Position Papers Created by Richa Lal What is

Position Papers! Created by Richa Lal

What is a Position Paper? l Essay that outlines and briefly describes your country’s/delegation’s stance on the topic being debated. l Mechanism to organize your information and an easy way to prepare your opening statement or later speeches.

Structure of a Position Paper l l l Clearly labeled Committee, Topic, and Country 1 -1. 5 pages in length 1 st Paragraph: Brief introduction detailing your country’s history (if any) with the issue. 2 nd – 3 rd Paragraphs: detailed analysis of your country’s opinion on matter, providing very specific claims on plausible resolutions. Closing: Re-establish your overall stance

What To Include in a Position Paper l l Anything Recent How the issue affects your country l l l Security reasons, humanitarian issues, legality. Your country’s policies, and justification Statistics Actions taken by government QUOTES!!

What To Include in a Position Paper l Resolutions signed/ratified by your country l l Bilateral & Unilateral Agreements, Treaties UN Actions supported or opposed by your country What your country believes should be done How other countries affect your country’s opinion/decision

Extra Notes l l l Don’t be overly loquacious, aka don’t be overly wordy, and stick to your point, even if it ends up being repetitive. Be organized by giving each possible resolution Cite your sources! l They love footnotes – show you didn’t just use Wikipedia.

Good Sources l The UN Database for resolutions/any information Press conferences given by your country following a UN convention National newspaper articles The CIA information site for various statistics Foreign Ministry Websites (for each country) l http: //www. unausa. org/munpreparation l l