Bro. Jack Ventura, SM, Ministry Lead of MFEP and Director of Mission Integration at Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory, Hollywood, FL, sends us this update.Â
Goal # 2 of the Marianist Family Encounter Project states that we will promote Justice, Peace,
and the Integrity of Creation. The Action Platform of Laudato Si' (#3) states that we engage in all avenues that foster ecological economics. From January 10 through January 14, 2024, Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory sent a delegation to attend the Columbia Model United Nations Conference and Exposition (CMUNCE).
This year, The Model United Nations Club (Model UN) traveled to New York City to participate
in the annual Columbia Model United Nations Conference and Exposition hosted by Columbia
University. Twenty-two students participated as diplomats and delegates at this prestigious
conference, where over 800 students from around the country converged to represent their
schools.
Our Model UN Conference experience started on the Columbia University Campus. Our CMCP students represented our educational institution on different committees, which either involved representing a country that addresses various public health, international trade, and
development topics or participating in a "crisis" committee. Crisis committees set up a scenario in which each student involved takes a specific role and works to address a severe
problem/crisis, with each committee either based on real-world problems (the war on drugs,
NCAA college football), historical events (The Fall of Rome, the outbreak of World War I), or
even fictional scenarios from famous characters or books (Super Mario World, The Hunger
Games). Before the conference, our students prepared for their topics for weeks, then gave
speeches and worked with students from other schools to formulate resolutions requiring
compromise related to the topic at hand.
Two delegation members were selected to participate in the impromptu crisis committee
midnight session. Kathlyn L., Class of 2024, shared, "I got a knock on my hotel room door
asking for me, and when I answered, they gave me an invitation for the midnight crisis. The
emergency committee meeting was to resolve a political leadership crisis. The session dealt
with a deposed king who returned to the city and wanted to be king again, dividing the city into two parts. After discernment, conversation, and compromise, our committee was able to avoid the crisis around 1:30 AM."
Our delegation had the unique experience of visiting the official mission for the nation of Qatar and the mission for the World Health Organization (WHO) just minutes away from the official United Nations Headquarters. Our students met with WHO and Qatar diplomats, asking questions about their everyday operations and the challenges of promoting justice, peace, and ecological economics. They also learned about the details regarding a diplomatic career path.
No visit to New York City would be complete without visiting some of the iconic cultural sites such as Grand Central and Pennsylvania Stations, Madison Square Garden, Times Square, Rockefeller Center, Wall Street, and the Nation 9/11 Memorial and Museum; and, course, sharing in the culinary delights of Chinatown and Little Italy.
Model UN club students of Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory traveled to New York City to participate in the annual Columbia Model United Nations Conference and Exposition (CMUNCE) hosted by Columbia University. Twenty-two of our Lions participated as diplomats and delegates at this prestigious conference.
View a video slideshow of pictures below: