KULMUN 2019 CONFERENCE
The KULMUN Student Association can proudly announce that its yearly MUN Conference will indeed return for an 8th edition in 2018. KULMUN 2018 is set to take place from March 6 to 10 in the city of Leuven, Belgium. A MUN or Model United Nations Conference is an educational activity in which organs of the United Nations but also other international organisations are simulated. In a simulation, the participants, or delegates, each represent a country whose policy and interests they aim to defend during negotiations concerning an international issue. The topics debated are usually present-day topics, such as the situation in Syria or the state of the European economy.
Simulations of this kind are held throughout the world, therefore KULMUN is very proud to be the host of its own conference and that already for more than 7 years. While our first conference in 2011 solely accommodated around 50 Belgian MUN enthuasiasts it has grown into a five day lasting one which hosted over 150 delegates from more than 20 countries in 2017.
We are very much looking forward to welcome you to Leuven for a sure to be memorable week!
KULMUN 2019 THEME
A World Without Frontiers:
Solutions Beyond Borders for Regional Problems Going Global
Stating that we now live in a globalised world with problems trespassing national borders sounds like a cliché. People are in fact getting accustomed to the idea that when dealing with worldwide diseases, migration flows, economic crises and global warming, frontiers are no longer relevant.
Yet, in such a peculiar moment in history in which multilateral diplomacy seems like the only viable option for regional problems going global, State leaders seek refuge within their borders, adopting short-term and blind solutions, and anchoring their speeches to a populistic rhetoric. The result of these myopic actions is a weak international framework incapable of reaching a set of so-longed-for solutions. Additionally, State leaders are unavoidably nourishing fear towards those who appear different, and adopting a selfish strategy of maximisation of national gains.
At KULMUN 2019, participants will have to overcome this short-sighted mindset and embrace a collaborative approach, seeking to maximise shared interests. They will go beyond their national walls and be assigned to different regional areas, spanning from Latin America to the African continent, from Europe to the Pacific. This years conference aims at being a voyage in search of solutions beyond borders, in which delegates, chairs and the media will be involved with pressing issues that still today remain unresolved and that affect us as citizens of the world.
What happens in Leuven will not stay in Leuven.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE WELCOME LETTER BY OUR SG & DSG
Secretary-General:
Hannah Bergmann
Hannah Bergmann’s interest for international politics became a full-grown passion when she first participated in BerlinMUN four years ago as a delegate. The MUN-characteristic mix of motivated and inspiring people, very serious debating and an agenda of highly pressing issues combined with a packed social programme caught her immediately. Since then, Hannah took part in several conferences in the UK, Ireland, Poland, Belgium and Germany as a delegate and chair. She has also been part of the organising team of BerlinMUN for the past three years. When not MUNing, Hannah is studying history, sociology and political sciences at Humboldt-University Berlin and loves to travel, cook and visit music and film festivals.
Hannah could not be more honoured to serve as the Secretary-General for KULMUN 2018. While participating in the past three editions of KULMUN, both the city of Leuven as well as the wonderful KULMUN association have become a second MUN-home to her. To keep up the high academic standard and to ensure that this KULMUN will be as rich and diverse in content as its last editions is a challenge Hannah is pleased to accept. She cannot wait to return to Leuven and is, together with the marvellous Xhilda Vocaj, determined to make KULMUN 2018 an unforgettable and truly rewarding experience for everyone.
Deputy Secretary-General:
Xhilda Vocaj
Xhilda Vocaj is an Albanian student living in Paris. After graduating in international and European law from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, she has obtained two master’s degrees, one from the same university in international business law and the other in international and European litigation from the University of Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense. She has been part of the Albanian delegation to UNESCO during two consecutive sessions of the Executive Board and has accomplished an 8-month internship in a French law firm. She is currently preparing for the Paris bar exam.
After an excellent experience as a chair in KULMUN 2017, she is looking forward to coming back to Leuven and one of her favourite conferences, this time serving as Deputy Secretary General.