This month, I volunteered with my fellow CCWA members, and put on a high school Model United Nations Conference. OSUMUN (Ohio State University Model United Nations) took place Friday, April 5^th through Sunday April 7^th. I served as a chair for the crisis committee title Gangs of Chicago. Not only did I learn a lot about how to run high school Model United Nations conference, but the discussion I had with other chairs and staffers of different committees gave me knowledge I wouldn’t have otherwise known.

The conference started on Friday around 6. Though the opening speech from a professor lacked some focus, it did inspire me to give the conference my all. What was really cool to me was watching high schoolers partake in a conference when I would have sat in their seats a year ago. Words can’t describe the feeling of looking at those who fill in the spots you left behind when you go on to new parts of your life. Committee the first day got intense quickly and set the stage for the next day.

The second day started at 8 am, but the provided bagels and coffee made it all worth it. Chairing a high school committee was something I was as much excited for as I was nervous. However, my nerves did not get the best of my and I enjoyed the whole experience. As the committee got more complicated with everyone working their own crisis arcs, the debate got more intense. Since it was a crisis committee, rather than a standard General Assembly, we were able to contribute more to the debate if it ever got stale. Twice, we gave the high schoolers a set amount of time to decide an issue which would completely alter the course of events in the committee. The first time, when told them a mob was outside and they had an hour to decide a new mayor among them. Both times they were pressed for time, the debate got better and we were able to see which among them really stood out as an excellent delegate. This day, I also got to experience writing crisis notes back to delegates rather than chairing. This was extremely fun for me, as I was having a real impact on the “history” the delegates were creating.

Perhaps my favorite day of committee was the last. The first couple hours were full of debate, but the last hour was much more laid back. We decided to end a little early so the high schoolers could ask question about what life was like at The Ohio State University. My time at OSU has been great so far, so getting to share reminded me of all the amazing experiences I’ve had.

For me, OSUMUN showed me a side of Model UN I hadn’t seen before. Seeing the drive and determination of high school students was a reminder as to why I first joined MUN, beyond an interest in international affairs. It was also a chance for me to reconnect with fellow CCWA members I hadn’t seen in a while. All in all, it was an extremely rewarding experience.

For my International Affairs Scholars service requirement, I attended the Wildlights at the Columbus Zoo. As I’m from Toledo, I have gone to the Lights before Christmas at the Toledo Zoo with my friends for several years now. That was why I was ecstatic to go on this trip with my fellow scholars. What made this event a service project was that we were able to get in by bringing five canned goods. Going in, I wasn’t sure whether or not we would be volunteering in some way at the Zoo, or simply enjoying the lights. It turns out we were just there to enjoy the lights, which was really fun, however I wish there was more of a service component. I planned on doing the mural as well, but I had something that day and didn’t make it.

Exploring the zoo was extremely fun. We saw all sorts of animals. Our first stop was the polar bears. I left the zoo a tad disappointed, because all we saw at the exhibit was these statues in the darkness. Upon writing this post, I realized that these statues were actually the polar bears when somebody pointed it out to me. Funny how life works. A similar experience happened when we passed by the bison. We thought they were rocks. The elephant exhibit was very interesting. I learned from a zookeeper that one of the elephant’s tusks were lower than the other tusk because he rests his trunk on that tusk. Also, there was another female who we didn’t get a chance to see because she was pregnant. However, my favorite exhibit of all was the Australian exhibit because I got to see the wombats.

I feel as though the lights turned out to be more of a social event. I was able to connect more to other International Affairs Scholars people. Living on the third floor of Smith-Steeb Hall, I haven’t had the chance to connect with many other IA people, who mainly live on the eighth floor. The friends that I do have in IA, I met in shared classes. After exploring the lights at the zoo, we headed to Olive Garden instead of taking the bus home. I had never actually been to Olive Garden, so it truly was an experience.

I will say, that though I had a fantastic time with my fellow IA Scholars, visiting the zoo wasn’t as fun for me as when I was little. Through out the night, in the back of my mind was the fact that all these animals were in captivity. I understand that zoos nowadays are used more for educational purposes and research, rather than simply entertainment, but it still was a problem for me. Tying this adventure into international affairs, I got the chance to stay with a host family in China the summer before my junior year of high school. While I was there, I visited an aquarium. There wasn’t enough space for any of the animals and it was really disheartening. I also got to visit a market place where they sold animals. The most adorable puppies were shoved into tiny crates that only had metal barring for bottoms. It was interesting to see how animal’s rights are perceived differently among nations. I am in no way saying that these problems don’t exist in the U.S. Animal abuse exists worldwide, and though it is not a major concern among the great politicians of the world, it definitely is an international issue.