MUN 101
Country and Topic Research
Country Research: The Basics
 To begin research, delegates should try to learn
the basics about their country. While there are a
multitude of good sources out there, here are a
few places to begin:
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The CIA World Factbook Country Description Page
The U.S. State Department’s Background Notes
The UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office
The Library of Congress’s country profiles
Country profiles on BBC News
The Economist’s country briefings
Individual country pages on the United Nations
Website
Information Galore
 When analyzing your countries’ pages on these
different sites, keep a few things in mind.
 Everything is there for a reason, and can be useful
 Yes, we know that you really don’t care how many
miles of telephone lines are in your country, but
eventually those numbers might help a seasoned
delegate understand how developed their country is.
 While individual statistics may not be especially
relevant outside of your topic, summary blurbs for
each section will allow you to grasp the most crucial
details.
 If you’re having trouble retaining all of the
necessary information, try jotting down a few notes
and committing those to memory.
Allies, Enemies and Everyone
Else
 It is important at the outset to ascertain the identity of your
nation’s allies and enemies, regional partners, and economic
collaborators.
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The latter is particularly relevant, because one can often determine
the depth of two states’ alliance through their level of trade.
 The existence of trade relations does not necessarily imply a
political or military alliance, but it at least means that the two nations
have diplomatic relations, leaving open the possibility of later
developments on the political and security front.
 Furthermore, understanding which international organizations
your country participates in will be helpful for finding other
allies, as well as determining its policy orientations on certain
issues.
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For example, if your country belongs to NATO, they will generally be
on friendly terms with other NATO members.
 However, if your nation is in an organization that has 100+ member
states, it does not mean you are allied with every member.
The Song That Never Ends
 Knowing one’s allies, basic country information and
even more minute details about one’s country is
important, but there is still much more to do.
 Delegates should be up to date with current events
taking place in their country and its region, as well
as relevant events taking place on a more global
scale.
 Any respectable periodical will do, preferably several. I
prefer The Economist, the New York Times, BBC, the
Financial Times, and the Washington Post, but there are
others.
 Even when this is done, keep looking. One can
never know too much about their nation.
Topic Research: Background Guides
 When one is placed in a committee at a MUN conference,
he or she will also be given a set of topics that they will
discuss at the conference. These are outlined in a document
known as the background guide, which will be posted on the
conference website.
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This guide will give you a basic summary of your topic.
 After reading the background guide, it is important that each
delegate understand the specifics of the topic as well.
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Understand what is being done, and by whom. Agency and
organizational acronyms are important; know what they are and
what they mean. Past international action can be further explored
by searching for past UN resolutions on your topic.
 If your topic is broad or “popular” enough, scholarly articles may
have already been written about it. These are useful both to
understand past action and possible future steps, and can be
found through the MSU Libraries website under “Articles.”
Where Does Your Nation Stand
 The next step is to find out where your country
stands on each of your topics.
 Delegates should first comb over their nation’s
United Nations pages. These sites will often have
search bars and press releases where delegates
can enter key words for individual topics and find
their country’s position.
 Try to find the website for your country’s foreign
ministry, which (if it exists in English) will probably
lay out your position on a number of issues most
important to your country. If your topic falls within
that set of issues, you’re in luck!
When Frustration Kicks in...
 Chances are that you will not be that lucky delegate that
finds everything about their country’s position on the UN
page or that of their foreign ministry. Even if you are, keep
looking; there are other techniques you should use to finetune your position:
News sources will describe what’s going on with particular topics,
and may make mention of what your nation is doing on the issue make sure you are up to date.
 Google is your friend. When in doubt, use search engines with a
variety of topic and country keywords to find out where your nation
stands. Be careful, though; not all sources are reliable. Imagine
you might use these sources to write a research paper, and choose
accordingly.
 Find out who your nation’s ambassador to the UN is. Use their
name and a variety of topic key words to attempt to find press
releases, and see if your nation has written or passed any UN
resolutions on the topic.
 When all else fails, look at the positions of the major players in the
debate, and where your country’s allegiances fall amongst them.
Side with the country with whom your country is friendly.
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You’re Not Done.
 Research is a constantly-evolving process, and you
might hit more than a few dead ends. If you are past the
point where the conference seems worth it, ask for help;
many IRO veterans are be happy to help any struggling
delegates out.
 Jim is your first point of contact, followed by Chris and Dane.
If they can’t help you, try talking to other members of the EBoard, followed by any one of the wealth of MUN veterans
within IRO’s general membership.
 Finally, get together with other IRO members who are in
your committee and talk about your findings. Bounce
ideas for solutions and positions between one another.
Rest assured, everyone will learn something in the
process of this discussion.