Hundreds of thousands of students worldwide take part every year in Model Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ. They research national positions, draft resolutions and hold debates. But the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ isn¡¯t just about governments and processes. It¡¯s about people.
The Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ was created to help people. And it¡¯s also made up of people.
Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ diplomats and staff work hard to make our world a better place. And their stories can give Model Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ participants a better picture of what the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ is really about.
That¡¯s why the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Department of Global Communications (DGC) launched ¡°The Real United Nations: An Interactive Briefing Series for Model Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵs¡±.
Following a pause in in-person sessions, due to COVID-19, ¡°The Real United Nations¡± traveled to the NYC iSchool¡¯s Model Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ club in New York on 7 June.
Participating briefers included two Deputy Chefs de Cabinet from the Office of the President of the General Assembly ¨C Saada Hassan, who previously served as acting Deputy Permanent Representative of Djibouti to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ, and Fernando Marani, who previously worked at the Permanent Mission of Argentina to the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ. The third panelist was Brenden Varma of DGC.
Following the session, Saada said, ¡°I¡¯ve worked in New York for a number of years. But this was my first time visiting a local high school. It was rewarding to interact with young New Yorkers and share my experiences as an African woman working in diplomacy.¡±
Fernando added, ¡°I was impressed by how engaged the students were ¨C and by the insightful questions they asked. Seeing the level of young people¡¯s interest in international affairs reminded me of why the work we do at the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ is so important.¡±
According to a survey completed after the briefing, 96 per cent of respondents agreed that their understanding of what it was like to work at the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ had increased, and 76 per cent said they would apply what they had learned to study-related or Model Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ activities.
