The Law and Practice of the United Nations - Model United Nations

• What is the purpose of the United Nations and how does it really work?

• Does the United Nations matter in international affairs?

• Is the critique of United Nations fair? And if so how can it be fixed?

• Are you interested in learning how to negotiate and acting as an international diplomat?

If you think that any of those questions are important and interesting, then this course is something for you.

Summary

This course is for anyone interested in the United Nations (UN) and how it deals with current issues of concern for the international community such as for instance disarmament and security, sustainable development, human rights and equality. The course will give you an insight into the role and workings of the UN in international politics and the interaction and dialogue between governments in trying to solve the issues on the global agenda.

The aim of the course is to give students in depth knowledge about the system of the United Nations and how its different bodies function, for example such bodies as UNCHR, UNICEF, UNDP and the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The main focus of the course is on a model United Nations role play, that will through its simulation give the students practical skills in negotiations and diplomacy.

During the course we will further study and discuss the historical origin, development and challenges of the United Nations. We will also analyse different cases concerning, for example conflicts, interventions and sovereignty from the International Court of Justice. In addition, we will get a deeper understanding of the workings of the UN by the thematic study of the different bodies of the organisation for example, how does the UNDP work with achieving the UN Sustainability Goals in the region of Africa.

The course has a hands-on approach to the work of the UN by making use of real material produced by the UN, such as resolutions, reports, investigations and judicial decisions.

The main emphasis of the course will be on a Model UN role-play. In the simulation students will act as state representatives during a General Assembly session dealing with one of the seventeen sustainability goals. The students will attend meetings at the General Assembly representing their states, conduct negotiations and diplomacy as well as working with amending resolutions mirroring the real work of the General Assembly delegates.

The course consist of the following modules:

The Law and Practice of the UN (15hp)

In this module we will study the in and outs of the UN to gain as much knowledge about the world organisation as possible so that all are well prepared for the simulation of the Model UN.

Model UN (15hp)

The whole module is built around a Model UN role-play that takes place during a session of the General Assembly. Between the General Assembly meetings the state delegates will work on their state position on the issue at hand, work on amending resolutions, and negotiate and form alliances with other states represented in the role-play.

For further information on content, course literature and examination see the syllabus.