Latest News
February 22, 2012
The Wednesday Edition of The Diplomat is now available online! Printed copies will be available in the afternoon.
_____
February 21, 2012
NAMUN XXVII
University of Toronto
Conference Schedule available here.
_____
January 31, 2012
Background guides for committees have been posted.
_____
Prepare for NAMUN
NAMUN provides an excellent avenue for delegates to sharpen their negotiation skills. We want all delegates to get as much out of NAMUN as possible; and that means that delegates must come prepared, armed with the theory of negotiation so that they can engage in the practice of negotiation in committees.
In this page, we provide a list of books and online resources that, in our opinion, will prepare you best for our conference. Also, we provide a list of tips that, in the opinion of our experienced Secretariat, will aid you well in your negotiation:
Note that many of these resources employ negotiation skills in context (e.g. business, government); it is important that you abstract the ideas from these contexts.
These resources, in our opinion, give you a well-rounded preparation for the NAMUN Conference:
General
Delegates are expected to write a position paper outlining their respective country's or character's position with respect to their committee topics. This should be a minimum 500 word paper (not exceeding 1500 words) outlining the relevance of their country/character in the committee. Delegates must send this paper prior to February 20th to the President of the committee.
Ammar Keshodia, President of the General Assembly: ammar.keshodia@namun.org
Liam Salichuk, President of Special Committees: liam.salichuk@namun.org
Patrick Langille, President of the Historical Council: patrick.langille@namun.org
Model UN Preparation Guide & Model UN 101
Prepared by the United Nations Association of USA (UNA-USA), these guides should be the read through first by delegates, especially first-timers to model UN. Even for experienced "MUN-ers," these guides refresh the all-important skills important for quality debate at NAMUN 2010.
Information about the United Nations
Linked to the American Model United Nations site, this resource is packed with important information, especially for first-timers.
Tips & Strategies for MUN-ers
Prepared by the American Model United Nations Conference - a great reference if you want to be above the cut.
Differences between the UN and Model UN:
An important analysis prepared by AMUN; should be read by delegates who are serious about model UN.
NAMUN Specific
The Rules of Procedure (NAMUN) and Sample Resolution
Massachusetts Institute of Technology OpenCourseWare Resources
MIT's OpenCourseWare (OCW) is a website platform from which anybody from anywhere in the world can access selected MIT course materials. We recommend this resource for individuals who are serious about learning about the theory of negotiation. A variety of MIT courses are available:
Negotiation 101 (Sloan School of Management)
Negotiation 101 provides a broad overview of negotiation is highly recommended for delegates coming into NAMUN.
Power & Negotiation (Sloan)
This is recommended for delegates who want a slightly more advanced treatment of the subject in an organizational context.
Description from OCW:
"This course is designed to provide you with a competitive advantage in negotiation. You will learn and practice the technical skills and analytic frameworks that are necessary to negotiate successfully with peers from other top business schools, and you will learn methods for developing the powerful social capital you will need to rise in the executive ranks of any organization."
Competitive Decision-Making & Negotiation (Sloan)
This is recommended for delegates who want an advanced treatment of negotiation. It is an excellent course in that it introduces various concepts at looking at negotiation.
Description from OCW:
"This course is centered on twelve negotiation exercises that simulate competitive business situations. Specific topics covered include distributive bargaining (split the pie!), mixed motive bargaining (several issues at stake) with two and with more than two parties, auctions and fair division. Ethical dilemmas in negotiation are discussed at various times throughout the course."
The Secretariat also decided to add in some top notch resources for leadership, which is an important skill in committee sessions:
MIT-OCW slides on Leadership in Negotiation
MIT-OCW slides on Leadership & Cross-cultural Negotiation
Other Online Resources & Recommended Readings:
Online Negotiation Worksheet
Leading through Conflict
by Mark Gerzon, Harvard Business School Press
This book is an excellent book that teaches you about "integrative vision," a powerful negotiation concept that teaches you how to hold the entire group's viewpoint together. An exceptional resource for Model UN delegates.
International negotiations : theory, practice, and the connection with domestic politics
by Alexander G. Nikolaev, Lexington Books
A great introduction to negotiation in the international context.
A Final Note:
We recommend that delegates treat these resources as reference at best. It is important to develop your own style, one that is sensitive to your own culture, background, values and beliefs