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Impression of the Selection Process The first thing that jumps to my mind when thinking back of the selection round is how incredibly nervous I was. It is not that I am always going mad when facing a challenge, it is more that I really wanted to be in this delegation, so everything had to go perfectly. Only a week before the application deadline, I had accidentally bumped into an advertisement of United Netherlands that was hidden on the bottom of a weekly e-mail I receive from my student organization. Nobody else had seen it but me. Was Fate finally sending some luck my way? I admit, that sounds pretty awesome, but I rather believe that members of my sorority simply never scroll down to the end of these update e-mails. Anyway, I instantly knew I wanted to be part of the HNMUN delegation. The preparatory track in combination with the trips to Oxford, New York and Boston seemed to be a unique opportunity to develop fundamental skills and to simply have an unforgettable experience. One can improve oneself the most when being in a challenging and motivating environment, which I am convinced this program creates. I immediately applied and, fortunately I received an invitation to the first selection round. Now I was admitted to the first selection round, I started to ask myself a ton of questions. What am I going to wear? What time should I catch my train? Should I literally memorize the UN Charter? I know, I might sound like a nutcase, but I wanted to make a good first impression. Remember, everything had to go perfectly. Mr. Murphy chose a very inconvenient day to show me his Law in action. First, my bicycle broke down, so I had to run to the train station. Sweating in my business attire, I caught the train to Nijmegen in the nick of time. The wrong train. The right one was just leaving on the opposite platform. Although I had planned to be an hour early, now I had to catch a taxi when arriving in Nijmegen to get to Radboud University. As I entered the room where the selection round would take place, I suddenly felt relieved. I had been nervous all the time, but I had forgotten to think that an ECOSOC simulation could actually be a lot of fun. I had been focused on the end, instead of thinking about the means. I ended up having a great time, meeting new people and learning more about international decision-making and issues. Because I had such a good experience with United Netherlands, I was even more driven to do my very best to become part of the delegation. However, if I would not be selected, I would never regret having applied for the United Netherlands delegation. Sanne Blauw, Student of Econometrics, Erasmus University Rotterdam Delegation 2007|2008, MUN Trainer 2009|2010 |
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Impression of a delegate My name is Sander and I was lucky enough to be part of the United Netherlands delegation of '06/'07. A year before I couldn't have imagined myself being lucky enough to be part of this unique group of ambitious students. As it turned out, I was attending the same classes at the University of Amsterdam as a good friend of mine who had participated in the UNL delegation the year before and he told me about the upcoming Radboud international Model United Nations of that year (2006). He said that from observing me in class that I should attend the conference that weekend, because it would deal with topics of my interest and it's simply great fun as well. As a true UNL delegate he had the right persuasive arguments and I was looking forward to a weekend filled with interesting debates followed by some good parties at night. As it turned out, I did pretty well during the conference and was awarded a Best Delegate award. This, and an interview, landed me a spot on the UNL delegation for that coming year. Later that summer we had the first meeting of the year and I was eager to get going; I was anxious to get to know the people that I was going to spending a lot time with for the coming semester. As a way of getting to know each other during the first meeting we had a sort of roundtable where everyone introduced themselves to the delegation. By the time it was my turn to introduce myself I was seriously impressed with the level and variety that the group was made out of; all of them had great stories to tell about their studies, `side' activities and, most importantly, themselves. From that point on things went surprisingly fast. Every week we met up on Fridays and slowly but steadily real friendships started to crystallize. Besides that, I also started to learn some valuable skills, most notably speaking in public; it really does help when you speak in public on a weekly basis and you clearly see your improvement over time. And this is just one of the skills you learn when you participate in the UNL preparatory track. Another great aspect of the preparatory track is participating in the Oxford International Model United Nations where you get a chance to measure your improvement halfway through the course. It also gives you a chance to see in which areas you can still improve. And I probably don't need to tell you that the nightlife in a student city like Oxford can get the best out of the group as well! When the final training week came in February we had already improved so much in a variety of valuable skills; the final week is basically a general rehearsal in the great city of New York. This is the time when you can do the final fine tuning and solidify your skills before heading to Boston. On top of that, the week in New York brings you a great opportunity to grow closer to all your co-delegates! I remember long karaoke nights in China Town, jogging in Central Park, studying at the amazing New York public library, visiting the United Nations and the Dutch Permanent Representation in New York, clubbing nights in the Meat-Packing district, jazz nights at the legendary Birdland, but most of all, great friendships with the other delegates! When I finally got to Boston in the middle of February I knew I was well prepared, but still I was curious about the level of all the other delegates, including those from the prestigious Ivy League universities. I experienced the first few minutes as being nervous, and my first speech probably wasn't my best one, but once you get this out of the way you realize that you are as well prepared as anyone else participating in the Harvard National Model United Nations. What I also realized is that this was truly the final part of a great semester spent with amazingly talented students that have come to be great friends. When I realized this, performing at Harvard became less of a pressure because I knew that however I'd perform, the great learning experience and the close friendships that have formed will always be something I can proudly look back at. And yes, I know this does sound very corny, but it's simply true! I was asked to shortly write down how I experienced my time as a UNL delegate and I hope I've been able to give you a sneak preview of what is waiting for you when you participate in this great 'course'. All I can say further is that you will learn valuable skills and have a great time doing it! Sander van Amelsvoort United Netherlands delegate 2006 |2007 University of Amsterdam |
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United Netherlands Delegation: The Road to Harvard New York City, February 12th 2010 It was a cold and windy Saturday. There was something in the air that night. New York seemed its normal self, but a sense of unusual excitement was lingering in the streets of the city that never sleeps. That day, close to midnight, the reason for this extraordinary vibration took shape at the corner of 45th West Street and 5th Avenue. Taxis were pulling up in front of Holiday Inn Express Hotel, and in the darkness the shapes of the distinguished members of the United Netherlands delegation 2009|2010 appeared. The delegates set foot on New York soil with only one purpose. They were here to take the last hurdle on the road to representing the Russian Federation at the Harvard National Model United Nations (HNMUN) conference: the New York Training Week (NYTW). Exhilaration soon filled the lobby, hallways, and bedrooms of the twenty-two-floor building, and sleep surely was hard to catch that night. Glorified by blue skies and rays of sunshine finding their way through the skyscrapers, the final twenty-four hours before the start of the NYTW were spent in feverish picture taking and exploration. Monday morning seven thirty sharp: before heading out, delegates made sure to fill their tummies with a good old American style breakfast, some still surprised to find hamburgers and gravy being served. The Foreign Press Centre, located in the building of the State Department, formed the stage on which the NYTW would show its true self for the coming five days. After a warm word of welcome by the director of the Centre and the Junior Board of Studies (JBoS), the NYTW commenced. The first days proved not only to be hard work, delegates were also committed to play hard, in the true spirit of United Netherlands. New York was about to experience the delegates' presence at a wide variety of events ranging from a classical piano concert in Carnegie Hall to a legendary NBA basketball game where the delegation as a whole cheered the New York Knicks to victory. As delegates started to feel more and more at home, and getting the hang of the life in the Big Apple, the training week was slowly coming to an end. The aim of the final training days was for delegates to sharpen and perfect their diplomatic skills. Aside from this, visits to the Dutch permanent mission to the United Nations and the United Nations headquarters allowed delegates to experience true diplomacy in practice. To add to the Russian feeling, the MUN trainer made sure to provide delegates with a Russian flag-pin. And with this the JBoS not only concluded the NYTW but also gave the delegates their last words of advice and inspiration on the road to Harvard. One legendary evening proved to be Thursday, where the delegation split into two groups on Boys and Girls night. Comfortably seated in Hummer limos, the boys and girls explored the city by night and finally united in the fashionably chic and famous meatpacking district. Although the NYTW had come to an official end, the delegates kept their stamina high and showed their commitment by continuing their preparation for HNMUN. This meant that the hotel lobby was filled with laptops, empty cups that where once filled with the famous Starbucks coffee and piles of documents that highlighted their research. During the week the delegates had shown that one can work hard but still find room to play hard. Sunday morning, while a number of us were still sleeping, others quietly moved to Harlem to attend a service in one of the many gospel churches. Still overwhelmed by the warm welcome they had received, the rollercoaster continued as later that day the Superbowl kicked off. Here the delegation was part of yet another proud American tradition, but only this time they cheered for the winning New Orleans Saints. On the supposed final day in New York City the delegates had their last supper at the Antique Garage before being plunged in the madness that is HNMUN. In Soho an abundance of food and live jazz music in the background proved to be a successful closing of the NYTW. This was not the case for all delegates because even though the delegation had to leave early the morning after, some still chose to go for a round of karaoke. Everyone present sung old time classics such as Born in the USA and Jesse like it was their last time. On the day of departure Snowverkill (the already epic blizzard of February 9th 2010) wreaked havoc in the streets of New York. Despite tireless efforts to get out of the city, the entire delegation got stuck in this city of endless possibilities. Taxi drivers stayed off the streets, and all other forms of transportation were blocked off. Nonetheless the delegation worked hard to cross the t's and dot the i's in their never-ending preparation for HNMUN. Luckily the blizzard was only going to last one day so the delegation is still ready and able to participate in HNMUN after all. Armed with knowledge, skill and high spirit, the United Netherlands delegation 2009|2010 truly lives up to the Russian saying Artelnyi gorshok gusche kipit (To work as a team produces better results). |
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United Netherlands Delegation: One Week Until Harvard The United Netherlands delegation has arrived in New York and is gearing up for the Harvard Model United Nations (HNMUN) 2010! The climax of the United Nations and Multilateral Diplomacy course will be a final training week in the Big Apple, including visits to the Permanent Mission of the Netherlands to the United Nations, and the UN headquarters. The delegation is anticipating a highly challenging role at HNMUN 2010 in Boston, representing the massive Russian Federation.
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Placards high in a Global Village: Oxford is generally known as a city where multiple international talents are assembled to live and study together between the walls of the archetypal Oxford university buildings. The city is even referred to as the 'city of the dreamy pinnacles', a term coined by Matthew Arnold to describe the harmonious architecture of the university buildings. From October 30 until November 1 2009, the Oxford International Model United Nations (OxIMUN) took place, making the character of the city even more multicultural. Yet, if one were to describe the emblem of the 'OxIMUN ambience', this would end in a symbol of 'cultural hybridism', rather than one of 'cultural pluralism', because of not revealing cultural boundaries. Not only were there students coming from around 25 different countries, they also represented another country than their own, which is an essential requirement for a MUN in general. Throughout the day, young men and ladies, all dressed up in smooth suits and classy dresses, marked the image of Oxford's streets. Walking quickly through the mosaic of the various university buildings, to the committee session locations, they attempted to guarantee their committee's director (chair of debate) getting more than a glimpse of their presence. The delegation 2009-2010 of United Netherlands (UNL) greatly contributed to this image. Counting 29 well-prepared and excited delegates, they formed the largest delegation of OxIMUN 2009-2010. It was, nevertheless, not only their seat position in the committee room, but especially and most definitely the UNL so-called 'blue-hearted' spirit that kept them noticed by the respective directors. Excited to give an extraordinary opening speech, followed by ad hoc moderated caucus talks, at all relevant times, they raised their placards high! The smaller clock hand did not even point to the number indicating the elapse of an hour and several UNL delegates had already attempted to convince their committee of setting the preferred topic of the country they were representing. The preceding opening ceremony and this first short committee session formed the prelude to an extensive weekend of negotiation, debating and rhetoric. The day finished with the Global Village event, a typical MUN gathering which reflects the temporal nature of the city where the MUN takes place and in which the MUN participants exhibit various, irresistible food delights from their homelands. Irresistible as the wealth of (mostly) sweetness is, one can imagine that this 'food exhibition' does not limit itself by watching, but evolves in a true plunder phenomenon. In addition to plundering, it was this event where the UNL delegates could leave their fixed country positions for a while, talk, laugh, make movements which could be called dancing, and be their own person: an ambitious young student and global citizen! - Board United Netherlands - |
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Work Hard, Play Hard!: The above mentioned slogan is often referred to by United Netherlands (UNL) members if they try to summarize the essence of a MUN in UNL style. Well, we can assure that this elementary principle has been carried forward by the United Netherlands delegation of 2009-2010 with the utmost efforts and persuasiveness! Debating about serious, triggering international problems and finishing the day with a Halloween Party, it is not surprising that, let's say (diplomatically, as it behooves United Netherlands) somewhat idiosyncratic moments marked the ambience of the committee sessions. UNL delegate Marcel van der Wal (United Nations Environment Program - UNEP, representing France) for example cheerfully recalls the delegate representing Angola having a hard time: 'When he was recognized by the chair, he initially did not respond. After a couple of seconds, the chair again recognized him, in a somewhat louder voice. Then the delegate stood up and started speaking: 'Sorry Madam Chair, the delegate of Angola just woke up. He has been missing the discussion for some time, but he is sure that everybody is doing a good job today. Thank you.' UNL delegate Marieke van Geffen (UN Economic and Social Council - ECOSOC, representing France) remembers a similar moment. 'Besides the special content of his speech, his opening was also quite special. Instead of starting with something like "thank you Ms. chair", the delegate representing the United States namely started his speech with "cheers". Apparently he forgot that the party night was already over.' Moments of confusing serious lobby time with more informal lobby time in the hours of the moon, are not that awkward since participating in a MUN does not fall in the category of working from 9 to 5. In fact, ground-breaking decisions for a resolution are often taken outside the committee session periods. Another trend inherent to a MUN conference is the particular capacity of acting. Some persons even tended to temporarily transform into the person they were representing. Taking their role so seriously is reflected in the following example: Jelle Vos (UN International Monetary Fund - IMF, representing Egypt) remembers the person representing Iran in his committee stating his utmost antipathy towards Western capitalism. 'In the will of Allah we must stop the greedy capitalists in looking for possibilities of interest-free loans as interest is not allowed in the Koran.' But nothing equals the 'realm of theatre' of the so-called 'crisis committee' simulations. Official Rules of Procedure? For what reason! Indeed, in crisis committee simulations, opportunism is the rule and bluff is omnipresent. UNL delegate Robert de Graeff (representing Robert Nicholson, a Canadian politician who represents the riding of Niagara Falls for the Conservative Party and the current Minister of Justice) and some fellow delegates even managed to overthrow the current Prime Minister Steven Harper and decided without further discussion that Robert Nicholson would be his successor. When asking UNL delegate Robert de Graeff for an anecdote which would typically describe the ambience in the committee, he cheerfully referred to the other UNL delegate in the crisis committee simulating the 'Canadian House of Commons'. According to him, UNL delegate Sjoerd Louwaars (representing Robert Rae, another member of the Canadian House of Commons) stood up at his chair and said the legendary words: 'This is revolution', referring to the earlier announced (fake) bomb threat. He subsequently organized the military junta instead of the Canadian parliament. This supreme chaos (note UNL delegate Robert de Graeff's summary: 'An exciting, reactive game that ended in madness'), exhibited in most crisis committees during a MUN, stands somewhat in contrast with the simulations of more formal debate procedure, of United Nations bodies. Although tact and strategy certainly play a role in crisis committees as well, it is indeed the quote that UNL delegate Rik Rottier referred to when describing his committee experience, that is appropriate here to mention: 'A diplomat must always think twice before he says nothing'. Even though smooth talking and jokes could be considered as two of the Three Musketeers with regard to speech skills, MUN would not be MUN without serious, constructive and substantive talking and negotiation, at least when applying UNL style. UNL delegate Rosalie Salameh (UN Security Council, representing Burkina Faso) for example describes her committee experience as: 'High level active debate in which you have to be on top of your game every second. 'Jelle Vos recalls that the director of his committee (IMF) summarized the working process of the committee: 'A devoted committee that knew when to work seriously, but also when to have a good laugh!' - Board United Netherlands - |
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OxIMUN in a nutshell through a UNL delegate lens The day has come to say goodbye to the temporary 'global village' of Oxford. The OxIMUN 'Best Large Delegation Award' of 2009 is taken home with by the Belgium MUN Society. We hereby congratulate them once more with this very good result. Although ‘this cherry on the top of the cake’ didn’t go to the UNL delegation this year, the delegates have done an admirable job, because of their substantive contribution to debate, their dedication, constructive attitude and their stamina! After all, it is the cake itself that tastes best. Like UNL delegate Rik Rottier said: “Participation is more important than winning”. To get an impression of the OxIMUN experience yourself, the statements below reflect how the UNL delegates perceived it.
"My experience of OxIMUN: 'amicable', in two ways. It firstly refers to my committee in which all participants worked in a greatly
constructive and friendly atmosphere. And last but not least, it refers to the UNL group which became closer during OxIMUN."
"Participation is more important than winning." "A very useful experience with a lot of hilarious moments" Charlotte Deelen, student of Dutch & Notary Law / Philosophy at Radboud University Nijmegen
"OxIMUN was a great eye-opening experience and learning moment. Moreover, it was about tremendous fun and a strengthened bond with our delegation and beyond."
"The overall experience was great. This was due to the combination of debating with international students in a 'Harry Potteresque' setting, and the social part in the evenings. It was exhausting, but worth everything!"
"Awesomeness"
"I was touched by the wonderful experience of OxIMUN, especially by the group spirit: everybody was very helpful and nice."
"OxIMUN was a bond. A bond created within United Netherlands, a bond connecting myself to my passion for diplomacy and international relations. It was a chance to learn a lot, to debate, to seek for cooperation, to strive for your opinions and ideals, and above all, it was certainly a lot of fun!" And for now... start the countdown towards traveling to Obama-land to participate in the world's biggest and oldest MUN: the Harvard National Model United Nations (HNMUN)! We already wish the delegates a lot of success in representing the country of the geographical east side of the past Cold War, famous ballets, imaginative fairytales, vodka, the Kremlin and much more. Having in previous years represented powerful nations, and indeed most of the P5 countries (permanent member countries of the United Nations Security Council), United Netherlands feels honored to enter the HNMUN conference as Russian diplomats: Удачи! (udachi = good luck!) and Ваше здоровье (za vashe zdarovye = cheers!) - Board United Netherlands - |
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Delegate Column - January 30th 2009 UNL and the road towards the Harvard National Model United Nations (HNMUN) I often feel a kind of authentic irritation when people use salt less clich�s, like �time flies�. Yet, when evaluating the United Netherlands (UNL) period so far, I couldn�t play the game with myself anymore. I ultimately had to admit that it is the way it is; time did fly. The time spent on the UNL course feels like having run a race on a road with each UNL Friday rendezvous as a pit stop to add new, and polish existing knowledge and skills. Besides, it is about a road surrounded by a very special landscape of confrontation, reflection, surprise, fun and of being enriched by new knowledge and creativity. And moreover, about the road towards the Harvard National Model United Nations (HNMUN). It has been structurally emphasized by our MUN-trainer and the Head Delegates and gradually incorporated in our MUN awareness, that HNMUN is �the event� to translate all our UNL input, the �cr�me de la cr�me� of the fascinating world of MUN. It is therefore that we all share a feeling of excitement, of curiosity and of impatience to some extent, which has become stronger now that the count-down towards traveling to �Obama-land� has started. In fact, I automatically started comparing t his feeling of HNMUN-imagination with the state of mind Eleanor Roosevelt must have had when she first saw the magnificent Iguazu Falls in South America. �Poor Niagara�, she said. This reechoes in my mind continuously, because I already imagine the extra thrill HNMUN may offer us, in comparison with other MUNs.But will other MUNs really fade away once we experience HNMUN? Will our thoughts also be verbalized into �Poor all other MUNs? I am sure they will not. Why? Because when adding UNL flavor, MUN is MUN! It is indeed, like my fellow delegate Frank Hemmes said, not only about producing �bureaucratical amounts� of paperwork, but about the interaction between ambitious people. Both socially and intellectually, in a diplomatic sense. It is about having a genuine interest in trying to solve international problems, about converting �speeching� and negotiation into your second nature, finding the �yin yang� balance of competition and cooperation and about continuously improving yourself. Yet, there are two related aspects which need to be underscored in order to explain why the run up to forecast on HNMUN is so special. Some time ago, during on a Friday training session, our UNL board members served us with a festive cake-breakfast to celebrate that HNMUN gave us the honor to represent their country; the United States of America! Moreover, when I think of the combination MUN and Obama, I think of simulation and stimulation. His words are inspiring, both in substance and presentation. Representing the United States at HNMUN, under the Obama administration puts us in a very privileged position. Therefore, fuelled by a �Don�t beat around the Bush�-spirit, yet wrapped in smoothed by rhetoric and neutralized by diplomacy, we will embark upon the HNMUN conference and introduce Obama-perspectives in our representation. Yes, we are ready and yes, we can! Annemarie Mastenbroek Human Geography, Radboud University Nijmegen |
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Delegate Column - December 12th 2008 Usually, one starts a column with a nice anecdote from life, or something else pertaining to the irony of the cosmos. But you can wonder how such an approach would work in a column dedicated to a Model United Nations? After all, aren�t we merely playing a simulation of an institution that is more often than not criticized for its lack of binding to reality? And doesn�t that make us shadowy figures in a mirror-figure of an illusion? Or, as my friends frequently ask me, isn�t this just �fake-meeting� (nepvergaderen), something which is of course fun to do, but has hardly anything to do anymore with the real world. Of course, the world of international diplomacy is situated half a galaxy away from the realm of physics. And indeed, the concepts used in the framework of international relations are rather vague and ill defined when compared to hard-boiled mathematics or the results of a physical experiment. However, in some ways, they are also more real. Because, in the end, United Netherlands is not about resolutions, meetings and enormous amounts of paperwork, but about people. During negotiations, public speeches and lobbying, it is about people having to interact and find agreement and common ground between each other. But in the case of UNL, it is also about people that support, appreciate and intellectually challenge each other. And although the theories we learn about these interactions can hardly be classified as die-hard science, nor captured in mathematical formulae, they present us nonetheless with an equally valid view of reality. Because it is people that we learn, grow and develop ourselves. And perhaps more importantly, it is through others that we know ourselves and learn the nature of this world. After all, interactions between different kinds of people may be harder to cast into theory, but are also exactly what make this world such an interesting place. Frank Hemmes Physics and Astronomy, Radboud University Nijmegen |
