Students show concern for international issues
Sunday, November 26, 2006
By Lucille Rice
The leaders of tomorrow have spoken:
They care about issues and international
conflicts far beyond the valley, and are working
toward a safer, cleaner, brighter world.
The first Teton County Model United
Nations Conference was held on
Wednesday and Thursday at the Journeys
School. Seventy-three students from the
Jackson Hole High School, the Jackson
Hole Community School, and the
Journeys School participated in the simulation
of the United Nations and three of
its main bodies.
"The maturity level has impressed me..."
Each student represented a nation of the
world and its political agenda, and demonstrated
the clout it holds in the world
order. Each committee chaired by teachers
and volunteers debated, proposed resolutions
and voted on important issues, all
while following United Nations protocol.
The Teton County Model UN was sponsored
by Interconnections 21, a local nonprofit
with worldwide reach that works
with schools and communities to promote
global awareness through educational
workshops, hosting guest speakers and
organizing student conferences, among
many other programs. The Global
Connections club is one of the many ways
that IC21 works with valley schools to
educate students on international affairs.
For years, the club has sponsored trips to
model UN conferences around the nation
and in Mexico. When JHHS history
teacher Jeff Brazil chaperoned one of the
trips, he saw the potential of incorporating
model UN in schools, said Susie Rauch,
founder of IC21.
The three valley schools have
since incorporated the program
into their curricula through history
classes or general requirements
and have collaborated in
an effort to educate students on
global issues.
"I think it is our role as educators
to help students see the
world from a more international
perspective," said Amy Fulwyer,
history teacher at the JH
Community School and chair of
the conference's UN
Environmental Program.
"Living in Jackson, we have a
particular responsibility to being
informed of world issues. The conference
raises awareness of current issues and
helps students find ways to solve them."
Participating students have a strong
interest in international issues such as
global warming, human rights and nuclear
proliferation
"If you don't pay attention to what's happening
on the global stage, how can you be
an educated voter?" asked Zeke
Trautenberg, a junior at the JH
Community School and the conference's
Secretary General. "So much of what happens
in the outside world affects what happens
here like global warming and the
price of fuel. Our whole economy [in
Jackson Hole] is touristbased,
so if fuel prices go up,
it will affect tourism and how
many people visit the valley."
Student delegates represented
16 countries throughout
the three UN committees
simulated. The Security
Council, chaired by Brazil,
discussed the genocide in the
Darfur region of Sudan and
North Korea's nuclear intentions.
The UN Environmental
Program, chaired by Fulwyer,
passed resolutions on the
availability of clean water to
all. And the Human Rights
Council, chaired by IC21 volunteer Leah
Schlachter, debated immigration and its
effect on individuals and nations.
"The maturity level has impressed me,"
said Jordan Schreiver, a JHHS junior representing
Venezuela on the Security
Council. "We have been having better conversations
than the college student conferences
I have been to."
Some students had prior model UN
experience while others were newcomers
to the conference.
"Event though it's my first MUN conference,
I really like the atmosphere," said
Journeys School freshman Brandon
Kapelo, who represented France on the
Environmental committee and helped
sponsor a resolution on clean water.
"There is a good mix between debating
current world issues and acting, because
you get into character while representing
your country."
Students, teachers and volunteers spent
months preparing for the conference,
researching their assigned countries, studying
the issues extensively, looking at what the
UN is and how it proceeds, said Fulwyer.
An awards ceremony concluded the twoday
event and recognized outstanding delegates.
One student from each committee
was chosen based on performance, preparedness
and recommendations from fellow
students and the chairs for being outstanding
delegates. Garnet Henderson
from the UN Environmental Programme,
Ian Johnston from the Human Rights
Council, and Dexter Patterson from the
Security Council were recognized as outstanding
delegates at the conference. All
three students attend JHHS.
"For me, it's a way of life," said JHHS
senior Tanya Zaist. "Being more aware of
global issues and trying to educate others
about them is a way of giving back to the
world. Learning about international issues
or conflicts such as the genocide in Darfur
makes you realize how fortunate you are. It
makes you conscious of your everyday
actions and how they can be modified to
have lesser impacts [on the environment]."
- editor@planetjh.com
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