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Words bring about peaceful solutions at Model UN by Nathan Howes Special to the Beaver 41 | Thursday, April 7, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com The Halton Model United Nations (UN) Conference is the perfect backdrop for high school students to work harmoniously on world issues and raise awareness of the intergovernmental organization. Held in Oakville Friday (April 1), the second annual conference was hosted by Iroquois Ridge High School (IRHS) and St. Ignatius of Loyola Secondary School. It convened in the latter on Nottinghill Gate. Close to 140 student delegates took part in the one-day event to collaborate and discuss global topics in a formal environment. The goal is to give students an opportunity to express themselves and acquire new skills and experiences, says Wendy Dong, secretary general and IRHS Grade 12 student. "It's great to see everything come together after many months of planning, speaking with teachers and acquiring community donations. Seeing everything finally come together and everyone enjoying their time here is very rewarding for all of us," said Dong, who spoke with the Oakville Beaver after the first session. Planning the conference is "much harder than you would expect," she explained, as there is a lot of behind-the-scenes work -- tracking down delegates and ensuring completion of their position papers and answering general questions. "There are a lot of problems we have to solve throughout the entire journey. It was a really good learning experience for us," said Dong. "It was much more challenging for us to organize it because everything was (twice as much) as last year." Organization is key Nathalia Alli, secretary general and Grade 12 Loyola student, noted the preparation efforts were divided equally, with her school speaking to delegates and processing their applications, while IRHS handled the financial aspects and contacted community groups for donations. "Dividing the work helps. When we both work together, it comes out really well," said Alli. "We will continue this conference next year with the same schools. We're hoping to get delegates participating from all over Halton." The conference featured four committees ­ General Assembly (GA), Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Human Rights Council (HRC) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). The GA was comprised of 50 countries, UNICEF and HRC had 29 and the ECOSOC The event's opening ceremony featured a keynote address by Dr. Lynda RedwoodCampbell, a professor in the Department of Family Medicine at McMaster University, who has worked in Indonesia, Pakistan, Rwanda, DRC (Congo), Kenya and Nepal. Redwood-Campbell spoke on development in Third World countries and how disasters affect them, climate change, health care and other topics, as well as her experience working overseas with Canadian Red Cross. "I believe we still live in one of the best countries in the world. We have to work really hard to keep Canada what it is," she said, adding, "We can make Canada and the world better, but we need tolerance and understanding to be able to do that." Award winners The conference concluded with an awards ceremony. In the GA committee, the Best Delegate honour went to Katie Zenker, an Abbey Park High School (APHS) student representing Germany. Most Honourable was given to Iran delegate, Daniel Joubert of Dr. Frank J. Hayden Secondary School. For ECOSOC, Matthew O'Connell, Oakville Trafalgar High School (OTHS) student representing Russia, took home Best Delegate. Most Honourable was awarded to United States delegate, Rhea Thakore, from APHS. The UNICEF's Best Delegate honour was awarded to Rebecca Turner, the El Salvador delegate from St. Ignatius of Loyola. Most Honourable was assigned to Madison McNevitts, a Holy Trinity student representing Eritrea. The HRC's Best Delegate went to APHS student Sohaib Aziz, Saudi Arabia representative. Salma El-Zayat, an OTHS student and Vietnam delegate, went home with Most Honourable. For more information, visit www.haltonmun. St. Ignatius of Loyola Secondary School hosted the Halton Model United Nations with students from across Halton debating as member nation delegates. Pictured, South Africa and Russia vote for a resolution as Saudi Arabia abstains. From left, are: South Africa ­ Kyla Harris (Assumption High School), Sohaib Aziz ­ Saudi Arabia (Abbey Park H.S.) and Russia ­ Alessia Collia (Iroquois Ridge Secondary School). | photo by Graham Paine ­ Oakville Beaver (Follow on Twitter @halton_photog or facebook.com/HaltonPhotog) contained 30. During the three sessions, each committee discussed and found resolutions to their topics, which included the refugee crisis, arms trade, overpopulation, child labour, gender rights and equality in government and mass government surveillance. "What they're doing here is talking about some of the most pressing issues people face everywhere in the world. It's great they're discussing them. They're going to be the future leaders of our community and the global community," said Dong. D'Arcy Murphy, a North Korea ECOSOC delegate, said the first session was "really exciting" and a good opportunity to hear different perspectives on global issues. The opening sitting primarily focused on overpopulation and the second session discussed free trade, which are "broad topics." "One of the things we explored was education and developing a sustained population. It's a universal perspective that education is important and is something that everyone needs," said Murphy, a Grade 12 Holy Trinity Catholic Secondary School student. Murphy learned the UN is based on diplomacy, structure and co-operation, which puts everyone "on a equal playing field" to share their voices, he said. "Even though everyone has those different opinions and viewpoints, with co-operation you can find common ground and look towards making positive change that helps the whole world," said Murphy. Delegates used formal procedures and terminology to engage in a diplomatic and collaborative manner to find solutions. France's representative on the HRC, Danni Olusanya, said people had different opinions, but everyone was listening and trying to find a "happy medium." "I wasn't really used to the (UN) procedure, but I like the way it is formal and you really have to think about what you're going to say before you do," said Olusanya, a Grade 12 IRHS student. The initial HRC session discussed gender rights and equality, while the afternoon meeting focused on mass government surveillance. Olusanya said the latter subject is important to discuss because of the recent terrorist attacks in Brussels, Belgium and Paris, France. 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