Students of the prestigious Doon School recently undertook a Global Citizenship expedition as part of which they participated in the Yale Model United Nations conference along with 1200 other students from over 40 countries.
The students engaged in debates and discussions to find solutions to some of the challenges we are facing in our world today. In addition, the students also visited some think-tanks and attended a briefing at the UN HQ.
For more than six decades, Model United Nations has been a popular tool used by schools and colleges around the world to plant the seeds of peace, co-existence, and interdependence in the minds of young students. In a fractured world that we live in today, it is important now more than ever to continue to teach our children the importance of being Global Citizens.
High school students of the Doon School in Dehradun recently embarked on one such global citizenship mission to the United States as part of the Worldview Future leaders Programme. The Doon School delegation participated in the Model United Nations conference hosted by the Yale International Relations Association at the Yale University campus.
The students got together with 1200 other students from across the world to discuss, debate and deliberate some of the biggest issues facing humanity today with the objective of finding globally acceptable solutions.
The students worked together to find solutions to issues such as Implementation of climate agreements, Terrorism in Africa, Reducing the negative effects of protectionism, Migrant crisis, Surveillance, Effects of nuclear energy on climate change among others. In addition to the conference, the delegation also visited the United Nations Head Quarters for a workshop on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that was delivered by senior members of the United Nations.
The Doon School has been sending their delegations for programs such as the Worldview Future leaders Program for many years now and these journeys have contributed to building the globally minded, solution oriented leaders that the school has built a legacy of nurturing over the years. As YMUN is hosted in the heart of Yale’s campus, delegates can experience life at Yale through Yale Day .They can attend Master lectures with Yale professors, explore Yale’s campus with a guided tour, or try a new activity with Yale’s student extracurricular organizations. Delegates can also have lunch with Yale professors and students .
It is important today more than ever for students to not just think of themselves as citizens of a sovereign state but as members of planet Earth. The challenges that we face today need solutions that can be implemented at scale and in diverse realities. To be able to do this, it’s important for Generation-Z to develop a deep understanding of the problems and work with their peers from around the world to find solutions.
“In this process, we see ‘Schools as the Primary Engines of Positive Change’ and we are glad that an increasing number of principals are taking the lead and the initiative. Our responsibility today is to not just develop leaders but to actively develop solvers who will find solutions to the challenges we are facing”, says Sampreeth Reddy, MD of Worldview Education, the organisation that developed and delivered the Worldview Future leaders Programme.
