When Jan Jozwik joined the U’s Model United Nations, he knew he didn’t want to represent his native Poland at the November conference in Las Vegas.
“I really wanted to try a different country,” Jozwik said. “I am in the U.S. now. I tried to pick (the United States), but because it was not possible, I picked its ally, Israel.”
Jozwik said he is enjoying his introduction to international politics and the opportunity to try to fit in through the Model U.N.
“This was my second meeting, and I’ve already learned a lot, but it’s still very new for me,” he said. “I look forward to taking an active part and maybe finding theoretical solutions to some practical politics.”
The U’s Model U.N., a club that participates in diplomacy conferences dealing with international issues, has become an attraction for international students.
Club President Erik Allen, a senior in political science and sociology, said the U’s Model U.N. enjoys a sense of diversity. At a conference held last spring with other schools around the country, Allen said, the U’s seven delegates combined to speak nine languages.
“Diplomacy is an art unto itself,” said Max Trifan, a sophomore physics major and the club’s treasurer.
Among students with such different views “diplomacy (becomes) hard in a sense that there are so many different diplomats,” Allen said.
The Model U.N. holds conferences once a semester at which policy papers are presented and speeches are made.
While these papers and speeches can be difficult for international students, “(other competitors) really gravitate toward the international students and try to help them since English isn’t usually their first language,” Allen said.
Jozwik said he hopes to contribute to the team by not only adding his experience from having lived outside the United States, but also by being willing to represent countries that are just as foreign to him as they are to the students that are from the United States.
Bobby SakakiStudents in the U’s Model United Nations club meet to discuss procedures for passing resolutions and other rules of order in the Union Building on Oct. 3.