by Haley Sheriff |

During the first week of February 24, students participating in Liberty’s Model United Nations program were able to attend the 24th annual MUN conference in Chicago, Illinois. Completing their eighth year of attending this event, Liberty did not leave disappointed.
“We’ve been in the Top Five the last two years, but this is the first year where we were the most recognized team, receiving three Outstandings, five Honorable Mentions and two Verbal Communications,” MUN advisor Kurt Gates said. “After four days of debate, Liberty finished as the top team at the conference, an amazing accomplishment.”
In accordance to the group’s size, Liberty was assigned to represent Canada. Having researched for the past month on the country to familiarize themselves with its political stances and motivations, the students were then paired and further sorted into committees pertaining to specific issues.
To aid their decision-making in topics varying from drug trafficking, increased nuclear production, contraception and reproductive rights and the rights of indigenous people, students were able to meet and interview the Canadian Consular to enhance their understanding of Canadian foreign policy.
With the information collected, students were expected to argue in committee for a solution that would not only solve the problem at hand, but one that would most benefit Canada.
“My partner [sophomore Haley Brown] and I were assigned to the Organization of American States committee, where we discussed the social effects of cocaine and the improvement of the equality of women in the work force,” sophomore Haley Ferguson said. “There were delegates from all of the countries in the Americas, and as a cohesive group with our own specific viewpoints of the problems, we tried formulating solutions that would benefit the entire hemisphere. The United States and Canada alone are the two largest trade partners in the world, and with their shared border and focus on controlling disease and the drug war, it’s important to cooperate and maintain international security.”
With hoards of students from over 100 schools nation and worldwide, it would be expected that in defending the perspective of a country that they are more than likely not native to, that conflict would arise in successfully persuading the country’s beliefs over students’ personal morals.
“Luckily, because Canada and the United States are pretty much politically aligned, it did not cause such an issue with our group,” junior Helen Alpern said. “But I could definitely see this being more complicated for a group to support the ideologies of China or North Korea.”
Students spent at least three hours in committee per session. With roughly two sessions each day, the group accumulated a whopping 20 hours in discussion alone.
When they were not in committee, the group spent their freetime venturing into town indulging in an improv comedy performance as well as Chicago’s world-renown deep-dish pizza. Students also had the  option to visit either the Field Museum of Natural History or the Art Institute.
“During our down-time Thursday, we decided to see the Art Institute,” senior Scott Prewitt said. “It was incredible; there are so many famous paintings, like Nighthawks or the American Gothic. It took almost three hours to walk through the entire gallery.”