Resolution Info for the 2019 Model UN Sessions

At the November 23 Model UN Sessions & the December 7 sessions students decide what issues to talk about by submitting resolutions in advance. We’re going to explain a bit about resolutions here and how you can submit them.

A resolution is a document used by the United Nations. It explains an issue and then offers an action plan for the UN to implement. Most resolutions are only 1-2 pages long. To look at resolutions from previous years, check out our archive. Resolutions shouldn’t be overly complicated or time consuming either. Most students can write one in about 1-2 hours, depending on how much research is required.

Model UN resolutions contain 2 main parts. A preamble (the top part of the page that talks about the problem) and the operative clauses (the lower part which contains the suggested solutions.) The preamble has 2-3 facts that provide clear information about an issue. Often it will also contain a pertinent clause from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. For example, if you were writing a resolution on child brides, you might list Article 16 because it’s about marriage and consent. The operative clauses are a bit more complicated. Instead of facts and research, this is where delegates can be creative and brainstorm solutions. A strong operative clause generally has 4 parts; an action plan, funding, evaluation, and a timeline.

If this sounds complicated, you can check out the delegate handbook or the resources page of our website which has tons of useful templates, samples, and helpful links.

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Once a student has written a resolution, they need to submit it to Civitas for review/printing before the General Assembly. The deadline for resolutions is Monday, November 14th for the November session and Monday, December 2, for the December session.

Resolutions can be emailed to [email protected]. A few quick notes though:

• Resolutions can be sent as an attachment in either Word or PDF format
• You can copy and paste a resolution into an email and send it to [email protected]
• If you are writing & sharing a resolution via Google Drive, you must give Civitas permission to view it
• A reminder that resolutions will not be accepted the day of the Model UN Session
• Frivolous resolutions will not be accepted
• The resolution cannot go against your country’s government (For example, Saudi Arabia generally doesn’t write resolutions on women’s rights)
• Resolutions for the sessions will be posted online in advance for other delegates to view