Position Paper Guidelines
A strong position paper will express your position’s opinions on the topics presented in your committee’s Background Guide. A good paper will also express some initial action that your committee may take and demonstrate some degree of outside research. Some non-traditional committees may have alternate requirements for position papers listed in their Background Guide. Questions regarding position papers should be directed to your Crisis Director/Chair.
Writing a position paper will help you understand your position’s portfolio powers and political stances while also structuring your thoughts. Submitting a paper should therefore be seen as preparation for CMUNCE.
Position papers are due by the start of the first Committee Session to be eligible for awards. There are no position paper awards at CMUNCE. The Ad Hoc committee is exempt from the position Paper requirement.
FORMAT
When crafting a position paper, it is important to make sure that your submission is neat and legible. A position paper should always start with the heading. This part of the document contains the following general information:
CMUNCE XXIII
The name of your committee (“United Nations Human Rights Council”)
The name of your position (“United States of America”)
Your name and delegation
The first paragraph of your paper should provide a general overview of the committee, your position, and how your position fits within the committee. A good start is jotting out the key ideas that you want your committee director to take away from your time in the conference.
The second paragraph of your paper should be a historical description of what your position has done in the past that is relevant to your committee. You could mention previous legislation, participating international organizations, familial and work alliances, etc… This paragraph should be detailed but concise for your chair to read.
The third paragraph of your paper should be a plan for what you wish to unfold during the committee sessions. You could mention different alliances you wish to form, organizations you want to initiate, government shutdowns you want to tackle, political leaders you hope to assassinate (in committee session!), etc… We hope that you are creative in your arc-planning in preparation for the conference.
Position papers should be approximately one typed page in 12-point Times New Roman font, single-spaced with one-inch margins.
SUBMISSION
Please submit your position paper to the Google Form below by the start of the first committee session.
If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to your chair or crisis director(s), whose emails are listed in your committee’s Background Guide.