Pitt's United Nations" Will Be in Session Nov. 8

PITTSBURGH—Nearly 450 students from 36 high schools throughout Western Pennsylvania will experience the excitement and complexity of international relations as they convene Nov. 8 at the University of Pittsburgh to take part in Pitt's eighth annual Model United Nations (Model UN) Simulation.

Model UN will be in session from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the William Pitt Union, 3959 Fifth Ave., Oakland. The event is sponsored by Pitt's University Center for International Studies, Citizens for Global Solutions Pittsburgh, and the United Nations Association of Pittsburgh.

Model UN gives students the opportunity to assume the role of diplomats as they participate in mock sessions of the United Nations, Caribbean Community, and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Acting as representatives for those organizations, students debate such issues as nuclear proliferation and landmines, children with disabilities in developing nations, the sale of diamonds by insurgents to finance weapons used to inflict violence, the effects of atomic radiation, Israeli practices affecting human rights in the Occupied Territories, the HIV/AIDS epidemic, crime and security in the Caribbean, new challenges for NATO, the common European defense policy, the Chechnya conflict, and the transition in Iraq from a U.S.-sponsored to an Iraqi-lead government.

Students are evaluated throughout the simulation and awards are given for an individual's ability to realistically present the positions of the country he or she represents. In addition to individual awards, school delegations also are recognized for outstanding performances.

Members of Pitt's Model UN club will participate in the simulation, acting as Secretary-General, committee chairs, and U.N. staff.

For more information, access the event Web site at www.pitt.edu/~modelun.

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