Research
This will include helpful tips that vary from how to create effective position papers to being prepared to represent your country well in committee sessions.
How to Use a Background Guide:
A background guide is used to gain a basic understanding of your committee's topic. It is written by the chairs of your committee and is meant to help you understand what your committee is, its goals, and the topic of the committee. When writing a position paper, if you choose to use the information found in the background guide, do not cite the background guide. Instead, find the source that the information you are using was taken from. To understand the background guide as best as possible, annotate and highlight things that might be relevant to what you need to research. Background Guides include the "Committee History, the Committee Mandate, the General Background, Key Terms, Past Actions, Questions to Consider, and References.
The "Committee History" briefly states general information about the committee, the purpose of its establishment, and some main topics that it focuses on. You should gain a basic understanding of the topic from this section.
The "Committee Mandate" states the goals of the committee and what Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) it focuses on. These SDGs will allow you to understand what your committee values as a whole.
The "General Background" has information based on the topic of your committee. It details the major issues that the topic of the committee will discuss and the reasons for the topic. Points that are written here will be expected to be common knowledge of the topic and during committee. You may want to conduct extra research here to help create your speeches more easily and better understand the conference.
In "Key Terms", important vocabulary for the comprehension of the background guide is provided. These may be words that are significant to the committee topic itself, or little-known words mentioned in the Background Guide. Some of the vocabulary here may also be discussed during the conference, so understanding what the words mean and how to use them will help you to succeed in making speeches and participating in the resolution bloc.
"Past Actions", detail movements and decisions that have been made to improve the topic by the United Nations (perhaps including your committee) and other organizations. Solutions that are covered here can help you understand the kind of work that has been done and needs to be done. This section will also help you to write the "Past Actions" section of your paper.
"Questions to Consider" requires the deepest level of thinking. It is intended to spark critical thinking about ways that their solution can be implemented logically. Answers that you come up with to these questions may be used as solutions to present in your committee during the conference (keeping in mind your country's position).
Finally, the "References" is the list of sources that the chairs have used to write the Background Guide and may be used for further research. However, the background guide shouldn’t be the only tool to research. The links that the chairs have provided can be helpful to further branch into your research, as the sources used will be sound.
Additional Resources / Researching Information:
One useful way to organize your information is by using graphic organizers (such as the one provided). If you would like to use one of our graphic organizers feel free to make a copy and use it to organize the information needed for your position paper. It is also highly recommended that you bring your research to the conference, to aid in creating speeches and as a reminder of your country’s position. Since your research should contain extensive details about your committee, country, etc., it is a sound source for creating speeches that share your country’s position, making finding allies and potential bloc members easier. Graphic organizers will also ensure that your position paper has all of the necessary requirements. They allow you to categorize your thoughts and research into specific sections.
(NOTE: The graphic organizer is only a guideline for position papers. It will be beneficial to add more than what is required; you will have more information overall and chairs look for delegates who care more than the average about the committee.)
Speakers List - Speeches
One main speech should be prepared beforehand. This speech will give other delegates an idea of your solutions. They may want to work with you in a bloc if your ideas align with theirs. It is important to pay attention to the speeches by various countries to understand their perspectives on the topic. The speech should contain information about your country’s position on the topic and a solution that you have come up with. Speeches are around 1 minute to 30 seconds long and are presented during the Speakers List. The speech should be made after the position paper and can contain the same information used in the position paper, as both are meant to convey your ideas and research on the topic. These speeches should address your country’s position on the topic and your solutions. Your speech is one of the most important ways to start finding allies, or other countries whose opinions align with yours. To learn more about the speakers list, go to our Flow of Debate section.
Position Papers:
The Position Paper’s purpose is to ensure you have an understanding of the topic and your country before coming to the conference. They consist of a heading stating the name of the country, the committee, and the topic. The paper should be 2-3 pages long and have three paragraphs in total. The three paragraphs should be the topic background, the past actions, and your country’s policies and solutions that you form. Avoid the usage of personal pronouns and contractions in your paper.
The topic background, or Brief History of Topic, provides a general outline of your committee, why it was established, and how it is working to improve the subject of your committee. (ex: if your topic is about food waste and your committee is FAO, then you would write about what FAO has done to solve food waste. The Past Actions must cover what the UN in general and others have done to address the issue. Finally, the Country’s Policy and Solutions should address what your country in the real world believes about the topic, how it affects them, and what they are doing/intend to do about it. This section should be the most detailed, as it also covers what solutions you have created (keeping in mind your country’s position). In the country’s policies or solutions, you are creating your own solutions to the issue and will be discussing them in the conference to create a final resolution.
Position papers must be submitted to your committee chairs by the deadline. (NOTE: Do not, under any circumstances, copy the example. This is cheating, and delegates who resort to cheating will automatically not be considered for awards. If you need additional time, send a letter to your chairs requesting for it. Keep in mind that they may not grant your request, so try hard to submit papers on time.)
Researching Your Country's History:
Researching your country's history helps you understand your country's position on various topics so that you can make decisions and solutions in MUN that align with your country’s methods/thoughts. Furthermore, it will allow you to embody your country and gain a better understanding of which countries your delegation would work with in real life. Understanding the history of something is the only way to move forward in the future, so if you can recognize the patterns in your country’s behavior, you will better represent them during the conference.