- 200 students from 22 national and international schools will become United Nations delegates at the 5th edition of Singularity Model United Nations, which will be held at St. Peter’s School.
- They will debate and discuss the opportunities and drawbacks of Artificial Intelligence in achieving sustainable development goals.
Barcelona, 08 June 2022.- Barcelona will host this weekend the 5th edition of Singularity Model UN2030, once again with an in-person format. This simulation of United Nations sessions will bring together some two hundred students from Catalan, Spanish and European schools. All of them will become delegates from different member countries of the United Nations to analyze, discuss, negotiate and propose solutions to the challenges that will hypothetically be faced in 2030.
In this year’s edition, the topic to be addressed is the opportunities and drawbacks of artificial intelligence in achieving sustainable development goals. Students will be divided into different committees, where the young delegates will defend the position of the countries assigned to them. This will be based on predicting possible scenarios and building on research and analysis of the global consequences that the possible positions could entail in the near future. Students will also work on developing public speaking, leadership, teamwork, and listening skills. The language of instruction throughout the conference will be English.
The inaugural session will take place on Friday, June 10, at 10 am, at the Cibernarium@22 of Barcelona Activa (Roc Boronat, 117-127) and the working sessions will be held at the international school St. Peter’s School (Eduard Toldrà, 18).
After the last sessions had to be held virtually due to the pandemic, the Singularity Foundation resumes face-to-face sessions at the Barcelona Conference. On this occasion, 200 secondary and high school students from 22 schools are expected to participate:
- 10 Catalan schools : INS Lloret de Mar (Lloret), St. George (Barcelona), INS La Llauna (Badalona), INS Montserrat Miró (Montcada), INS Palau Ausit (Ripollet), Maristes Sants-Les Corts (Barcelona), INS Vallès (Sabadell), Col·legi Pare Manyanet (Barcelona), Col·legi SIL (Barcelona) and St. Peter’s School (Barcelona).
- 10 Spanish schools: Jesuitas (Zaragoza), Colegio Virgen de Europa (Madrid), British Montessori School (Madrid), Zola School (Madrid), SEK-El Castillo (Madrid), SEK-Ciudalcampo (Madrid), Julio Verne School (Valencia), La Devesa (Elche), La Devesa (Carlet) and SEK-Alborán (Almería).
- 2 international schools: Britannica International School Budapest (Hungary) and YCG (Tbilisi-Georgia).
S’MUN 2030 (Singularity Model of United Nations 2030) was born in Barcelona, promoted by the Singularity Foundation, with the aim of disseminating the values of the United Nations among secondary and high school students, taking into account the Sustainable Development Goals that the UN adopted in 2015 to reduce inequalities, protect the planet and ensure progress for the whole world.
This simulation model of the workings of the United Nations promotes students’ interest in international relations and debate on issues relevant to the entire world. It also improves skills in dialogue, diplomacy, dialectics, teamwork, public speaking, conflict resolution, consensus building, cooperation and leadership.
A specialist in conflict analysis at the inaugural session
This Friday’s inaugural session will feature the participation of Salvador Sánchez Tapia, Brigadier General, who is currently Professor of International Relations – Conflict Analysis and Resolution – at the University of Navarra. He is also a senior researcher at the Center for Global Affairs and Strategic Studies.
Among other responsibilities, Salvador Sánchez Tapia has been secretary general of the General Staff of the Spanish Army (2017-2019) and 2nd Chief of Staff for NATO’s High Readiness General Staff Operations in Greece (2014-2017).
In the same inaugural session, Josep M Ginjaume will participate on behalf of the Singularity Foundation.
Representing Barcelona City Council will be Mario Rubert, Director of City Promotion.
