How Did We Get Here?

Hello Delegates! 

As the big weekend approaches, I wanted to discuss exactly how we got here. I remember while I was in highschool MUN was a popular club everyone wanted to join and had been going on for years before I even started school, but it got me thinking, how did the concept of MUN even begin?

Well, back in 1949,  St.Lawrence University hosted the first 3 day conference. It was initiated by Dr. Harry Reiff, the Head of the History and Government Department. The conference was a great success and continued year after year until other schools in the vicinity got word. Slowly, other Model UN conferences were developed at Berkeley, Harvard and National Model United Nations (NMUN NY) as well as many other colleges and universities. Post this, it spread to the East, South Asia, Middle East and Africa and was no longer limited to just universities. Many educators saw that MUN was a great way to hone public speaking, communication and critical thinking skills. 

Fun Fact: In the year 2001, the movie 'Winning London', starring Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, had  Model UN as its primary plot line. The popularity of the actors at the time and inclusion of MUN in popular culture made a significant impact on a whole generation of students who attended high school in the 2000s to join Model UN. This movie was cited  by teenagers worldwide during that period as one of the reasons why they joined Model UN.

Fun Fact #2: UC Berkeley actually held the first ever MUN conference for high school student globally, and continues to do so till date! 

Fun Fact #3: In 2007, a website called BestDelegate marked the beginning of the rise of dynamic online MUN resources that were created by Model UN participants for global MUN community use and not tethered to any particular conference or program. (Check it out!)