This article was written by Amber Bhutta, class of 2019.
Armed with legal pads and draft resolutions, Model United Nations (MUN) students braved the cold weather and traveled to Washington, D.C. to compete at North American Invitational Model United Nations (NAIMUN). The conference, hosted at Georgetown University Feb. 14-17, consisted of about 3,000 students from around the world competing in a variety of committees from the World Health Organization to a Provisional Government of Cuba in 1898.
“The competition at NAIMUN is incredibly tough,” senior and MUN Co-President Mikhal Ben-Joseph said. “These are the best schools in the country and in the world that come to compete at the ‘Superbowl’ of high school MUN, and they are all competing to win. The competition is extremely well-researched, seasoned in MUN and determined to succeed, which drives our team to push even harder.”
The drive Ben-Joseph described culminated in the 24 individual awards students won at the end of the conference, an impressive feat, Ben-Joseph explained, given that novices comprised much of the team.
“I think the team truly shined at this NAIMUN,” Ben-Joseph said. “We brought more novices than we ever have before, and we still gave a superstar performance across the board.”
For Ben-Joseph and her fellow MUN seniors, NAIMUN also marks their second to last conference in high school. Their final conference, National High School Model United Nations (NHSMUN) in New York City, will take place in early March.
“Leaving MUN is extremely bittersweet, but I think I speak for the team seniors when I say I have gotten a tremendous amount of happiness and fulfillment out of this activity,” Ben-Joseph said.
Best Delegate
Sofia Godoy
Daniela Velez
Mikhal Ben-Joseph
Eric Bazail
Jackson Arnberg
Aamir Lacewala
Azzara Nincevic
Alex Yang
Outstanding Delegate
Annabella Lugo
Kenzo Kimura
Rayyan Merchant
Claudia Bermudez
Harrison Krimsky
Honorable Mention
Jorge Rivera
Naila Charania
Logan Kapit
Jacob Kasner
Paul Yermish
Zaneer Mitha
Verbal Commendation
Shayaan Subzwari
Isabella Sharifi
Treasure D’Souza
Alexa Ruiz
Rohit Ramesh
Photos courtesy of Kenzo Kimura
