The Conference
In the middle of our MUIMUN conference are the debates. But there is a lot more to this exciting weekend!
Workshops
Get ready for MUIMUN
Committees
MUIMUN 2021 is back! This year’s motto:
Meeting Halfway – Risks and Benefits of Compromise
May 13th – 16th
Committees
Security Council
Cyberterrorism and Cyberattacks in conflicted countries
Drug cartels and their arising influence on governments
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing
Curbing the threat from antimicrobial resistance to animal and human health
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
Female Genital Mutilation as a major threat to Global Health
Combating the Consequences of Trade War in the Global South
Offline-Committee:
Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee (SOCHUM)
Ensuring accessible water: Discussing the commercialization of water
Racial Discrimination as an impediment to sustainable development
The Board
Security Council
Andrei Pankratov is a 21-year-old college student from Tallinn, Estonia, currently studying Politics and Governance at the University of Tartu. His passion for Model United Nations conferences started at the age of 12 with the Estonian Model United Nations, where he was the youngest participant at the time. He continued participating in Model United Nations conferences as a delegate for five years, receiving Outstanding and Best Delegate awards. As a delegate, Andrei got the opportunity to participate in MUN conferences in Ukraine, Belgium, and the United States. After passing chair training in Estonia, Andrei became an aspiring chair in the Estonian MUN community, participating in conferences both in Tallinn and Tartu, as well as gaining international experience in the United States and Italy. Along with Model United Nations conferences, Andrei also participated in global education training and international seminar, becoming involved with the Estonian National Commission for UNESCO youth group. Apart from debating and global education, Andrei’s experience includes participation in local politics. Having served as a member of the Tallinn Youth City Council and the Estonian Youth Assembly, Andrei gained invaluable experience which fueled his passion for politics, largely inspiring his academic career choice. Andrei has also been involved in the international student movement, having participated in the International Student Festival in Trondheim and taking part in student exchange networks. Right now Andrei focuses largely on his second-year studies, with some of the most interesting topics for him being international relations and political philosophy. He continues to take part in MUN conferences in Europe, all while being the Secretary General of the leading Model in his home country. Andrei hopes that MUIMUN will be his most challenging undertaking yet, where he will assume the role of a Chair in the Security Council.
Fernando is a 21-year-old student originally from Salamanca, Spain, where he is pursuing a Double Degree in Law and Business Administration at the Octa Centennial Universidad de Salamanca. Currently, he is on a one-year Erasmus exchange at ESSEC Business School in Paris and last year he took another exchange at Universidad Complutense de Madrid, while interning at a technology-related company. He has prior MUN experience as a delegate in MUNUSAL, at the 2016, 2018 and 2019 editions. In the 2019 conference, he met Ana – MUIMUN 2020’s Secretary General – who told him about MUIMUN while she was chairing his committee and invited him to chair the Legal Committee of the 2020 MUIMUN edition, which unfortunately was finally cancelled. Thus, this will be his first chairing experience.
Fernando spent his final year of high school studying in Miami, Florida, where he became close to multiple people from Latin America and founded an association to help Venezuelan refugees once he was back in Spain. He also dedicates much of his time to ELSA – the European Law Students’ Association, where he served as Vice President and Director for External Relations at his national group, among other positions.
Fernando is enthusiastic about politics, economics and law. He is an assiduous Forbes and The Economist reader and is currently deeply involved in learning about STEM disciplines, which he considers to be fundamental in our 21st century society. He is most passionate about UN Sustainable Development Goal number 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, because of the need to enlarge the Statum Legis and work towards effective legal protection. His most-liked subjects in university are Constitutional Law and Strategic Management.
Money Heist, Peaky Blinders and Suits are his favorite Netflix series, and if he had the chance to be a historical character, he would choose to impersonate Winston Churchill or Simón Bolívar.
FAO
Mostly referred to as Jackie.
She is a 22-year-old Kenyan lady. She currently lives in Kenya. She is a student in Kenyatta University, Parklands Campus currently in her Final year pursuing Bachelors of Law (LLB). Jackie also takes a French Course on the side in Alliance Franchise in Nairobi, Kenya. She is an active participant in Mooting and The Model United Nations (MUN).
She has participated in various MUNs and has over 4 years’ experience. She started out as a delegate and later become Chair in several conferences such as the Sub-Saharan International Model United Nations held in August 2019 in Johannesburg, South Africa. She currently serves as the Campus Director for Kenyatta University and the Under-Secretary General for Chairing and Training for the Sub-Saharan International Model United Nations.
Jackie is currently part of the Millennium Fellowship Program Class of 2019 for the United Nations which encourages partnerships between various projects and organizations with the ultimate objective of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. She is very passionate about the protection of the Environment at large and has even specialized in its study. Her main focus in life is to leave a footprint as an ambassador for Environmental protection and having encouraged the Youth to do the same. She considers herself as a Global Citizen and looks forward to the day that everyone identifies themselves as Global Citizens.
Hamza Naseer is from the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. He is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s of Science degree in both Psychology and Philosophy. He has served as both the Vice President and General Secretary of his university’s philosophy society.Having achieved considerable success in the national circuit, he now divides his time between coaching at various institutions and reading into his favorite topics: philosophy, literature, linguistics, and psychoanalysis.He looks forward to chairing at MUIMUN ’21 in the Food and Agriculture Organisation. As a chair, all he expects from potential delegates is good research, qualitative and quantitative speeches, and solutions of a practical and impactful nature.
ECOSOC
Fondly called Benny, Benevolence Mbano is a 26-year-old Zimbabwean woman, currently resident in South Africa.
She holds a bachelor’s degree of Arts in Law and Politics and International studies from the prestigious Rhodes university, Grahamstown, South Africa. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) degree at the University of South Africa, while actively taking part in community engagement. Benny desires a world in which both genders are treated fairly and equally, youths are gainfully empowered, and women are respectfully treated, and therefore considers herself a lover of humanity. She desires an Africa where every member of the society can actively contribute to the growth and development of their respective communities; Women well catered for in all ramifications and Youths given room on the decision-making table.
Benny who currently serves as the International Partnership and Public Relations Director for Thrive Opportunities, a youth orientated organization aimed at bridging the wide gaps in access to opportunities, would like to establish NGO safe havens in rural Africa to assist GBV survivors by providing free legal services and a platform that helps them start afresh.
Waqas Halim is an educationist and a researcher in International Relations, based in Pakistan and Canada.
Currently, he is working as the Director of the Center for Technology in Education, the Smart Cities Initiative and the Media Lab at Information Technology University in Lahore. He is passionate about the use of technology for social change and governance. Waqas holds a Masters in Public Administration with concentration in International Development from Columbia University, and is a Fulbright Alumnus. Previously, he has worked with the World Bank and the United Nations. He has won several accolades at different Model United Nations.
Presidential Summit
Saskia Millmann is a final year PhD Candidate in International Law at the University of Glasgow.
Previously, she graduated with an LLM in International Law from the University of Edinburgh and an MA in Jewish History from the University of Munich. For her undergraduate studies, she read both Law and History and has since laid a focus on Public International Law and Jewish History. Saskia has been passionate about MUN since she first participated in a High School MUN in 2010 and looks back at a long ‘career’ after having attended over 60 conferences – including eight MUIMUN conferences.
Given that MUIMUN always had a special please in her heart she is equally happy and sad that this year’s edition will be her last time at a MUN conference.
Corentin, mostly referred to as Coz, is a French student finishing his Master’s degree in Peace, Conflict and Development Studies in Castellon, Spain. He is passionate about cultural mediation in conflicts and strongly believes in the importance of dialogue when it comes to transformation of issues.
He started MUNs on 2014 and has been on the roads of Europe since then to attend other simulations. From that time on he considered MUNers as his family and he really wants to make you feel like a part of that family. After a dozen of MUNs as a delegate he decided to start chairing in Berlin2018 and then on several occasions across Europe. As chairing is caring, and he is willing to make you feel at home in the committee, even if this very committee is online. The Presidential Summit is a very atypical council to be in, and Coz is super excited to join you on this adventure.
A fun fact about him is his passion to coordinate ties and shoelaces, so delegates, online or not, but careful with the outfit!
SOCHUM
Maria will be your chair for the Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee at MUIMUN 2021. MUIMUN has a special place in her heart not only because she participated in MUIMUN 2017. Growing up close to Münster, MUIMUN is the first MUN conference she ever heard of and have visited as a student for one day during school. With her first impressions at Münster, she continued her way with many conferences.
Maria is a psychology student at the University of Konstanz and she will finish her Master’s degree in March. After starting MUN several years ago in high school, she still loves the heated debates and fruitful discussions. In Konstanz, she has been a board member of the United Nations Association Konstanz e.V. for the past 2 years. Even after leaving the board she still helps with organising debating events.
Over the course of the past 6 years, she has been in several MUN conferences inside and outside of Germany. She has been chairing crises as well. Now she returns to Münster to chair the SOCHUM. With this being her last MUN, the circle of MUNing will close where it began.
She is looking forward to welcome you in the Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee at Münster University International Model United Nations 2021!
Jaqueline is a 22-year-old student from Bonn.
After she finished her BA in Political Science last year, she is now pursuing a second degree to becomean English and Maths teacher. In High School she discovered MUNs and has since seen many different sides of them, taking part as a delegate as well as member of the Secretariat and Executive Board. Once she is a teacher herself, she plans to pass her passion on to the next generation of aspiring MUNers.In the little time she does not spend involved in MUNs you can probably find Jaqueline in the kitchen as she loves to bake but as she is not much of a cake eater herself, she is always more than happy to share with her (MUN) friends. Jaqueline is very excited to join the MUIMUN team in Münster in May and is looking forward to guide the delegates through heated debates as a Chair of SOCHUM.
Get ready for MUIMUN
MUIMUN 2021 is a “hybrid-conference”.
This means that the major part of the conference will be executed online to be able to welcome university and college students from all around the world, whereas we are planning to have a small “in-person-conference” for a limited number of people from Münster, held in small groups and under hygiene regulations.
These two are going to operate in different committees, but still be connected through Workshops, Socials and Delegation meetings during the conference.
We are sorry to have to restrict the offline conference to people from Münster, but this is the only possibility for us to guarantee a possible participation.
In case German restrictions won’t allow us to hold a conference in presence by May, we would switch these “offline-committees” to online as well, but inform you with sufficient anticipation.
How do I prepare myself?
- Read the study guide (you can find the right one on the site of your committee)
- Research your committee topic and your country position thoroughly.
- Position paper: a two-page paper about the general position of your assigned country. Find an example here
- Read up on our RoP ; note there will also be a short workshop in the beginning
- Deadlines and timetable: here
Any further questions?
FAQ or contact delegates@muimun.org
Workshops
The many kinds of rationally justified disagreement: A philosophical analysis – Michael Quante
In this workshop different kinds of disagreement are distinguished. Disagreements which can be rationally justified can vary in many ways. In this workshop they are sorted out from a philosophical perspective. One criterion is to focus on the source of a disagree, another one is to distinguish them by using the ‘depth’ of the disagreement. Based on this analysis we can ask what “meeting halfway” means concerning the variant of a rationally justified disagreement under consideration.
Prof. Dr. Michael Quante is professor of philosophy with specialisation in “practical philosophy” at the University of Münster. He is also involved in the Excellence Cluster “Religion and Politics”. He wrote his dissertation on “Hegel’s Concept of Action”, and habilitated on “Personal Life and Human(e) Death”. Between 2012 and 2014 he held the office of President of the German Association of Philosophy. Since 2016 he holds the position of Vice-Rector for Internationalisation and Knowledge Transfer at the WWU Münster.
Negotiation Skills – Henning Höber
Negotiations are a recurring part of both our private and professional lives. But many of us – and even experienced political leaders – know little about the strategies, tactics and applied psychology of effective bargaining. The workshop is designed as a crash course in basic and intermediate negotiation techniques, based on the proven methods of leading law schools and business schools. Participants will explore distributive and integrative bargaining tactics in two highly interactive simulations. These role plays enable them to experience the essential concepts and pitfalls of negotiation first-hand and reflect upon their performance during the debriefing of the case studies.The workshop is limited to 30 participants and requires the willingness to actively negotiate with a randomly assigned counterpart during the session.
Henning Höber is a lecturer in the departments of business administration and political science at the University of Münster, where he is teaching negotiation and dispute resolution.
COVID-19-Crisis as an Opportunity – Dietrich Zaps
Do we have to become worried about a substantial/ dramatic negative impact to the global economy by the Covid-19- pandemic? Does the Covid-19- pandemic have the potential to become a game changer in the global race for the dominance of eco-political systems? What is the lesson, we can take from Covid-19 facing transnational and trans-regional challenges? Based on economic analysis’s of recent crisis, we will discuss the Covid-19 pandemic impact and effects to the global economy. Facing the power of the Covid-19 virus family and its capability to attack people, independent from its cultural, socio-economical and political background, might initiate and deliver multilateral strategies to manage global challenges.
Dietrich Zaps, today, is working as an indented consultant with focus to the automotive industry. He is holding advisory mandates and assignments on behalf of global players mainly related to the automotive sector. While having hold top management positions at Tier 1 suppliers in various segments of the global automotive/vehicle industry, the management of intercultural, complex organizations had been a key element and challenge in his professional career. Heavily influenced by the Japanese management culture, he built up networks in Asia, (China, Korea, Japan), lived in the USA and managed personally several years as President & CEO the US operation of a German Tier 1 supplier in the NA. Beyond other assignments in Germany, he successfully restructured the disrupted high tech component business case of a US American Tier 1 player in the UK for the international market reach.
What Münster has to offer in terms of Art Historical Treasures
The LWL-Museum für Kunst und Kultur unites 1000 years of art, ranging from the early Middle Ages through to the present.
In total the LWL-Museum’s collection comprises over 350 000 paintings, sculptures, photographs, drawings and prints, coins and objects as well as 135 000 books. While exploring the 51 exhibition spaces, visitors encounter works of art by Heinrich Brabender, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Franz Marc, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, August Macke, Otto Piene, Gerhard Richter and Rosemarie Trockel, amongst many others.
The guided tour with Zoom developed from the works of art themselves. The tour gives an overview of the art-historical treasures of Münster.
1. First Get-Together
After the opening ceremony, an informal get-together is held to start the beginning of an intense weekend full of debates, socials and MUIMUN fun.
Get to know your fellow delegates by chatting or playing games, participation in not obligatory
When? Thursday 13, the first evening
Where? wonder.me (link and details will be shared with delegates)
2. Online Escape Game
Gather in groups of 5 and try your best succeeding in our Online Escape Game.
Please be aware that if you participate you should stay for the whole game (otherwise it won’t be fun for your teammates).
When? Friday 14 at 19:00 (MET), the second evening of the conference
Duration: around 2 hours (variable for each team)
Where? Starting on Zoom, Breakout Sessions in groups of 5
Further information and the link will be sent to delegates.
3. Münster MUN-Pub quiz
Do you want to test your general knowledge and compete in teams in a cozy and relaxed atmosphere? Then come to our pub quiz, enjoy some drinks (virtually) with your fellow delegates while trying to win at the end of the evening.
When? Our quiz masters are awaiting you on Saturday 15 at 19:00 (MET), the third evening of the conference.
Duration: around 2 hours
Where? Zoom, the link will be shared with our delegates!
Our Patron for MUIMUN 2021
Alessandra has been with the United Nations since 1991, first in the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and then with the UN Department of Global Communications.
As a junior official, she worked as an Associate Expert on Training, then as a Public Information Officer. Later she headed a training programme aimed at strengthening trade capacities of developing countries’ officers called “TrainForTrade”.
For four years between 2010 and 2014, she oversaw relations with press and outreach activities for UN Geneva and worked a lot with schools and academia.
She then became responsible for the intergovernmental activities of the UN Conference on Trade and Development and in July 2016, she became Director of the UN Information Service.
As such, she is in charge to coordinate all media-related activities of UN Geneva, coordinate the work of the Geneva UN Communications Group, manage the activities of the UN television, radio and social media, and supervise outreach events.
Alessandra holds a Political Science Degree from the Italian University L.U.I.S.S., and a diploma in International Relations with a specialization in International Public Law from the Graduate Institute of Geneva. Previously she attended a high-school of languages and is fluent in English, French and Spanish – and Italian, her mother tongue.
She has 4 children and a cat.
Alessandra Vellucci
Director, United Nations Information Service, Geneva
Fees
Online Conference Fee: €7
Offline Conference Fee*: €18
DEAR PARTICIPANTS WHO HAVE REGISTERED FOR OUR OFFLINE FORMAT:
Due to the current regulations to contain the pandemic we have to switch the offline part of the conference to an online format.
As we stated from the start, the change to an online format is happening automatically. This means we will refund you the difference between the online and offline fee, which is 11€. We are counting on you and we assume you will still be on board participating in the online conference.
If you applied for an offline committee you can withdraw your application until the 5th of May and get a full refund. After the 5th of May withdrawals are not possible anymore.
Payment
Payment will be processed by PayPal or bank transfer. Should you encounter any problems, please contact us, we are glad to assist you.
International students facing financial problems are invited to inform themselves about our scholarship programme.
The non-profit Münster MUN e. V. (German registered association) supports the MUIMUN project actively, especially with a staff (the volontarily working MUIMUN organization team) and ideally. Additionally, it also helps in funding the project.
The MUIMUN Conference is hosted by:
