SOCHUM: Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Issue

The United Nation’s third general body focuses its attention on the human rights of social, humanitarian and cultural issues around the world. This committee will have to work together to find effective ways to help those who feel at a disadvantage. Specifically, during CESIMS, the committee will explore the rights of women, children and racial and economic disparities. Throughout the day, there will be two topics that come together. Topic A will discuss the safety of families living in war zones. The countries will look at wars from Latin America, Africa and the Middle East and work together to ensure ways to find the most effective way to protect the safety of the innocent people caught in these war zones. Topic B would then look at the same countries but specifically child labor laws within the cultural societies. Delegates will have to incorporate global conflict between using children to grow the economy, as many countries will have their own beliefs and needs. However, the best thing about MUN is that it is the best place to generate good discussion and collaboration!

The Maravi Empire Convenes, 16th Century

Southeast Africa, the late 16th century. The Maravi empire is on the cusp of consolidating its power. Three kingdoms make up the young empire, which boasts territory spanning from the coast of Moçambique to the banks of the Luangwa River. But attaining primacy in this fast-paced and ever-changing region is no easy feat— the ivory-hungry Portuguese are a constant presence to the south, varied rain-making spiritual authorities battle for influence, and the peoples the Maravi now rule still remember what life was like without their overlords. Strange spirits lurk in the forest and the scent of change blows in from the south. This meeting of Maravi elders must chart the empire’s path into the new century—will the Maravi empire flourish, or be overcome?

UN Office of the High Commission for Human Rights (OHCHR)

On March 28, 2019, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres announced that humanity only has eleven years left before the effects of climate change become irreversible. However, for many of the most vulnerable communities around the world, the effects of man-made global warming have already been suffered. Small island micro-states are threatened by rising sea levels; agriculture-reliant countries in the global South are finding it more difficult to grow crops; water is becoming a scarce resource in the desert.

This situation raises the question of environmental justice that the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) must address. How can the United Nations create a climate change Agenda that more thoroughly incorporates the situation and needs of these communities? And should the United Nations interpretation of human rights be altered to include this sort of justice, not only for these vulnerable groups, but for future generations as well?

Delegates, the choice is up to you.

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

The world has many atrocities. Pollution. The cutting of trees. Corruption. But perhaps none are as graphic and unnecessarily violent as that of the whaling industry. The Sea Shepherd conservation society’s goal is to protect whales at all costs. While our organization does everything it can to stop the senseless killing of these animals we face constant opposition from governments who use all means to stop us; legal, social, and even physical. While our society attempts to save those dying, it itself is beginning to die.

Pirate Republic

Ahoy! The year is 1713, and the Golden Age of Piracy is slowly drawing to a close, as the British, French, and Spanish navies systematically hunt down pirates all over Caribbean. In hopes of delaying their destruction, a group of the remaining pirate captains has occupied the port town of New Providence on the island of Nassau, and over the course of several years they have built an independent pirate republic, governed loosely, but democratically, by a council of pirate captains. The fledgling republic is dangerous, but radically free. You and your fellow pirate captains sustain New Providence by raiding trade ships and vulnerable port towns, but as a result, your lawlessness has attracted the ire of the great European powers (especially the feared British Royal Navy). With such great odds stacked against you, will infighting and lack of cooperation spell out destruction for the republic? Or will you and your fellow captains band together, and secure a future of freedom and riches for the pirates of New Providence?

The Question of Succession: Stalinists vs. Reformists

It is March 6th of 1953. Josef Stalin has just died and his top appointed officials, political supporters, and political rivals are all seeking to ascend to the position of power that he had held. From members of the Presidium to Soviet satellite state leaders and military officials, all hope to advance their own political agendas and implement their respective views for the future of the Soviet Union by filling this power vacuum. Even though Georgey Malenkov seems posed to become Stalin’s immediate successor, the Soviet politicians are like blood-thirsty sharks, recognizing that the fight is not lost until their rivals had been purged. The key players fighting to permanently succeed Stalin include staunch anti-revisionist Marxist-Leninists composed of ardent old guard Bolsheviks and Stalin’s inner circle of supporters, but also those who hope for reform, whether through a complete move away from the Stalinist model or a middle ground approach that is less radical. Aside from these visions of policy for a better Soviet Union, each man also has his own personal ambitions. Who will prevail in this struggle for control?

UNWomen (2020)

The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment, otherwise known as UNWomen, works to achieve gender equity globally. In this committee we will focus on the broad topic of achieving gender equality. In working to accomplish this goal, as dictated by Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, we will be focusing fixing on particular subsets of gender inequality. We will be discussing women's health, security, and economic status.  We hope to foster a productive and inclusive debate.

The Kennedy Administration, 1961

The year is 1961 and the thirty-fifth President, John F. Kennedy has just been inaugurated, yet there still is turmoil in the United States. There are Cold War tensions between the United States and Russia, leading to mass hysteria over making sure the United States is protected against the forces of Communism. The Vietnam War still rages on, but young people have begun to protest the actions taken place as the draft continues to expand. The young president also does not have stability at home where he must deal with women and racial minorities seeking equal rights. With a young, liberal president coming into power right after the Conservative nature of the 1950’s, there is a large gap between Kennedy’s supporters and those who think of him as an unprepared child. Within this committee, the members of President Kennedy’s cabinet have gathered in order to discuss matters of national politics and restore stability to the United States. Will you stand with the President’s agenda, or go your own route?

Rising, Revolt, and Rebellion: Easter 1916

It is Easter 1916.  Across the English Channel from France to Palestine, The Great War rages.  Yet on the home-front, another flame burns; the flame of revolution.  In Ireland, there are murmurings among the people that now is the time to rise up and demand what has been sought after by generation after generation of Irishmen and women since the island's union with the rest of Britain.  As members of Prime Minister Asquith's coalition government, it is up to you to manage this crisis before it becomes uncontainable, ideally without disrupting the war effort.  We have arrived at a point where it is clear that strictly cosmetic concessions to the Irish people are not enough to assuage their anger.  Will you give in to their demands or stand fast behind the principles underpinning the fragile political union that is the United Kingdom.  Are you up for the challenge?