Rush of emotions at the Model UN

This last week I attended a Model United Nations conference. 

This was held at the Palais des Nations Unies and the Telecommunications Union Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland on Global Climate Change, Sustainable Development and other global issues facing the world. 

The three-day conference was a simulation of the real United Nations session but at the  secondary school level. 

Over 400 dedicated and distinguished students from Asia, Africa, the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East were in attendance. 

It was truly a life changing experience. 

The opening ceremony was held in the iconic Human Rights and Alliance of Civilization Room of the Palais des Nations Unies.

My two-person delegation was one of 10 delegations selected to be featured at the opening ceremony. My co-delegate and I sat in the front row, a stone’s throw away from the seat of Michael Møller, the acting head of the United Nations Office at Geneva.  

Darshbir Singh Chahal (my co-delegate) and I represented the European Union but we were representing Switzerland in the opening ceremony because our school, the Ecole d’Humanité is in Switzerland. 

Bermuda

Of course, my Bermuda/Mauritanian international background was clearly noted by the attendants. I worked with students from all over the world. The work at the conference was nothing compared to the work I did prior to the conference. 

During the first day of the conference, I worked with other delegations to draft UN resolutions. My efforts were focused on a particular resolution designed to mitigate the negative economic impact of global climate change. I penned a good portion of the resolution. 

During the second day, the other delegations and I debated ad nauseam on the different resolutions.  The deliberation involved making amendments and voting on those amendments. 

Two draft resolutions were tabled in the conference that addressed the negative economic impact of global climate change. 

In the end, my proposed resolution passed with the parts I had written not being amended at all.

I had worked closely in particular with delegates from Singapore and Saudi Arabia, who were representing South Africa and Brazil to draft the resolution. 

Words are not enough to describe the rush of emotions from the various events.

One of those was when my resolution passed, another when  my co-delegate and I silenced the American and Australian delegation about the international Carbon Tax proposed in the resolution in debate.

I was feeling a rush of emotion when I walked into the iconic Room 20 at the UN in Geneva and when the Ferney Model UN General Assembly applauded my delegation. 

I count myself so fortunate to have worked with so many brilliant students from all around the world. 

Ultimately, I hope to attend the conference again next year and do it all over again. Human Rights, diplomacy, and development in the third world are topics close to my heart. 

Kebir Gadio is the son of Cheryl Packwood, who is Bermuda’s overseas representative to the US.