LIMUN 2013 was publicized as the biggest and most innovative conference in the UK. Organized by all MUN societies of London the venue of this year was the well-known Imperial College. Our delegation with 5 delegates comprising Andreas, Antonio, Hejo, Simeon and Vince, was one of the smallest but we were sure to be able leave a mark. Our expectations were great and we were all enthusiastically looking forward for a fruitful and enriching weekend! This year 1500 delegates from all over the world gathered together on the 15th of February. The conference included 24 committees and for the first time one committee in Spanish and another in French.
The opening ceremony was highly publicized and being in the Westminster Central Hall we felt all the history which took place in the this room. The ceremony started with an excellent ballet performance of a beautiful South American dancer.Also the speakers were motivated and their speeches interesting. But the gran finale had still to come. The secretary-general held her speech at the end of the conference. She was able to cheer up the atmosphere with a terrible performance. Badly prepared she praised her passed achievements and showed a rare narcissism, finalized by some beautiful smiles trying to cover everything. Fortunately her speech didn’t last long and we could start the LIMUN 2013!
The conference itself began for all of us greatly. We got involved very fast and could play the role of our corresponding delegations energetically. In every committee we could speak out even with a small country like the Comoros or an ambiguous Iran. The first session passed very fast and we prepared us for the first night out! We had the luck to go to together with Oliver Schmidt to the first social event in the Imperial College itself. Oliver, who was the former president of MUN ETH, is currently pursuing his Master at Imperial College and joined us. The party itself never lifted off and we were happy to go with Oliver and many new friends to a party organized by the students of Imperial in on of the dorms. We had all great fun and learned how British students enjoy a Friday night. Being aware that the next would be the most important for the conference, we left in good mood at the top of the peak of the party.
We all woke up early the next day in our hotel room and started Saturday’s sessions full of energy. The day flew by just with a super fast 15 minutes break for the lunch and continued our debates. We found compromising solutions, argued when needed and started our draft resolutions. In all of them the print of ETH MUN could be seen with well-grounded facts and effective solutions. Our experience from the weekly training-sessions at ETH helped us and we got always involved in the most exciting discussions.
The highlight of the day was then the ball in an excellent venue of the Grand Connaught. The ball started with special exhibitions including Capoeira fights, Break-Dance and traditional Thai dances. During the ball we had the opportunity to socialize with other delegates and release with dancing the little left energy after a whole day of sessions. Everybody of us enjoyed the night which we will never forget.
The last day passed as fast as the others, even being tired of the night before. Everybody of us got involved in writing the final resolution successfully and ended the conference of the own committee with a big applause. All of us will always remember this few days in London happily, having participated enthusiastically in the debates and enjoyed the evenings with the other delegates. Unfortunately nobody of us could attend the closing ceremony. Our delegate participating in the African Union, Antonio Cherubini, defending the Comoros’ interest, has been lauded by his chair for applying excellent diplomatic skills in guiding the committee to a successful resolution and was awarded for his hard work with the Best Delegate Award. We all look forward in participating to the next conference and to get involved in new exciting discussions.
by Antonio Cherubini