What is ‘Model United Nations’?
Model United Nations (MUN) is a simulation of a body of the United Nations. At ETH MUN the body changes every semester, or once about every month, depending on what topics the team responsible for content chooses to discuss during the semester.
How does the simulation work?
To start, each student chooses a country to represent and is given a placard with the name of the country on it. Following this the representatives engage in formal debate on the given topic with the goal of writing and adopting a resolution (a kind of collective, formal decision) in the end. The debate is moderated by the chair(s). At ETH MUN the chair(s) are member(s) of the board of the commission.
I chose a country to represent in the Model United Nations. What do I do now?
Debate is started by motions to ‘open the debate’ and to ‘adopt the agenda’ (define the topic of debate). This is followed by opening speeches, where the representatives of each country summarize their stance on the issue at hand and voice their aspirations regarding the content of the resolution. Do not worry if you are unsure about what position your country has or what the debate is about, at ETH MUN we provide you with short guides that you can read in a couple of minutes before the debate starts, and you can use them during the debate too!
After the opening speeches (which we may decide to forego in our weekly sessions), debate proceeds on the General Speaker’s List (GSL). Raise your placard when the chair asks or put it vertically in front of you to be added to the GSL. Representatives will speak in the order they were added. Once it is your turn you have an allocated time (how long will be displayed to everyone) to speak about anything that is related to the agenda. If your time has not elapsed by the time you finish speaking, you must yield your time to the chair, to questions, or to another representative. If the GSL becomes empty (everyone on it has spoken and no representative wants to be added), the debate ends and we enter the voting procedure (we will discuss that part later in this guide).
The GSL is for general discussion, but there are other forms the debate can take. Most notable are moderated and unmoderated caucuses. The former is similar to the GSL but the agenda is restricted to a subtopic, and the debate on this subtopic is limited to a total time specified in advance (with one (1) possible extension)). An unmoderated caucus is less formal, representatives are free to move around in the room and talk with each other with no moderation for a time set also set in advance (with one (1) possible extension). It is the best format for writing draft resolutions, i.e. formalizing the measures that have been discussed. Both moderated and unmoderated caucuses can be initiated when the chair opens the floor to points or motions (e.g. “motion for a moderated caucus of 5 minutes with individual speaker time of seconds on the topic of …”). The proposed motions are then voted on by the representatives and the first one that passes (if any does pass) will determine how the next part of the debate will proceed.
You can find the full list of points and motions under “Rules of Procedure” on our website, and if you do not know something or you are just simply unsure, then you can always raise your placard and ask the chair by raising a “Point of Parliamentary Inquiry”.
Remember that in all debates you are not representing yourself, but your chosen country so please refrain from using personal pronouns (“I”) and use “we” or “the representative of…” instead.
How does the debate end?
Debate ends either when the GSL becomes empty or if a “Motion to Close Debate” passes. The committee then enters the substantive voting procedure where draft resolutions are voted on.
How are draft resolutions created and voted on?
Draft resolutions are written during the debate by the representatives of the countries. Officially any written work only becomes a draft resolution once it has enough sponsors and signatories (number set by the chair) and a “Motion to Introduce Draft Resolution” passes. After this changes can only be made via amendments during the debate (“Motion to Introduce Amendment”). Once the debate ends and the committee enters the substantive voting procedure, draft resolutions cannot be changed, they can only be voted on (either as a whole or in parts). The first draft resolution to pass becomes a resolution (ONLY ONE draft resolution is passed on each topic).
Sounds great! How do I participate?
You can find the location and time of our next session on our website or instagram, they usually take place between 7 p.m. (19:00) and 9 p.m. (21:00) on Thursday every week. Do not worry if you are inexperienced, you can just observe at first, or we can pair you up with someone more experienced, so you can represent a country together and they can show you the ropes. You can also find the invite link to our whatsapp community on our instagram and website too, where you can get the latest updates and get in contact with us directly.