Last week, 22 seventh and eighth grade students traveled from Charles River School (CRS) in Dover to attend the Global Classrooms International Model United Nations Middle School Conference in New York City. At this event, more than 1,850 middle school students collaborated to attempt to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems.
The theme of this year’s conference was “The Art of Diplomacy,” and conference organizers emphasized collaboration, compromise, and a win-win approach over aggressive tactics and win-lose solutions. CRS students represented The Republic of Korea and participated in 11 different UN committees, where they discussed topics ranging from “International Migration” to “The Production, Use and Trade of GMOs.”
The Closing Ceremony was held in the General Assembly Hall at the United Nations. CRS students Philip Spyrou and Carson Moellering received an Honorable Mention for their work on the Commission of Narcotic Drugs (CND) committee.
When asked about the recent trip, seventh grader Theoni Ethridge remarked, “It was super cool to meet people from so many different places; for many, English was not their first language.”
Eighth grader Austin Qu added, “One amazing aspect of this conference was meeting people from Lebanon, China and New Jersey. Kids made friends with people who live across the river and across the ocean.”
Eighth grader Caroline Early summed it up this way: “The people were from all around the world, and you wouldn’t meet them unless you had an experience like Model UN.”
Model UN at CRS is an incredibly rich and layered opportunity that enables students to enhance their understanding of the world through the study of geography, current events, history, diplomacy, and public speaking. This is the ninth year that CRS has participated in this three-day conference.
