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Students from Manchester High School for Girls helped to bring more than 200 students from around the north west to their school’s first ever Model United Nations conference (MUNHIGH) on 31 January and 1 February. A team of five girls – Nikki Ung, Chloe Barry, Aleena Siddiq, Naomi Adedokun and Samantha Paterson – had been planning the large student debate event since September. The event was themed around the millennium development goals set at the Millennium Summit, the largest gathering of world leaders in history in 2000, which addressed issues such as hunger and poverty, education, gender equality, security and environmental sustainability.
17-year-old Nikki from Cheadle Hulme, chief organiser and secretary general of the event, was delighted at the success of their first ever conference. She said: “It has been a hectic but rewarding experience. These debates are beneficial to the participants from many aspects; they build confidence and our understanding of global issues, and the social aspect is also great as you meet many like-minded people. We hope that the conference has brought our school closer to the MUN community and that we have established an annual event which everyone looks forward to.”
17-year-old Naomi Adedokun from Bolton, who is studying the international baccalaureate programme, is hoping to read English literature at Durham University. She said: “Organising such a large conference was hectic but worth every minute. I hope that we have now established an annual event in the Model United Nations calendar and that the younger students will carry it forward in future years. The MUN is a hugely beneficial extra-curricular activity and I can’t recommend it highly enough.”
Mrs Jacinta Heydecker, Model United co-ordinator at Manchester High School for Girls, said: “I would like to congratulate the MUNHIGH student organising committee on a very successful and enjoyable conference. It was the culmination of a great deal of hard work over many months.”
