Head of Training: Lara Nassar
The most important thing is
RESEARCH
 The more you know about your topic, the more you can
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participate, and the more you participate the more you will
enjoy MUN
Bring resolutions written on your topics (if found) and bring
them with you to the MUN
Read newspapers, books articles on your topics, making notes
of what you think will be helpful during debate
Try to come up with your own ideas
Find past UN resolutions on your topic, but DON’T copy
Know the policies of important countries who are related to
the topic.. So that you know if they go against their official
policies
Know and stick to your countries policy!!!
Know your country’s allies and enimies
Researching your country
 Make sure you know all of the following:
 Political Structure:
Origin of political structure
Constitution and Government
Present stability and Policy
 Natural Resources
Basic commodities produced
Trade agreements
Degree of self-sufficiency
 Cultural factors
Ethnic groups
Religions
Cultural history
 Defense
Military structure
Dependency on other nations
Membership of alliances
 Geography
Bordering countries
landscape
Geopolitical considerations
 Views on world problems
Role and influence in the world
Membership of blocks and geopolitical groupings
 Economy
Monetary system
Dependency and debt
Membership of economic and trade organizations
 History
General
last 50 years
recent history
Researching an organization
 The year it was established
 The location of the headquarters
 The organization’s purpose
 The type of organization (NGO, IGO..)
 Has your organization signed onto any documents?
Which ones?
Researching an issue
 Research the issue from the oldest information you
find and work your way to the recent information
 Use articles and news sources to research your topic
 The UN Documents website will help you understand
the issue better and how to resolve it
Now that you’re done researching for
your delegation and issue, you can start
writing your resolution
 Resolutions aim at giving solutions to different issues
 Different countries take part in the writing of a
resolution but the main contributor is the main
submitter and rest are co-submitters
 Giving solutions which are just and don’t punish any
specific sides are more likely to pass as they can appeal
to more member states in the house
 Successful resolutions offer solutions to the various
problems which contribute to the issue
Three components in every
resolution
 The Heading
- Address the committee
- State the issue being resolved
- State main submitter and co-submitters
 Preambulatory Clauses
- They describe what the issue is & state facts about it
-Past and current situation
- What has been done already regarding the issue
 Operative Clauses
- Most important part of resolution
- Explain what can be done to resolve an issue
- Must contain sub clauses that explain your ideas and how
they can be done
SAMPLE RESOLUTION
FORUM: Disarmament
TOPIC: Bioterrorism
SUBMITTED BY: South Africa
CO-SUBMITTED BY: Brazil, India, Kazakhstan, Botswana, Namibia, Mozambique,
Argentina, Egypt, Belgium, & Denmark
Defining bioterrorism as the use of toxins or micro-organisms by a terrorist organization
in order to secure a political end,
Alarmed by reports of continued research into biological weaponry both by the
governments of member states and freelance organizations,
Concerned by the fact that almost all member states are insufficiently prepared for a
biological attack on any scale and that in the event of such an attack casualties would
be catastrophic,
Recognizing the Convention on the prohibitions of the development, production and
stockpiling of Bacteriological and Toxin Weapons and on their destruction (BTWC) as
the most comprehensive existing convention on the subject of biological weapons
1. Further urges all member states to compile a list of personnel who
would be required in the case of a terrorist attack, both to ensure that
those affected are treated effectively and other necessary measures are
taken;
2. Calls upon the UN secretariat to establish the United Nations
Commission on Bioterrorism Preparation (UNCBP) which will work
with organizations such as the WHO and the International Red Cross,
the responsibilities of which will include, but not limited to,
a. advising and aiding member states in the creation or improvement
of public health infrastructure to include a surveillance network for
early detection of a biological attack, identification, purchase, storage,
and distribution of all necessary medical supplies needed in the case
of a biological attack,
b. The establishment and maintenance of a database, available to the
governments of all member states of likely bioterrorism agents and
information regarding symptoms,
c. Providing expertise, and equipment to the less countries and those
least able to finance such changes in an effort to improve their
preparedness;
3. Proposes the formation of a new committee: the United Nations
Committee for the Regulation of Biological Military Research and
Shipment or UNCRBMRS who will convene to formulate a set of
regulations to ensure that no state is creating unsafe biochemical
weapons or transporting such things abroad;
4. Further Proposes that a Special Rapporteur and a team of experts on
this subject to be appointed in order to ensure that all biological
research facilitates within member states contain sufficient safety
measures both to prevent the theft of biological weapons and the
accidental detonation of biological weapons or their release into the
atmosphere, also to ensure that the regulations decided upon by the
UNCRBMS are followed by all member states
5. Recommends that all member states train essential personnel in order
to identify and contain hazardous biological materials;
6. Requests that in the event of a bioterrorist attack all member states
cooperate in terms of sharing resources and key personnel in order to
lessen the effect of the attack;
7. Reinforces the need for global conferences to spread knowledge and
expertise in order to redress the global imbalance in preparation
8. Further calls upon the health ministries of member states to
a. Ensure that all physicians and medical practitioners are
properly trained to identify and treat victims of biological attack
and that all medical colleges include training and examination in
these skills as a compulsory part of the majority of all medical
course,
b. Educate the general public on the danger of biological
terrorism and the actions that should be taken in reaction to
such an event, through such medias as the television and radio,
or simply posters and by its introduction in a small way to school
syllabi in countries where these mediums are unavailable
c. Introduction of drills to prepare for biological attack to be
regulated by the emergency services of member states who
employ these drills;
Resolution Do’s and Don’ts
 Heading:
- Begin with “Forum indicating the committee
- Continue with “Submitted by” to indicate who is the main
speaker of the resolution
- Follow this by “Co-submitted by” to illustrate those who’ve
signed on to the resolution
- Use the full official name of the delegations
 Preambulatory Clauses:
- All preambulatory clauses must end in commas (,)
- Leave a line between every clause
- No clause opening words should be repeated in the resolution
(if you need to reuse it use a similar word, or add “Further”
before it or (with concern/ warning”
- All clauses must be underlined and not numbered
- All acronyms must be fully written out before appearing in the
abbreviated form
you only need to write them out once, after that refer to the in
the abbreviated form for the rest of the resolution
Operative clauses
 All acronyms must be fully written out before appearing in
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the abbreviated for
All Operative clauses must be underlined and numbered
Sub-clauses must be lettered (a), b), c), d)..)
Sub-sub clauses must be in Roman Numerals (i)ii)iii)iv)..)
If a sub-clause does not end the clause it must end in a
comma (,)
All operative clauses must end in semi-colons (;)
Leave a line between every clause
No clause opening words should be repeated
In preambulatory clauses please
DO
 State strong and recent facts about the issue
 Use statistics where applicable
 Mention the past and current situation
 Recall any passed resolutions by the UN on the issue
 Relate any organizations involved in the issue
 State relevant organizations’ efforts in the issue
 If applicable use developing or developed countries
(MEDCs / LEDCs)
In preambulatory clauses please
DON’T
 Be too one sided or biased
 Use “third world countries”/ “poor countries”/ “first
world countries”/ “rich countries”
In operative clauses please DO
 Aim to find solutions which solve the smaller problems
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which contribute to the issue
Elaborate on the solutions in your operative clauses
(sub-clauses and sub-sub clauses)
Make use of any UN organizations or create ones to
help the issue
Emphasize cooperation between governments and
relevant UN organizations
Explain different methods of approaching the same
problem through clauses
In operative clauses please DONT
 Break the sovereignty a government has over its land
 Mention specific sources and specific (numbers)
amount of funding
 Be vague with your solutions or simply state a way of
solving something without explaining ways of doing so
 Create unrealistic solutions to the issue which are
vague or not possible
IN ALL CLAUSES PLEASE DON’T
PLAGIARIZE
 If you want to get ideas from resolutions only use
similar ideas and rewrite them as your own
Useful preambulatory clause
starters
 Affirming
Alarmed by
Approving
Bearing in mind
Believing
Confident
Contemplating
Convinced
Declaring
Deeply concerned
Deeply conscious
Deeply convinced
Deeply Disturbed
Deeply Regretting
Desiring
Emphasizing
Observing
Reaffirming
 Expecting
Emphasizing
Expecting
Expressing it’s appreciation
Fulfilling
Fully aware
Emphasizing
Expecting
Expressing it’s appreciation
Fulfilling
Fully aware
Further deploring
Further recalling
Guided by
Having adopted
Having considered
Having examined
Having received
Keeping in min
Noting with deep concern
Nothing with satisfaction
Useful operative clause starters
 Accepts
Affirms
Approves
Authorizes
Calls
Calls upon
Condemns
Confirms
Congratulates
Considers
Declares accordingly
Deplores
Designates
Draws the attention
Emphasizes Encourages
Endorses
Expresses its appreciation
Expresses its hope
Further invites
Deplores
Designates
 Draws the attention
Emphasizes
Encourages
Endorses
Expresses its appreciation
Expresses its hope
Further invites
Further proclaims
Further reminds Further recommends
Further requests
Further resolves
Has resolved
Notes
Proclaims
Reaffirms
Recommends
Regrets
Reminds
Requests
Solemnly affirms
Strongly condemns
Supports
Takes note of
Transmits
Policy Statements/ Position Papers
 A policy statement is a speech written by delegates on the topic
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that appeals most to them
It states the delegation’s feelings towards an issue and what they
believe should be done in a brief manner
What the delegation has already done regarding the issue and
what they would like to do
When researching you might not find enough information on
your country’s policy. If that happens look into the policies of the
country’s allies
You probably will not be giving this speech but writing it or the
info it contains will be useful:
- to guide your research
- to help you write your resolution/ opening speech
- to organize your ideas regarding your country’s policy
- to use it when you are unsure of what you want to say during
debate
Main components of a position
paper
 Define and explain the issue
 Provide short summary of recent international action
regarding the issue
 State the country’s general position on the issue
 Make suggestions of solutions that are in line with
your country’s policy
Sample policy statement
Delegation:
Forum:
Issue:
destruction
Brazil
Disarmament Commission
Measures to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass
Brazil fervently supports measures to support the Weapons of Mass
Destruction Branch of the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs in its attempts
to prevent terrorists from acquiring weapons of mass destruction (WMD), as
it firmly believes such efforts are necessary to combat the global threat of
terrorism.
Brazil endorses the Outcome Document of the 2005 World Summit, adopted
13 September 2005, which condemns terrorism in all its forms and
manifestations and strives to set up an international system that strictly
monitors the transfer of materials that may be used to produce WMD. Brazil,
one of the driving forces behind the 1967 Treaty of Tlatelolco, which turned
Latin America into the world’s first nuclear-free zone, applauds the recent
efforts made by the Members of the United Nations to free the world of any
type of WMD.
We feel especially responsible as our nation commands huge
uranium resources. We view with satisfaction the recent efforts
of Member States to prevent the use of WMD by terrorists.
However, Brazil expresses its deepest regret that, in spite of
recent efforts to combat the acquisition of WMD by terrorist
groups, some countries have refused to abide by the will of the
international community. It is our deepest interest to ensure a
world untroubled by the transfer of WMD and materials that
can be used in the production of any such weapons.
Opening Speech
 The opening speech is delivered by each delegation on
the second day of MUN, the first day of debate
 Begin your speech by addressing the president and the
delegates .. “Honorable president, distinguished chair,
and fellow delegates..”
 In the opening speech the delegate will show his/her
position on one of the topics
Sample opening speech
Honorable President, Distinguished Delegates,
France recognizes the need for multilateral efforts to achieve a greater balance in
terms of development between the nations of the world. However, France also
believes that any hope of achieving an acceptable economic balance in terms of
global standards of living must take into consideration the environmental impact
of such efforts.
France applauds the recent changes in tone apparent in the North–South dialogue
and calls for greater attention to be paid to the interrelatedness of development
planning and environmental security. Environmental threats from
industrialization must be eliminated from development planning. This is why
France stands firmly behind the idea that aid and investment should occur at the
local level, where traditional knowledge about the environment can play an
important role in the development.
Thank you, Mister President.
Lobbying and Merging
 In lobbying and merging, you must group up with your
allies
 You will merge your resolutions to come up with one
ready resolution on every topic
Writing an amendment
 An amendment is an improvement done to a
resolution by striking it out, adding to it or removing
part of it
 There will be official amendment sheets that you can
send your amendments on
 You might be asked to come up and speak for your
amendment so that it can be voted on
How debate works
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Role call
Resolution announced to be debated
Main submitter called to the floor
Main submitter reads operative clauses
Main submitter makes a 3 minute speech about the
resolution (why is it good?
 Main submitter answers points of information
(questions)
 Main submitter yields the floor back to the chair or
another delegate (“I yield the floor back to the chair”)
Points
 There are different points in MUN which have different purposes
 Point of personal privilege
Refers to the comfort of the delegate.
For example: “Point of personal privilege! Can you open the window?”
“Point of personal privilege! May the speaker raise their voice”
 Point of order
used when there is a wrong fact stated by one of the delegates. You say
“point of order! And then correct them” after they have finished
speaking!
 Point of Parliamentary Enquiry
Point of information to the Chair concerning rules of procedure.
Example: “Could the Chair please explain to the house what is meant
by closed debate?”
 A point CANNOT interrupt a speaker UNLESS it’s a point of personal
privilege due to audibility (voice of speaker)
Motions
 “Motion to move into voting procedure”
It’s a request to stop debate and move directly into
voting procedure
Delegates can agree by saying “Seconds”
It can be granted or denied by the chair
Yielding
 Delegates can only yield once consecutively. One
delegate can not take the floor, speak, then yield the
floor to another delegate and then have them yield the
floor to a third delegate.
Clothing
 Formal clothing for both men and women
 Suit and tie for males
 Formal pants/ skirt with a formal shirt for females
Useful links for research
 http://bestdelegate.com/research/
 This link contains various other links that are helful in
different areas of research for MUN