If you have had the privilege of knowing me in any way over the past nine months, chances are that you know about COMUN. This conference and the work it entails have not only become my greatest undertaking but also a defining part of my personality. This year marked 30 proud years of COMUN in Sri Lanka, an incredible milestone my team and I worked tirelessly to honour and do justice to. It was a feat in and of itself to be the Secretary-General for such a prestigious organisation, much less having the privilege to represent the milestone of 3 decades of COMUN. However, with all the privilege and opportunity that comes with my position, so does a fair amount of stress, lost sleep, and chaos. Nine months of tireless work by everyone involved in the organisation of COMUN is summed up and encapsulated in the three days of the conference. This year, we had over 400 delegates from more than 2o schools, representing numerous countries in the world.
Leading up to the conference days, we had a number of other events like the delegate workshop and practice debates to prepare for the final conference itself. However, even with all that considered, the 3 days of the conference were distinctly unique and no amount of preparation could tease what these days encompassed.
Day 1
The long-awaited first day was by far the most nerve-wracking for me because it set the tone for the work that we spent the past year working tirelessly toward. Naturally, no pressure! The first day was held at OSC itself, which was an advantage as the practice debates ensured we had a foolproof registration system and clear communication. This cleared up space in my mind so that all I needed to worry about was my speech and the overall smooth sailing of the day.
The words ‘one step at a time’ had never been more applicable to me than then because I adopted the mentality that I would only process the day as it progresses to avoid premature stress. Delegates, teachers, and other faculty were ushered into our school Auditorium for the Opening Ceremony to commence, where we had the EXCO and Secretariat badging, guest speaker speeches by the Deputy Resident Representative of the UNDP, Mrs Malin Herwig, and my speech where I officially opened the conference.
The experience of hitting the gavel was surreal, as it marked the commencement of the biggest event of my high school career thus far. The day progressed with delegates engaging in debates while I led the Secretariat as we managed any mishaps or conflicts that occurred, doing as much damage control as possible. A new challenge we had to monitor on the first day was the fact that though our conference was running on the campus, so was a regular school day for all OSC students. This had never been the case so far in our practice debates, so it meant that we needed to be particularly vigilant of our delegate’s whereabouts and timings so as not to conflict with those of the school. However, with the support of our EXCO and Secretariat, we handled the challenges that arose with grace, and I am happy to say, looking back, that everything was seamless. After a long day of running up and down the school, we retired home to prepare for the next day, feeling accomplished in ourselves for pulling off a smooth first day.
Click here to see my amazing (definitely not anxiety stricken at all!!) opening speech and the entire opening ceremony
The calm before the storm or, day two, was a pleasant day that almost served as a buffer before the final day. The day was comprised of delegates registering and heading straight to their committees, with no speeches or ceremonies, regulating my work to only managing sudden challenges which I’d like to say I had grown relatively good at by now. This was also the day where the realisation that all our work was finally coming to fruition had hit us so the energy in the air around us, the organisers, was heavily bittersweet. Starting off the day strong by being late because of car trouble, I was sure this day would be packed with challenges but any issues we were faced with, my team handled with collaboration even synchornised swimmers would envy. Reflecting back on the day now, I am filled with an immense sense of comradery and appreciation for the team we developed over as Day 2 was the only time I felt like I had the option to take a step back for a moment and appreciate our collective creation, this years’ conference. This day, however peaceful, certainly served as a test of my maturity and ability to handle crisis on the spot, a key skill that I realised is vital when you put 400 teenagers in one space. Jokes apart, some of the challenges that arose on this day called for me to use significant people skills and set into my authority due to their sentive nature, giving me an unparrelled understanding of what it means to be a leader and how to react in crisis situations.
Day 2 also marks the end of formal debates since the final day is ‘Crisis’ debate which is unrelated to the typical MUN debates we carry out on the first two days. The significance of this is that my role as Secretary General is to close session officially in each committee, a moment that was packed with emotion and immense nostalgia. COMUN brings in a number of students from other schools into OSC, some of these students that were in the EXCO and Secretairat celebrated their last time in OSC after decade long MUN careers which involved them visiting the school. Naturally, this experience was immeasurably bittersweet and it only solidified understanding of the deep impact this conference has had on the community.
Day 3
The grand finale. The final day of conference is held at an outside venue and requires the most clarity in communication and coordination amongst us organsiers as we are entering a foreign setting that we have never had practice in managing before. 400 students, all of whom’s safety and comfort we are liable for, again, no pressure! I would be lying if I said I was not worried but like I mentioned before, the team building and bonding we had established over these past few months was the only driving force that supported me through the anxiety and stress of it all. The day began bright and early where the EXCO and Secretariat rushed around the hotel to ensure everything was in place before delegates arrived. During this time, I was coordinating with the hotel and reiterating the requirements of the day, further testing and developing my organisational skills in an active manner I had not experienced before. As the EXCO carried out the crisis debate. Being the last day, this was the ultimate test of all of our abilities to manage a conference of this magnitude and exhibit the skills we had developed through experience over the last two days and previous nine months.
The main event of the day, from an organisational stand point, was the closing ceremony. This is the time where all the winning participants would be awarded, closing remarks are shared, speeches are given, and the session is declared closed. One final ‘hoorah’ to call an end to the past nine months of work. You would imagine that, knowing the stakes of this night, we would have prepared speeches and rehearsed, but in true COMUN fashion, the Secretaiat made the executive decision to leave writing all of our closing speeches till the last 30 minutes before the ceremony was set to begin. With emotions running high as ever, special guest speakers like the Ambassador of the USA in Sri Lanka arriving, and 400+ delegates moving from one banquet hall to another, the last 4 hours of COMUN Day 3 (the closing ceremony) quickly became the most stressful hours in my 17 years of living. Looking back at it now, I can still feel the butterflies in my stomach that refused to settle the entirety of the ceremony but with the continued support of my team, I never once felt alone. If I have taken any lesson back from COMUN, it is the value of friendship and collaboration; That being successful in a grand endavour such as this, is only possible if you have a team of capable, kind-hearted, and tenatious people to fall back on. I can confidently say that COMUN 2024 was a great success and the spirit of teamwork is to credit for this achievement.
Click here to watch the closing ceremony for COMUN 2024
