1. Position Papers for Dummies Due Date: Tuesday, December 8th Midnight

2. A position paper is an overview of your country’s stance on different issues In order to attend the HAMUN conference in January, you need to have an approved position paper You will also need to have passed all your classes for the fall semester!!! This is a brief document, but is very important for the committees. What is a position paper?

3. First: It allows the delegate to think about their policy on specific issues from the country’s point of view, before attending the conference Second: It serves as a simple information guide on your country’s policies to use at the conference Third: It acts as an outline for the preliminary draft resolution The Purpose of the Policy Statement

4. Length: ¾ to 1 page long Spacing: Single Font: 12 pt, Times New Roman Saved as:.doc,.pdf,.rtf Policy Statement Format

5. Committee Country Topic School: MagnoliaHigh School Sponsor: Katherine Cantu Name: Header

6. Pick an international issue. – Most of you will be on committees that already have a list of topics. If this is the case, you should select a topic from your committee. You need to research that topic from your country’s point of view – Keep in mind elements of culture, history, geography, natural resources, neighboring countries, population, etc. To begin writing your paper…

7. You need to show that this is an international issue, thereby warranting the attention of an Intranational agency, like the UN – Which regions or countries are also being affected by this topic? – Use specific examples and dates. Position paper cont.

8. You need to know if any international action has already been taken to address your topic – Use specific examples and dates Describe your country’s position on the topic. – How is this issue affecting your country? – What actions has your country taken in the past in regards to this topic? Position paper cont.

9. Finally, propose specific UN action for the future. – What actions could your committee take to address your topic? – What actions would your country be in support of? – What actions would your country be against? Position paper cont.

10. This is not a report on your country. The paper should address the topic, written from your country’s point of view. It is okay to put in a few lines about why this would be best for your country, but other countries in your committee will not care unless it helps them too. This is a persuasive paper, written to get what you want. It needs to be written and researched very carefully. What your paper is not…

11. You will need to include a Works Cited Page The Font should be the same as your paper. Your sources need to be in MLA format, and in alphabetical order according to the author’s last name The library has a citation machine program that can help you with this. Citations

12. Each graded policy paper will be e-mailed to me, with the rubric attached. The papers will be graded by your committee chairs. In order to pass, all eight items on the rubric must be present Scoring

13. Header Explanation and definition of the issue A short summary of recent international action related to the question A statement of the country’s position on the issue Specific suggestions for a solution Reference to at least three key documents relating to the issue that are NOT cited in the policy statement Policy statement is appropriate length (1 page) Policy paper is saved as.doc,.pdf, or.rtf Rubric

14. Go to HAMUN’s website: – http://www.houstonareamun.org/ http://www.houstonareamun.org/ Click “Committees and Research” Then click “Position Papers” Click on your committee for a background guide Or E-mail me: – Kcantu@magnoliaisd.org Kcantu@magnoliaisd.org – Remind 101: Text @556675 to 81010 Any more questions?