A Magical Model UN
Complex world issues? Not a problem at all for the future leaders here, as the Model United Nations class hosted local middle schoolers on Sunday for the third annual Millbrook Model UN (MillMUN).
Led by Vth former Grace Bellin ’27, the problem solvers from Millbrook and nearby Dutchess Day School and Indian Mountain School took on real-world issues, role-playing as diplomats in the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS). Additionally, the Joint Crisis Committee (JCC) had some fun solving a fantasy conflict from the magical world of Harry Potter.
According to Grace, the participants learned valuable lessons about collaboration as they worked together to save the world. Crises they faced included piracy, rising sea levels, meteors and other near-Earth objects (NEOs), and war in outer space.
Grace has now run the past two Model UNs at Millbrook, after taking over from her sister, Christina Bellin ’24, who founded the event. She said that Sunday’s MillMUN showed improvement from the previous year’s conference in terms of flow and professionalism, as she and her crew built on their experience from the last two years.
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Evolved from a club to one of our new Interdisciplinary Studies Department offerings, Millbrook’s Model UN lets students develop leadership skills in a safe environment that they can then take into the real world. The class hosts a Model UN for middle schoolers at Millbrook each fall, and then the high schoolers head off to participate in a Model UN hosted by Dartmouth College in the spring.
With this year’s MillMUN complete, the class will now delve into real-world case studies with History Instructor Mitch Kastilahn to prepare for the coming Dartmouth conference. Grace also said they’re already working on planning next year’s MillMUN, looking to build an event that lasts for generations.
“I'm just hoping that we can keep it going—make it more solid next year, and then when I graduate, hopefully it doesn't disappear,” she said. “Keep it running.”
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