excitement of Model United Nations (MUN) have missed out on engaging events, thrilling debates, a welcoming community, and an inspiring sense of belonging. 

The MUN season consists of collaborative workshops and practice debates to prepare students for formal conferences. Participants represent assigned countries in specialized committees during these conferences, working together to address pressing global issues. Delegates debate and vote on resolutions they believe should be implemented, mirroring the dynamics of an actual United Nations forum. 

IASAS MUN builds on the core principles of MUN but stands out by welcoming a plethora of schools, including participants from non-IASAS schools. As one ISM delegate described, “IASAS MUN is the culmination of MUN in its most creative and exciting form.” The unique blend of cosmopolitan culture and diversity makes this event truly special, and this year, ISM has the privilege of hosting it right on campus. 

This raises an interesting question: will ISM be able to meet expectations of performing well while being a good host school? In 2022, three of our delegates received an award at IASAS, but last year, only one did. Additionally, compared to local schools like Ateneo, MGC New Life Christian Academy, or Xavier School, which compete regularly in international conferences, ISM’s team typically only attends smaller conferences like LOCALS, the Chinese International School Manila MUN event, and Southville conferences. Meanwhile, ISM only participates in two international conferences, namely The Hague International Model United Nations (THIMUN) in Singapore and IASAS. In this sense, ISM might be perceived as slightly behind other schools, both in preparation and competitiveness.

However, despite this perception, ISM’s team still achieves considerable success, with nearly 75% of ISM delegates receiving awards at these local conferences. This achievement does not account for the number of ISM students who hold organizational roles within the conference, such as chairs who manage and oversee debates. By eleventh or twelfth grade, many experienced delegates often shift to these non-debating positions, which makes them ineligible to receive awards. For example, this year, ISM MUN secretaries-general Niyanthri and Mika will lead in organizing the conference, while last year’s sole award recipient, Marijn, will be the International Court of Justice (ICJ) vice president. 

One delegate noted that ISM’s MUN team is “comparable and strongly rivals other international schools in terms of how good its delegates are.” On the other hand, another ISM delegate remarked that the team is “generally well-trained, except we do not have much extensive conference practice.” The delegate added that practice debates only cover main submitter speeches and points of information (POIs), which is only a portion of the whole MUN conference. This style of practice debates leaves members not feeling fully ready to attend conferences.

While ISM’s practice debates may leave some feeling unprepared, the selection process for IASAS is rigorous and competitive. Delegates must participate in three selective debates where they are assessed on skill and dedication—determinants of whether they qualify for one of the traveling teams. Out of the club’s total of roughly 140 people, only 25 are selected for THIMUN and a mere 14 students are chosen to represent ISM at IASAS. This selective process ensures that only the most skilled and committed delegates represent ISM on the international stage.

In terms of commitment and dedication, ISM shows no signs of weakness. However, a potential drawback lies in the school’s highly IASAS-centric norm, wherein delegates primarily train for only one season.  As a result, it appears that the main purpose of training revolves around solely preparing delegates for THIMUN and IASAS, rather than training for other conferences throughout the year. One delegate anonymously commented that while this year’s team is strong, “the seasonal nature of our club, in contrast to the year-round dedication many other schools ask of their delegates, somewhat inhibits us from performing to our full potential.” They added that attending only a maximum of two to three conferences per school year leaves the team wondering how the delegation would fare if they participated in five or six”. These concerns raise the question of how competitive the school team could become with a shift toward more consistent year-round training and participation in more conferences.  

Another delegate, however, mentioned how ISM does not necessarily lack in the overall scheme of things. “I think it can be better put that we, like other clubs, still have fronts which we need to reflect and improve on,” they suggested. However, they also pointed out that during conferences, “MUN can be a little more biased than sports, per se, in that some chairs [can] pick friends or delegates from their own school [over] others who may perhaps be more deserving.”

Despite these concerns, the team truly believes that they will excel this year. As one delegate expressed, “We’ve practiced a lot and are highly prepared to host IASAS and make our school proud.” Aside from winning, another delegate emphasized,  “This year, the focus isn’t so much on how many awards we win, but on hosting a great and successful conference.” Regardless, they believe that the team’s debaters have become more skilled, especially a few juniors, making it exciting to see how well they perform. 

With IASAS MUN just around the corner, our delegates asserted that they do not feel any additional pressure regarding awards while hosting. One of our MUN secretaries stated, “[On logistics], sure, but I think I can speak for the rest of the ISM MUN secretariat when I say that we just want to cultivate a conference that will be remembered by all those who attend it.” The ISM MUN secretariat has invested countless hours into IASAS MUN 2024, with special recognition to Mika, Niyanthri, Mr. Aitken, Mr. McCarthy, Mr. Hobbins, Ms. Hillman, and Sir Timothy. They are committed to ensuring that all attendees create great memories and form lasting friendships during the event.

One of our delegates quoted Einstein when they said, “Learn from yesterday, live for today, and hope for tomorrow.” They stated that ultimately, the team can only wish for everything to go well for everyone, beyond the determined preparations that they’ve done in their personal corners.

In terms of whether ISM MUN is truly lacking, perhaps the answer might lie in preparation time and techniques. However, when it comes to hard work, commitment, and dedication, our delegates are true representatives of the best of what MUN has to offer.