“You cannot create experience.
You must undergo it. ” as said by Albert Camus.
My recent experience of
participating in Doon School MUN 2014,
reverberates the underlying essence of
this quote. The overall experience was extremely enriching, though it was not
how I had envisaged it to be. I was initially very scared and hesitant to have
nominated myself for DSMUN and to be honest quite nervous as it was my very
first MUN. The anxiety escalated as it was one of the most prestigious MUNs, at
Doon school. While I had done some formative research, read about it, discussed
with my peers, however nothing could have prepared me for the unique simulation
of the United Nations at Doon. Apart from providing me with an exposure to a
very highly intellectual environment, this amazing experience also provided me
with an opportunity to interact with various other students from different
schools, nationally and internationally.
It was the seeing and interacting
with a whole lot of other first time MUNers that set me at ease. The days were
a whirlwind of attending individually assigned committee meetings, raising
points of personal privilege, dealing with the sudden crisis which was
bombarded on us as a surprise element, and ultimately the committee passing a
resolution.
From discussing ‘Child Labour’, to presenting the participating
country’s view and questioning the other delegates, our Human Resource
Committee (HRC) was an exciting place to be in! With all of this being very
intriguing and providing a sense of absolute novelty, what interested me most
was the social aspect of this invigorating experience. I fondly carry the
snippets of all the fun that, we, the delegates, had at the hotel after our
long and hard day. The fun, intense discussions, late night snacks, were just
some of the moments we all shared. I am sure we were quite a handful for the
teacher escort, though I am also convinced they would have their share of nice
memories too!
Going through this experience I gained a great
amount of experiential learning within an incredible environment of
administrative integrity. The DSMUN also provided me with an opportunity to
enhance my public speaking skills and debating skill, which I earlier believed
to not have sufficient dexterity in.
This being my first MUN ever, I
value it a great deal. With this renewed confidence and exposure, I am keenly
looking forward to more MUNs.
