Chemnitz NMUN delegation among the best teams in the world

At this years National Model United Nations conference - the world's largest student online simulation of the United Nations - the TU Chemnitz team received eight awards, more than ever before

With eight awards, the student delegation of Technische Universität Chemnitz is among the best delegations that participated in this year’s National Model United Nations (NMUN) conference from March 28 to 31, 2021. For the first time, the conference was held exclusively online instead of in person in New York as usual. More than 1,500 students from around the world represented the perspectives of their assigned countries in various United Nations (UN) committees at the world's largest online student conference. During the four-day simulation, this year's 13 delegates from Chemnitz represented the Republic of Angola, delivered speeches in English, the conference language, negotiated compromises, and both drafted and passed resolutions.

NMUN gives out three types of awards: the award for the overall performance of the delegation during the simulation in all committees, for each committee an award for the preparation and for each committee an award for the performance during the simulation. This year, TU Chemnitz received a total of eight awards, all belonging to the highest category. Next to LMU München, TU Chemnitz was the only German university being presented with the "Outstanding Delegation" award, the best possible award. The delegation was also honored in five committees with an "Outstanding Position Paper" award, which acknowledges excellent preparation of the topics discussed in a committee by delegates. Among them were the General Assembly Economic and Financial Committee (GA2), the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA), the 2010 Review Conference of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT Review Conference), the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), and the United Nations World Food Program (WFP). An award for performance in the committee itself was bestowed upon the Chemnitz delegation in the World Food Program and the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

"After NMUN 2020 was cancelled at short notice, we are even more pleased that this year's conference could be completed so successfully in a new format," says Jakob Landwehr, Faculty Advisor of the Chemnitz delegation and research associate of the Chair of International Politics at TU, which is organizing the NMUN project. The project is financially supported by the Otto Wolff Stiftung. The TU Chemnitz is the only Saxon university that has participated in this year's NMUN conference - for the 17th time.

The pre-simulation trip to Washington and New York, where final preparations for the conference are made, also had to take place online this year. Consequently, in the week ahead of the conference, the delegation met online with the German Embassy in Washington, D.C., the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in New York and the Permanent Mission of the Federal Republic of Germany to the United Nations.

Keyword: UN simulation "National Model United Nations

The National Model United Nations conference is a simulation game older than the UN itself. The predecessors of today's conference already simulated the League of Nations in 1927. So-called "Model United Nations" (MUNs) are now held by schools and universities in over 40 countries around the world. Among these numerous UN conferences, NMUN in New York is the largest and most professional event. In addition, NMUN conference participants are allowed to gather in the traditional General Assembly Hall at the UN Headquarters in New York where the closing ceremony takes place. In 2021, the NMUN conference was held online. The main goal of all simulation conferences is to deal with the positions of other countries and cultures in an open and unbiased way, to experience the complexities of international issues and negotiations, but also to demonstrate and acquire negotiating skills and diplomatic sensitivity.

Since 2004, delegations of TU Chemnitz have participated in NMUN and have already received several awards. TU Chemnitz is the only Saxon university that accepts this challenge year after year. In the past, delegations of TU Chemnitz represented the following countries: Macedonia, Georgia, Estonia, Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Namibia, Ukraine, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Libya, Mali, Chad, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Senegal and in 2021 the Republic of Angola.

Homepage of the Chemnitz NMUN team: http://www.tu-chemnitz.de/nmun

For further information please contact Jakob Landwehr, e-mail jakob.landwehr@phil.tu-chemnitz.de.

(Author: Jakob Landwehr)

Mario Steinebach
13.04.2021

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