2024 Committees
General | Specialized | Crisis | Ad-Hoc
General Assembly
Specialized
Crisis
United Nations First General Assembly Committee (DISEC)
Head Chair: Justin Piastro
Vice Chair: Lauren Gumarang
In a world of rapid technological evolution and the pioneering of new theaters of war, DISEC is in charge of keeping tensions low and keeping the peace for billions of people around the world.
Economic and Financial Committee (ECOFIN)
Head Chair: Sid Pisharody
Vice Chair: Yash Ravipati
In 1945, the Economic and Financial Committee (ECOFIN) was established as the second of the six main General Assembly Committees of the United Nations. It is focused on macroeconomic policy questions from globalization and international partnerships, to growth and development of all member nations. This year, ECOFIN will reconvene to discuss the stabilization, international support, and advising of the situation in Sri Lanka.
Following an ongoing economic and political crisis, thousands of Sri Lankans forcefully entered the presidential palace in Colombo. This was in July. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, member of the prominent and political Rajapaksa family, was forced to flee to Singapore. Twelve days later, Ranil Wickremesinghe, an ally of the former president, was chosen to take the presidency. However, a new presidency does not serve as a panacea to all of the country’s problems. Mounting debt, a crumbling tourism industry, food and fuel shortages, skyrocketing inflation, and an unsure population means the situation in Sri Lanka is far from over.
Dragons and the Sun: The Second United Front, 1937-1945
Head Chair: William Huang
Vice Chair: William Tipton
For ten years China has been torn apart by civil war, but as the Japanese Empire begins its conquest of the mainland the Kuomintang (KMT) and Chinese Communist Party (CCP) must put aside their differences or face mutual annihilation. Can these two enemies become allies to turn back the Japanese invasion, or will their common hatred of each other spell the doom of free China.
One Small Step…: International Summit of Space Agencies (1997)
Head Chair: Justin Piastro
Vice Chair: Aaron Abrams
30 years since the ratification of the Outer Space Treaty and 6 years since the fall of the Soviet Union, the frosty relations of the Cold War are thawing. Nations across the world have begun cooperating in ways never seen before. The Russian Federation’s Roscosmos and the United States’ NASA remain the world’s preeminent Space Capable powers, commanding the largest fleets of orbit-worthy crafts on the planet. However, in the new world ushered by the collapse of the USSR and the Eastern Bloc, several new competitors have entered the race for space.
Plans are being laid for bases and colonies, mining operations on the Moon and missions to Mars. Now questions are being raised over how this new frontier will be administered; how will laws be applied? How will borders on other worlds function, if they will exist at all? Most importantly of all, how will we make sure space remains open for new discoveries and exploration? Will the stars be shut to a select few, or kept free for the world’s collective wonder? As Delegates in the One Small Step (1997) specialized committee, it will be your job to answer these questions. Either you can forward the interest of your government and secure yourself as a new space-based power, bringing the chance of the first star-war ever closer, or you can open the door to the world for the exploration of the stars, and keep space free and borderless.
Ad-Hoc JCC
Barbie Chair: Mariana Irineo
Vice-Barbie: yoyo yang
Ken Chair: Samantha Ivezich
Vice-Ken: Orlando Hill
Hints for the Ad-Hoc Topic are Below
House Un-American Activities
Head Chair: Sam Ivezich
Vice Chair: Adam Alibhoy
Established as a standing committee in 1945, the House Un-American Activities committee prominently sought to investigate and prosecute communist activity in the United States. Inquisiting anyone and everyone from prominent Hollywood actors to renowned scholars to U.S. government officials, the committee quickly became unstoppable in the landscape of the growing red scare and McCarthyism in America. Delegates will be tasked with rooting out communists and associated sympathizers at any means necessary to protect the sovereign identity of the United States in light of the growing Soviet threat. Be careful! Anyone could secretly be a puppet of Stalin himself.
General Assembly
The United Nations General Assembly serves as a staple of every Model United Nations Conference. As the main policymaking organ of the UN, the General Assembly largely serves as a representative of the UN as a whole, as well as a critical platform for discussion of a plethora of international issues. In the General Assembly, all Member States are represented and have equal vote, allowing for a mix of beliefs and solutions to modern, multifaceted issues.
Specialized Committees
A hybrid of both Crisis and General Assembly, Specialized Committees blend formats to focus on narrower topics, ranging from the modern to the historical. These committees are often fast-paced and unpredictable, challenging delegates’ skills in debate, creativity, and cooperation.
Crisis Committees
Crisis is a specialized section of Model UN that focuses on one-time crises, either historical or fictional. In order to simulate the fast-paced nature of a crisis, crisis committees have updates that communicate new changes and events that have unfolded. In addition, a unique factor called crisis notes allows delegates to take individual action without the requirement of voting. Due to these factors, crisis can change dramatically during the course of a conference, so delegates need to be flexible, creative, and able to balance the actions of the individual and the group, in order to succeed.