Senior Claire Farnham took her second and final trip to Boston, Massachusetts for the Harvard Model United Nations (HMUN) Conference beginning on Jan. 25 and ending on Jan. 28, 2024. 

At the conference, students from around the world gather to form a delegation to discuss and debate over issues surrounding different countries of the world. Each school that attends is assigned a country that they must research. All information researched is used in debates to discuss how to solve problems and conflicts like how the actual United Nations does.

Farnham attended the conference representing the country Iran. This was her second and final year attending.

“I like going to Boston a lot, and it’s really fun for that weekend just to get in that mindset and talking all this gibberish about HMUN,” Farnham said. “You get super immersed into it.”

The conference hosts students from across the world, to get different perspectives on solving political issues, as well as focusing on real world problems. Each student is given a plaque with their country’s name on it, which is supposed to simulate the real United Nations. 

English teacher and HMUN advisor, Rachael Holden-Kaufman has been advising the event for over 10 years. 

“Claire is definitely someone is really motivated and wants to get involved right away,”

Holden-Kaufman said. “She wants to get on the speakers list as much as possible.” 

The speakers list is for anyone who wishes to give a speech about how their country feels about different topics, they raise their country’s plaque and the chair of the committee will make a list of the countries who want to speak on a specific topic. 

“I think it gives you a really good idea how intergovernmental politics work,” Farnham said.

Participating in HMUN is like participating in the United Nations, it gives students a chance to learn about what it’s like to speak up and discuss issues surrounding the world. Not only does HMUN give real world experiences, but it also helps students gain personal growth.

Farnham felt that she gained confidence and the ability to speak up on important issues. She was also able to work on public speaking in an environment with people from across the world.

“It gives students the ability to negotiate with other countries, and teamwork, and problem solving,” Holden-Kaufman said.

If you are interested in joining HMUN next school year, reach out to Rachael Holden-Kaufman for more information regarding sign ups.