Hurst’s Model United Nations (MUN) team attended Reigate’s twenty-seventh annual conference (ReiMUN27) last Saturday, in what was a thrilling day of both development and expertise from the debutant LVI.
This being our first conference, the LVI had little idea what to expect, however all that followed was an excellent embodiment of what Hurst MUN aims to achieve over the coming years.
To start the day, we were greeted by the infamous flag raising ceremony; our team’s first exposure to the rich culture of this MUN community. While nerves started to build, we were all led to our separate committee rooms where we were each allocated separate world issues/topics to discuss, debate, and attempt to have a prepared resolution passed on said topic, aiming to benefit our allocated country. Across the year-group, we were split into delegations for Russia, Finland, and Sweden.
A memorable feature of this part for me, and the same goes for everyone else, was the lobbying section—we were each given forty-five minutes to, by any means, convince other foreign delegates to sign our resolution. Should it get enough votes (roughly ten), it would then be put forward for amendments and then a vote. What was interesting about this is that it showed each individual’s character, revealing how they carry themselves and how they each go about persuading.
As the structure of the day became clearer to us, our contributions representing Hurst increased massively. Excellent teamwork between our Swedish representatives, Eloise Allen (Sweden, SOCEM) & Maddie Walker (Finland, SOCEM) raised intriguing points. Our very own Henry Gadsden (ECOFIN, Russia) and Seb Leanord (Crisis Committee, Russia) earned 2nd and 1st in their committees. It was an incredibly proud moment for all us peers and the College, as it really demonstrated how far our delegates developed throughout the course of the day, and how their increase in confidence allowed them to shine.
An honourable mention goes to Bas Bush (Crisis Committee, Sweden), who not only had his resolution passed from his committee with minimal amendments, but had it progress to the General Assembly—the only point at which all five hundred (give or take) participants were gathered in the same space. With all eyes on him, he handled the pressure and provided the rest of the assembly with a thrilling debate, and which many deemed the main talking point of the day.
Overall, ReiMUN27 was an incredible experience for the future of Hurst MUN, and all are thoroughly looking forward to our next conference at Brentwood!
Written by Nathanael A, Student Head of MUN
