Chinese teenagers take helm of United Nations

An educational and academic summit, in which Chinese middle school students took part in a model United Nations, was held in Beijing on March 29 to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the UN.

With the theme, Peace, Responsibility and Future, the summit was attended by about 200 headmasters, teachers and student representatives from nearly 100 middle schools from around the country. It was held at the Diaoyitai State Guesthouse, and participants shared their experiences and achievements in organizing model UN conferences for the past 15 years, when the program was first introduced into Chinese middle schools.

Model UN is an educational simulation and academic competition in which students represent diplomats of different countries and UN officials to discuss international affairs and important global issues. Students can learn about diplomacy, international relations, and the working mechanism of United Nations.

Model UN began in the United States in the early 1950s and later became a popular extracurricular activity worldwide. It is believed to enhance students’ skills in research, public speaking, debating, and writing in addition to critical thinking, teamwork, and leadership abilities.

The summit is part of a series activities organized by China Arts Festival Foundation, UN Association of China, China Education Television Association and US-China Foundation for Education, Science and Culture, which includes compiling a reference book for the model UN for Chinese middle school students and shooting a documentary called "Model UN in China", and selecting Chinese student representatives to attend the Model UN conference at the UN headquarters in New York in July.

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