Research

things to keep in mind while researching

  • Use sources that come from your country’s governemnt websites or international sources

  • Never make inferences about your country’s position

  • If you think it might be helpful, write it down

Position Paper

A position paper is a document describing a topic, your country’s position, and possible solutions. It is important to write a position paper for each of your topics because it will help you gain insight on the issue and prepare you for the MUN conference. Writing a good position paper not only requires research skills, but also involves the ability to critically analyze the information you gather through your research.

A typical position paper is one to two pages long and contains the following sections, which should each be one to three paragraphs long: topic background, past international action, country policy, and possible solutions.

The topic background is the first section of your position paper. This is the introductory section of your position paper, where you give a brief overview of the topic and why it is important.

5 Key Tips

  1. Country Profile

  2. Topic Background

  3. Past International Action

  4. Country Policy

  5. Possible Solutions

country Profile

It is important to understand the country you’re representing; where it is, who lives there, who are your allies, what type of government does your country have, etc. Together, the answeres to these questions comprise your “Country Profile”.

Physical Geography

  • What is your country’s official name?

  • What region of the world is your country located in?

  • How big is your country?

  • Who are your country’s neighbors?

  • How would you describe your country’s physical features and climate?

Politics and Government

  • When was your country founded?

  • What type of government does your country have?

  • Who are some of your country’s leaders?

  • How many people serve in your country’s military?

  • Who are your country’s allies? Enemies?

  • What is your country’s capital?

Culture

  • What is your country’s population?

  • What is your country’s ethnic composition?

  • What is your country’s official language(s)?

  • What other languages are spoken?

  • What are some of the major cities?

Economy

  • How would you describe the quality of life in your country?

  • What is your country’s total Gross Domestic Product?

  • What are some of your country’s natural resources?

  • What is your country’s currency?

  • What are your country’s major imports and exports?

  • What are your country’s biggest trading parterns?

topic Background

Aside from your country profile, the other step to get started is to gain a basic understanding of the topic you’ll be discussing. To do this, you should research your topic background. Some of the best resources for your topic background will be specific to your topic- websites about your issue in particular, or books about the topic for your committee! To properly research your topic background, make sure you can fulfill three key steps:

  1. Clearly define what the topic is.

  2. Identify the key terms related to the topic, and answer key questions about the topic:

    a. “What causes this issue?”

    b. “Who is impacted by this issue?”

    c. “Where is this issue most prevalent?”

  3. Make sure you’re using credible sources of information to understand your topic. Don’t just use Wikipedia, the news, or blogs!

past international action

One of the most important things to understand when discussing any topic in Model UN is what the United Nations and international community has already done about the topic. You don’t want your solutions to be redundant, and you want to make sure you’re aware what the world already has, and hasn’t done.

Past international action can come in the form of past UN resolutions, international conventions and treaties, actions by NGOs and international organizations, and reports of the Secretary General or the Economic and Social Council.

So how do you put what you found on international action in your paper?

Research past actions of the UN, NGOs, and individual countries

To get a complete understanding of previous actions taken by the international community, you should look at various actors and perspectives. Resolutions, initiatives, statements, and other actions from the United Nations are essential for this section of your position paper. Choose the most important UN documents and/or events to summarize. NGOs and countries are also key players in international issues, so make sure to include actions by those groups as well. If there are differing views on a topic, include actions taken by both sides.

Analyze the outcome of past actions

This is an often-forgotten part of the past international action section, but it can elevate the quality of your position paper immensely. After you have decided which important past actions from the UN, NGOs and individual countries include, you should also discuss what impact these actions had. Analyze the effectiveness of a particular action and why the outcome was that way. Doing this for every international action you include will make this section more cohesive and prevent from seeming like a list. Moreover, analyzing past actions can help you recognize what to include in your solutions later on.

use credible sources

Reputable sources are always important, especially for a research-heavy section like past international action. Information on past UN actions should come from UN sites, which have resolution databases, speech transcripts, and other resources that you can utilize. NGOs and countries also have their own websites, which should be your first choice when writing about their past actions.

Country policy

Once you have a decent understanding of the topic and your country, you take this knowledge together and learn what your “Country Policy” is on your topic.

Your country policy is what your country thinks should be done, or not done, about this issue, and how this topic impacts your country. This means determining if your country is in favor or against solutions that have been proposed, resolutions that have been passed, or if you country has been advocating at the UN for policies.

A good starting place to learn your country policy is to research what your country’s government, foreign ministry, or UN mission have said about the topic on their website.

Also look at what your country has previously supported:

  • Member States on the Record: Speeches at the United Nations

  • Member State votes on resolutions

  • Signature/retification status for each country of important conventions and treaties

possible solutions

The most important part of researching for a Model UN conference, and often the most forgotten, is to research possible solutions to help resolve the issue your committee is discussing. The solutions aren’t what your country wants to do for itself, instead, you should consider what your country wants the United Nations to do about the issue worldwide. Feel free to use your own creativity to think of ideas and find reasons as how they would work, so that you can use in your speeches and later in your resolutions.

All resolutions should be realistic. They can build on past solutions the UN has tried, maybe you want to expand a program worldwide that was previously local. You can also include a specific solution or program you think needs more support or funding. Feel free to include existing UN action in your solutions, but new and creative ideas are always welcome as well! Aside from the United Nations and Member States, other good places to look for solutions are in the existing work of NGOs, through various Think Tanks worldwide, and in university publications.