On 30 March 2024, MFU Model United Nations led by students of the School of Social Innovation hosted its first ever MUN conference at Puang-Chompoo Room, M-Square building, Mae Fah Luang university. The MUN conference of the academic year 2023 consisted of the General Assembly and three branches under the United Nations Economic and Social Council.
In the opening session of the MUN conference, there was an opening speech by Dr. Nichan Singhaputargun, a lecturer from the School of Social Innovation and the advisor of the MFU MUN, followed by the welcoming speeches from the Presidents of MFU MUN, Mr. Papangkorn Bunsophap and Mr. Tula Kusurom, as well as an overview of the conference respectively.
In the morning session, student delegates representing 21 countries discussed pressing issues under the three main branches of the UN ECOSOC: the Economic branch on the topic of “Economic Policy Uncertainty Towards the Roles of Economic Well-being”, the Social branch on the topic of “Generation Z and the Empowerment of Gender Inclusion”, and the Environment branch on the topic of “Climate Change and Its Implications for Green Transformation”.
The student delegates in each branch presented their position paper, followed by discussions led by the Chairs, Secretaries, Rapporteurs, and Facilitators of each branch. The morning session was filled with fruitful discussions and finally concluded after finalizing the consensus (policy agreed on) by the heads of each committee.
In the afternoon sessions, all delegates joined the United Nations General Assembly under the topic of “Global Humanitarian Crisis and International Cooperation towards the future”, led by the President of the General Assembly, Secretary-General, and the Rapporteur. Student delegates presented position papers respectively according to their assigned countries. Various humanitarian issues including transnational conflicts, extreme climate, food security, and social inequality were discussed by the delegates along with solutions proposed in accordance with the policies of each representative nation-states.
Following this discussion, the delegates voted on the resolution. Then, the Rapporteur of the General Assembly presented the report, summarizing the GA committee along with the Rapporteurs representing each branch of the ECOSOC committee. Finally, the President of the General-Assembly gave his closing remarks to mark the end of the GA, concluding the MFU MUN Conference 2024 successfully.
All in all, this MUN conference provided a valuable experience for students to learn more about the principles of the UN in dealing with global issues, as well as to enhance their research skills, formal writing, public speaking and collaboration skills necessary to become global citizens who can make a positive change in the world.
