With the second official Jaguar model UN (JAGMUN) conference all wrapped up, another year of aspiring young politicians have taken the stage to hone their skills in the conference room. Battling different Broward County schools, it is certain that each practice and conference will only refine these talented students.
The JAGMUN is a club at Pembroke Pines Charter High School (PPCHS) meant to encourage students interested in UN conferences to participate in a friendly and welcoming environment. “JAGMUN was created on a foundation of increasing accessibility and inclusivity to the model UN space,” says senior and Co-President Sanya Gidwani. “This conference was started so people who are new to the UN model have a safe space to learn more about [it].”
Junior and Vice Chair Arianna Morillo continues the thought, saying, “Before we started [the conference], we did a small presentation teaching specific [skills]. We also allowed them to ask questions if they were confused. We want them to actually learn how to do this stuff.”
This past conference took place on the last weekend of September, spanning 18 and a half hours over the course of 2 days. During this time, 4 sessions were held where attendees were split into two separate groups.
The first event, and what the debaters consider the more fun of the two, is called the crisis committee. This is where the students act as characters, sometimes even fictional, as part of small boards or organizations.
This is effectively a very elaborate roleplay, with its defining characteristic being out-of-room tactics, where delegates pass notes to establish connections between themselves. They do so to take advantage of vulnerabilities other delegates have made, all adding up to a high-stakes challenge with an interesting plot.
The second part of JAGMUN was the general assembly (GA) committee, which can be summed up as the more realistic conference of the two. Junior and Head Chair Kayra Arik says, “GA is more about battling real-world events.” When people think of model UN as rigid, this is the event that they are most likely picturing.
The delegates now act as representatives for different countries, presenting and discussing different issues that affect the world as a whole. This allows the students to really simulate being in a UN conference, and develops some real-world skills such as speaking and research.
The delegates themselves enjoy both events, with Junior and Vice Chair Adrian Pastor even saying that “It’s like escaping from school. Instead of stressing about work and assignments, we can come here on the weekend and have fun.”
With this being only the second JAGMUN ever held, the club has high expectations and goals for itself. These aspiring delegates showcased and refined their skills at the conference, and as they continue to do so, the club itself will only grow and evolve.
