Baylor Model United Nations Team Wins Outstanding Delegation Award

On November 7-10, 2024, 12 members of Baylor’s Model United Nations Team traveled to Washington, D.C., for the National Model United Nations (NMUN) Conference, where hundreds of college students from five continents simulated eight United Nations committees. These committees built on the program of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, which pursued the theme of “Leaving no one behind: acting together for the advancement of peace, sustainable development, and human dignity for present and future generations.” 

At the conference, Baylor’s team, which was named an overall Outstanding Delegation by conference staff, represented the Republic of Korea in six committees that worked on topics in pursuit of global peace, sustainable development, and human rights. In preparation for the conference, students researched and prepared position papers on two topics for each committee, and one of these topics was chosen for focused debate during the three-day conference. In these debates Baylor students worked alongside other college students from around the world, applying their research to collaboratively drafted resolutions striving to achieve global consensus on six topics: 

• Addressing Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems [LAWS] (General Assembly First);
• The Preservation of Natural Resources for Economic Development (General Assembly Second);
• Addressing Marine Plastic Pollution (United Nations Environment Assembly);
• Addressing the Transition from Relief to Development  (Economic and Social Council);
• Upholding Human Rights During Situations of Emergency Migration (International Organization for Migration); and
•  The Situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Security Council).

At the conference, students gave speeches in front of committees that ranged in size from 30 to 130 students, building coalitions to support their collaboratively drafted resolutions that were composed in working groups that were typically comprised of 15-30 students. New team member Bianca Curiel (sophomore, political science) said, “I really enjoyed getting out of my comfort zone and found that I actually enjoyed the public speaking part of conference.” Returning member David Mikalsen (senior, political science) said, “Thanks to this conference, I was able to greatly improve upon my ability to empathize with others who don’t share my views, my conflict resolution skills, and my leadership style. I also had so much fun interacting and making friends with other delegates at the conference.” Manha Asrar (sophomore, international studies) said, “ I learned the importance of collaboration and flexibility in navigating complex negotiations” and was gratified “to have been a delegate that people were comfortable sharing their ideas with.” 

In addition to the Outstanding Delegation Award, which is the highest team award given at Model UN conferences and reflects the work the team did across all six committees, six of the 12 team members received individual recognition at the conference (a full list of award winners appears below). 

While the Baylor team is always delighted to win awards (and has been named Outstanding Delegation at six out of the last seven conferences it has attended), the educational value of Model UN conferences is impossible to quantify, and is not tied to awards received. At these conferences students must possess qualities that make real-life diplomats successful -- negotiation, listening, speaking, and applying research to resolve some of the world’s most pressing humanitarian and security crises. As Darcey Warne (senior, University Scholar), the team’s head delegate for the conference, said, “This Model UN conference has taught me so much about collaboration and determination. I’m so thankful for all the wonderful delegates from around the world I was able to work with and learn from this weekend and am so proud of all of the Baylor students on the team.”

The NMUN Conference in Washington was the first of three competitive meetings Baylor’s Model UN team will attend this academic year. Later in November 2024, eight members of the team will travel to the NMUN Conference in the Galapagos Islands, where students will work on topics related to global sustainability while representing Ecuador, the Republic of Korea, and Vietnam. In April 2025, 16 Baylor team members will participate in the NMUN Conference in New York, representing Switzerland in eight committees.

Baylor’s Model UN Team is incredibly grateful for the support it receives from the Department of Political Science and the College of Arts & Sciences, which makes attendance at these conferences possible. More information about the team is available on the Baylor Model UN website or through the team's Instagram and Facebook social media platforms. 

Individual Award Winners

Outstanding Position Paper Award Winners

GA 2: Manha Asrar (sophomore, international studies) and David Mikalsen (senior, political science)

Security Council: Tanvi Sud (sophomore, biology and international studies) and Darcey Warne, head delegate (senior, University Scholar)

Outstanding Delegates in Committee

UNEA: Jazmine Fajardo (junior, political science) and Walker Snider (sophomore, English and international studies)

ABOUT THE COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES AT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY 

The College of Arts & Sciences is Baylor University’s largest academic division, consisting of 25 academic departments in the sciences, humanities, fine arts and social sciences, as well as 11 academic centers and institutes. The more than 5,000 courses taught in the College span topics from art and theatre to religion, philosophy, sociology and the natural sciences. The College’s undergraduate Unified Core Curriculum, which routinely receives top grades in national assessments, emphasizes a liberal education characterized by critical thinking, communication, civic engagement and Christian commitment. Arts & Sciences faculty conduct research around the world, and research on the undergraduate and graduate level is prevalent throughout all disciplines. Visit the College of Arts & Sciences website.