Our Committee Mentors
Dr. Leppard
Due to the ISPPMUN Conference, I was the only internal chair left in UNIS; therefore, I had the opportunity to interview our first mentor, Dr. Leppard. We started off the interview by getting to know each other. Dr. Leppard, the secondary principal at UNIS, has dedicated himself to this school for four years. He is really excited to be at UNIS with a committed team that is like family to him. Furthermore, Dr.Leppard has been teaching students for 25 years. After some of the introductory sessions, we went through some global issues. The global issue that he was interested in was gender equality. He believed gender equality was one of the most significant issues in the world and required a long-term solution. Due to the many different perspectives on global issues around the world, people will not always agree with each other. Therefore, he commented that respecting other cultures while promoting gender equality is also important since forceful change will not bring positive outcomes. After we discussed the global issue, we naturally went deeper into gender equality, sharing ideas about the topics that we are derived from. For me, I shared my ideas about two topics that will be discussed at the November conference, which are “the question of access to family planning methods”and “the question of equal gender access to quality education”. Similarly, Dr. Leppard acknowledges the tragedy of discrimination toward women that exists in our daily lives. He thought about a possible solution for this topic, which was empowering women. Through women's empowerment, it can provide a stable and satisfying environment for women. And these women will empower others not just women but gender as a whole. As our discussion has progressed, I have asked some personal questions about how he feels about being a guest speaker for UNISMUN. He replied that he thinks it needs courage and skills, and he thinks he needs a lot of time to prepare more in order to give a speech to students.
Ms. Morgan Dobroski
As one of the internal chairs of SDG 5, I had the opportunity to have a short meeting with Ms. Morgan who has guided me through some of the global issues that she was interested in, her life as a teacher, and her thoughts on the issues of my committee and the theme of 2023 UNISMUN November conference.
Ms. Morgan has been teaching internationally for 5 years, and before teaching she was getting her masters in special education and she always knew that she wanted to become a teacher since high school. She was a learning support student and really enjoyed her learning support teacher when her teacher asked what she wanted to do in the future, she replied, “I wanted to do your job!” Ms. Morgan’s most passionate global issue is the wildlife environment in Vietnam and Southeast Asia, she loves watching birds and wildlife, and seeing how they are treated, she is very passionate about conservation. She has always been passionate about equality for people with disabilities and people who are LGBTQ+. To inspire these issues to others and her students, she would be vulnerable with her students about her own challenges as an adult with a disability she shares her experiences and tries to make connections with the feelings that the students are feeling when they feel unincluded in the group. She is vulnerable and honestly talks with her students about it.
She was never involved in MUN in her school life but she has seen her friends being involved and she helped a little bit in her old school, to help students to get started and manage the group. In order to get more elementary students involved in MUN, she really liked the master classes we had at the end of last year and workshops. It would be a good idea to go to the elementary school area and show them what it is like to be involved and have some fun practice debates with them and show them what skills they can grow by doing MUN and how it is beneficial in the future.
About the two issues of SDG 5: the issue of access to family planning methods, and the issue of equal gender access to quality education, Ms. Morgan had some different thoughts as a female teacher. How MUN students are trying to break the stereotype of having to be female to be a teacher and having to be involved in leadership roles as a male, which she grew up thinking when she was a student, was one thing that she emphasized. She liked how it could help students break the stereotype that all genders can become a teacher and be involved in leadership roles. As Ms. Morgan is also an advisor of the UNIS Senate, they had a lot of discussions on how everyone could be involved in school activities and make sure that everyone feels valued and involved in the community, and that all voices are heard and understood.
Head Chair
Gloria Park
Greetings fellow chairs, distinguished delegates, and honorable guests!
I am Gloria Park, currently studying in grade 11 at UNIS Hanoi. I am honored to serve as the Head Chair of the SDG 5 committee in the 2023 UNISMUN November conference. This is my sixth experience in MUN, and fourth as a chair. As your head chair, I wish to create an atmosphere where all of you are able to be engaged in the debate and increase awareness on the two topics of our committee.
The theme of the 2023 UNISMUN November conference is: “How do we ensure sustainability through multilateral cooperation?” Multilateral cooperation is necessary to factor in the pursuit of sustainability when dealing with issues involving difficulty in distributing within and across countries, and over time. They are the foundation of all international cooperation to end conflicts, save lives, protect human rights, and promote social and economic progress.
Sustainability Development Goal 5 (SDG 5) is a goal that aims to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. Gender equality is an essential human right, wherever you live. In order to reduce poverty and advance the health, education, safety, and well-being of both girls and boys, gender equality must be achieved. According to UN SDG, gender equality promotes and maintains growth. Not only is a critical moral and social problem, but it also causes an essential economic challenge. Global economic growth will be limited if women, who make up half of the world’s population of working age, fail to maximize their full economic potential.
During the conference, we will focus on two topics based on the aim of SDG 5. The first issue to be debated on will be: “The issue of access of family planning methods”. To fully achieve SDG 5 and provide women more control over their lives, it is important to increase their ability to select whether or not to have children, as well as the number, timing, and spacing of their children. The second topic to be discussed is: “The issue of equal gender access to quality education”. By ensuring that all women are heard and provided an opportunity to participate fully, high-quality, gender-sensitive education increases the involvement of women and girls in all political, economic, and public spheres. Additionally, it helps in ending traditions and practices that harm the sexual, emotional, and physical health of women and girls.
I am very much looking forward to getting to know every one of you and making another memorable and meaningful experience for all!
Deputy Chair
Quang Thai Thieu
Honourable Chairs, Distinguished Delegates, Fellow directors and Esteemed Guests,
I am Quang Thai Thieu, currently studying in grade 12 at Nguyen Tat Thanh Lower & Upper Secondary School. It is my honour to serve as the Deputy Chair for the first time for the Sustainable Development Goal 5.
Nowadays, there are numerous issues relevant to conflicts, and development, to name but a few, which facilitate the desire for collaboration between developed and underdeveloped countries. Therefore, it leads to the theme of the UNISMUN 2023 November conference: “How do we ensure sustainability through multilateral cooperation?”.
Sustainable Development Goal 5 is of vital importance in UNISMUN on the grounds that a wide range of individuals living in extreme poverty are being underestimated and discriminated against due to their gender. Furthermore, as the goal of the committee is to maintain gender equality as well as support underprivileged females to live and be raised adequately, it is crucial that the delegates of SDG5 bring out some outstanding measures to strike the resolution.
The two major topics which delegates need to concentrate on are “The issue of access to family planning methods” and “The issue of equal gender access to quality education”. There is no denying the fact that both topics arouse many controversies in many nations. A typical case in point is Pakistan. In 2020, according to the UN Gender Equality Index, the Women, Peace, and Security Index ranks the country as 167th out of 170. As a result, these two topics are debatable and highly worth it for the delegates to raise their voices in order to carry out the most effective solutions to the problems.
Last but not least, I wish the UNISMUN 2023 November conference great success and I am looking forward to seeing many distinctive performances in the upcoming conference.
Procedural Chair
Jee Min Kim
Fellow chairs, distinguished delegates, and honorable guests,
My name is JeeMin Kim, a junior at the United Nations International School of Hanoi, Vietnam, and I am honored to serve as the procedural chair of the SDG 5 Council for UNISMUN’s upcoming November conference. This is my second year of UNISMUN and first year attending UNISMUN as a chair.
The theme of the 2023 November conference is “How do we ensure sustainability through multilateral cooperation?” The world has changed a lot in the past decade, and the more shifts people experience, the more problems the world faces because everyone’s demands cannot be satisfied. Therefore, sustainable consensus is required between not only nations but also people in order to lessen the conflict.
The goal of the SDG 5 Council is to achieve gender equality and empower girls and women globally. Our council is extremely significant in UNISMUN because, in some regions, such as Islamic countries and LEDC, women are still treated very poorly, overshadowed by religions, traditions, and stereotypes. SDG 5 is the best committee to discuss inequality around the world and the provision of a better economical, educational, safe, and abundant environment for people who are unfairly discriminated against.
The two topics that delegates will discuss are “the issue of access to family planning methods” and “the issue of equal gender access to quality education”. The first topic comprises the effect of dominant or one-sided beneficial family planning methods that physically or mentally abuse women. This is tragic since women are compressed because of their biological specificity. Moreover, the second topic links female empowerment and quality education. This topic is vital because gender stereotypes can affect academic achievement, confidence, and career decisions.
This conference feels more meaningful and special for me than any other conference I have experienced, which makes me already excited.