University of Pittsburgh to Host 12th Annual Model United Nations Nov. 10

PITTSBURGH-Approximately 415 students from 28 high schools throughout Western Pennsylvania will convene at the University of Pittsburgh Nov. 10 to participate in the 12th Annual Model United Nations Conference.

The Model UN gives area high school students the opportunity to assume the role of diplomats as they participate in mock sessions of several bodies of the United Nations, including the Security Council, Historical Security Council (1967), Disarmament and International Security Committee, Economic and Financial Committee, NATO, and the Pan American Health Organization. Each school delegation has been assigned a country to represent in the negotiations. The students prepare for this event by researching their assigned countries' positions on a variety of real-world issues. Participants will discuss controversial matters facing the worldwide community within the context of a United Nations simulation.

Students will debate such issues as the global food crisis, the Arab-Israeli conflict, weapons in space, nuclear proliferation, NATO enlargement, Afghanistan, and health care for indigenous populations. Throughout the debates, students are evaluated on their abilities to realistically present the positions of the countries they represent. Awards will be presented to outstanding individual students and country delegations.

Members of the Pitt Model UN Club have played an integral part in planning the conference and will participate in such roles as the UN Secretary General, committee chairs, and members of the UN staff.

The Model UN will be in session from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. in the William Pitt Student Union, 3959 Fifth Ave. The event is presented by Pitt's University Center for International Studies with special acknowledgement to Pitt's Asian Studies Center, Center for Latin American Studies, European Studies Center and the European Union Center of Excellence, Center for Russian and East European Studies, Global Studies Program, and Model United Nations Club, as well as to Global Solutions Education Fund Pittsburgh and United Nations Association of Pittsburgh.

For more information, visit www.pitt.edu/~modelun or contact Luz Amanda Hank at 412-648-7394 or modelun@pitt.edu.

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10/21/08/tmw