CONMUN 2023

March 16 to March 19, 2023

Going into Concordia's Model United Nations 2023 Conference, I was already far more confident than I was at my first conference, McMUN, at the end of January. This time, I knew what to expect and I was very happy that many of my friends followed my advice to join Sainte-Anne's Model UN team, as we were able to support each other throughout the conference and create lasting memories.

My committee for CONMUN was a Specialized Agency (SA) which simulated a meeting between the Commonwealth of Nations, an international organization between former British colonies, such as Canada, New Zealand, and Australia. As delegates of this committee, we were given the following mandate: ensure the perpetuity and continuity of the Commonwealth in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II’s death.

Personally, the country whose economic, political, social, and diplomatic interests I had to put forth was Mozambique. That was a very interesting position for me because Mozambique was actually colonized by the Portuguese and is one of the only 2 countries in the Commonwealth that does not have any constitutional link with the UK. Nonetheless, my role as a delegate of this committee was still crucial because Mozambique has been facing a humanitarian crisis ever since 2017. Therefore, my priority was to address these pressing Mozambican issues and to seek help from other Commonwealth members. After many impassioned speeches and numerous discussions, I was very proud that all members of the committee agreed on the creation of an innovative Commonwealth Mission in Mozambique as part of the resolution papers that we worked on.

In sum, in CONMUN 2023, I was able to improve my public speaking skills in a rewarding environment, tie new relationships with students just as passionate about international diplomacy as I am, and proudly represent my CEGEP in front of students from all around Canada. I definitely upped my game when it came to making speeches and writing resolution papers as compared to my first conference, which is a thing that I am very proud of. Surely, the skills I developed there will stick with me for the rest of my life!