MUNWEB2021 Opening Ceremony Summary
The Webster Leiden Campus director Prof. Dr. Jean Paul van Marrising opened the conference by reflecting on his own inspiration for pursuing a career in International Law. During studies, the director visited the U.N. facilities in Vienna and thought it a natural fit. “I felt at ease in the U.N. buildings, and I felt, ‘This is what I want to do when I finish my studies,’” Marissing said. The director was also realistic back then and eventually changed his course toward a more global skillset - winding up as council for the EU representing the Dutch government in Brussels; and negotiating with fellow member states as well as the European Parliament. “Today, tomorrow and Sunday, you will have, hopefully, the opportunity to get a little taste of that,” Marissing said. “How to argue, how to negotiate, and how to make a difference.”
Following the opening remarks from the director, Webster Leiden Campus IR Dept. Coordinator Nives Rumenjak congratulated the conference for attracting over 80 delegates and participants.
“I cannot be more proud of all the work we have put in the last six years,” Rumenjak said. Recalling the almost century-old tradition of model United Nations conferences in Europe, Rumenjak stressed the continuance of these conferences during challenging times. “This time, we are not fighting as countries against each other, but against the pandemic of COVID-19. And it is important for us as students, as educators and as academics to stay resilient. And it is exactly the right time for multilateralism – the basic idea of the United Nations – more than ever before,” Rumenjak said. To emphasize the point Rumenjak read the list of countries represented by the overall assembly at the conference – almost four dozen states.
Out of these many representatives, the chairs of each committee were next to introduce themselves to the assembly. UNSC chair Rezwan Ahmed founded BTU Model United Nations in Cottbus-Senftenberg, Germany and is the current Secretary General of his home conference. “I want to see society’s crises resolved by the global, younger generation,” Ahmed said. UNSC co-chair Ebenezer G. Tadele introduced to the assembly as the current Secretary General of WebMUN, Webster’s MUN conference held at the Geneva campus each fall. Tadele was proud to be part of the inaugural event at Leiden. Aishwari Krishna of DISEC, a high-school senior who has participated in MUNs throughout the last two years, is excited to hear the upcoming debates in committee. “DISEC is an amazing committee ad I think we have a set of agenda topics that are really important to consider for the future,” Krishna said. DISEC co-chair Abinov “Abi” Batchu brings three years of MUN experience from Dutch conferences in Alkmaar and the Hague. “This is my first-time chairing, so wish me luck,” Abi said. Webster MUN’er Isabella “Isa” Myers has also participated in MUNs for the last three years and will co-chair HRC alongside Céline Paré, a French student currently studying in the Netherlands. The pair brings over 8-years of experience to the HRC this weekend. AU chair Aniruddh Rajendran, a veteran of Munapest and Harvard MUN in Madrid, has four-plus years of conference experiences to share with MUNWeb. This year marks the first time Rajendran will chair an MUN committee. The youngest attendant at MUNWeb 2021, Despoina Nefeli Gkaroutsou, is a 17-year-old co-chair alongside Rajendran in the AU. Casting this weekend from Greece, Gkaroutsou hoped to one day study law in the Netherlands. “I have participated in 10 conferences in the last three years,” Gkaroutsou said. “This is also my first-time chairing.” Zana Udo, a chair of UNEP, is also a first-time chairperson and a student at Webster Leiden Campus. Arjun Gupta is her UNEP co-chair. A creative addition to MUNWeb, the Medical Council, is co-chaired by Srilakshmi Chidambaram, a pre-med student with 8-years’ experience at MUNs. “I have a fondness for scientific councils, and medical councils are my favorite, Chidambaram said. “Having representatives from International Organizations along with countries should be interesting.” Chidambaram will co-chair the committee along with Isabella Reksa.
Leiden campus adjunct instructor Jill Adler, J.D. closed the ceremony by acknowledging the entirety of the conference for remaining steadfast through current challenges. “Our team at Webster Leiden created a module allowing for the gathering together of students remotely on Zoom in real-time, and across time zones despite a pandemic. Incredible,” Adler said.
Following Dr. Adler, the Organizing Committee introduced themselves to the attendees. Along with Finance and Press, Protocol Manager Leith Jeroudi hoped, despite COVID-19 protocols, that MUNWeb will leave a “lingering taste of togetherness” among the assembly once the conference wraps on Sunday.