"We hereby call upon..."
Youth take charge at Model U.N.
SAN ANTONIO, TX—When Elise Lopez, 17, prepared to represent Iran at the Model United Nations conference in San Antonio, she didn't just hop on the Internet to study Iran's websites. She ate at Iranian restaurants, watched Iranian films, and made conversation with Iranian professors and citizens living in her city. She researched Iran's voting patterns and followed current events in the Middle Eastern news. When it came time for her advocate for Iran on United Nations issues—from the International Court of Justice to the United Nations Development Fund for Women—she was prepared.
Elise is a student at the International School of the Americas (ISA). This ISA is not to be confused with the School of the Americas, the embattled military training school for Latin American soldiers based in Fort Benning, Georgia. Rather, it is an innovative, public "high school of choice" with an international affairs curriculum, serving 450 students from around San Antonio. Students at ISA are required to travel internationally and learn skills of intercultural communication and negotiation. And, every sophomore must serve as a delegate to the Model United Nations San Antonio (MUNSA) conference sponsored by the school.
The MUNSA event is the largest high school student-run conference west of the Mississippi: as a simulation, it offers a forum in which academic, leadership, and interpersonal skills combine as students problem-solve about our world's most pressing concerns. This year marked the tenth anniversary of San Antonio's conference, and attendance was at peak: eight hundred students came from cities and towns in Mexico and Texas.
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Striving for consensus on global issues Like Elise, these students spend months preparing to tackle the most difficult issues facing the global community. Topics for this year's conference, held in November, ranged from "Effect of Globalization on Indigenous Peoples" to "How to Write a World Bank Loan Proposal." Some touch close to home, like "Addressing the Threat of Fundamentalism in Educational Systems," and others range into distant conflicts, like "Territorial Dispute (The Republic of Congo vs. France)." Effective resolutions require not only deep research, but also learning to model the mindset and values of an entirely different nation. This is an international education curriculum that demands direct, hands-on engagement. Strict adherence to parliamentary procedure helps students integrate their differing viewpoints. Using the formal language of the United Nations, they seek resolutions that all members of a committee can vote upon. And, if there's an intractable conflict, delegates don't bang heads. Instead, they divide into different subgroups and create different papers, which are then voted on. "The first thing that's emphasized is diplomatic language," says ISA student and Secretary General Sam Stoeltje. "We're trying to reach a common decision." Phillip Baltuskonis, 17, served as Director General this year. He is passionate about physics and calculus, but plans to pursue a career in international affairs. "It's really incredible to see how quickly students mature when they are doing something that feels important. And it's not just liberals that get involved. It's also conservatives such as I. We all have to build up a huge level of tolerance and respect for other people's opinions-and to realize that they do have relevant points." The equalizing effects of parliamentary debate also strike Elise Lopez, who served as Undersecretary General of Internal Affairs this year. "When you are in a room, you represent a country. You don't represent your gender or your own beliefs. That really makes everyone equal; it removes barriers like boy-girl competition and different races and economic backgrounds. All these things get wiped out," she says.
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Communication is the essence
Trent Rasor, Undersecretary General of External Affairs, relates, "When I first came, I had a limited idea of how international politics worked. It seemed like it was motivated by trade: one country wanted one thing economically, and another country wanted another. From Model U.N., I learned that it is a lot more complicated than resource management: communication and willingness to act are huge factors."
Trent had good reason to focus on communication, as his job entailed coordinating arrangements between twenty schools, six hundred delegates, and several city offices prior to the conference. Like his efforts, almost all of the work to arrange, promote, and execute the conference is done by students in the Secretariat-from choosing topics to presenting awards on the last day. This year, the coveted "Best Country" award went to a group of Mexican students from The American School Foundation of Monterrey, who represented France.
How do high school students get trained to hold a confab which could overwhelm even the most seasoned event planner? They go to the United Nations office itself, in Manhattan, to learn from the experts. At the annual Model United Nations Leadership Summit, actual U.N. delegates from different nations address the students and give them briefings. MUN veterans and professors from various disciplines instruct participants in training others, writing resolutions, debating, and research.
When the ISA students return home, teams choose the topics for next year's councils and then research and write "background papers." They also begin tremendous legwork: arranging catering for hundreds, forming security teams for the conference venue, and communicating with delegates. They must work budgetary miracles and seek reduced rates for services so that the cost of $40 per delegate covers three meals a day and all expenses.
As with many successful student-led ventures, an inspired teacher is quietly present in the background. Sponsoring teacher Russell Rowton's formula is simple: "You set the bar high and tell them they can do anything, and they almost always will."
Holistic understandings and fresh innovation
When the gavel falls and the committee room doors swing shut, intense work begins: delegates must present their country's positions, debate, and reach a resolution that provides recommendations for future action. To ensure a mutual decision-making process, no resolutions can be written before the committee group work convenes.
As with the best student-led endeavors, the field is wide open for fresh ideas and innovation. Student Phillip Baltuskonis has represented France, Germany, the United States, Lithuania, and Thailand during his years in the Model United Nations, and this expertise inspired him to include a committee never before handled on the high school level: The International Atomic Energy Agency. "It has been a big topic in the past sixty years, and in my opinion it is becoming a greater issue with the rise of nuclear power in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. I thought it would be useful to run that committee, and students loved it. The delegates were eating up the debates. Debates were constant, they never hit a bump," Baltuskonis says.
For world citizens prepared to handle global problems, you could not find more competent candidates. According to ISA senior and Secretary General Sam Stoeltje, "MUNSA works to globally educate people, make them aware of issues that are slighted in the U.S. media, and get a more holistic understanding of what's going on in the rest of the world."
Click below for sample position papers written by 2005 MUNSA delegates on issues of international debate:
How to write a World Bank loan and sample proposal
Rebuilding the regions affected by the tsunami
The International School of the Americas, San Antonio, TX. The International School of the Americas is a small, autonomous school located on the grounds of a large, comprehensive high school in San Antonio, Texas. Originally founded as a professional development school for Trinity University, with a focus on helping young people to understand the implications of NAFTA and to prepare for international jobs, the school's mission has since significantly broadened. Today the school seeks to produce students who are truly "global citizens."
IAS is part of a growing network of international schools being developed by the Asia Society, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The schools promote students' knowledge and understanding of world regions and international issues, the ability to communicate in languages other than English (especially Asian languages), and the capacity to work, live, and learn with others from different cultural backgrounds.
The George Lucas Educational Foundation and Asia Society have together produced a DVD and action kit focused on improving international studies in American schools, titled "A World Class Education." To obtain a copy, click here.