SAIMUN 2019: Inspiring the Students of Tomorrow

“You can do what I cannot do. I can do what you cannot do. Together we can do great things.”  – Mother Teresa

The Annual Model United Nations (MUN) Conference of SAI International School was conducted from July 25 to 27, 2019 in the school premises. SAI Model United Nations Conference (SAIMUN), considered as Eastern India’s largest MUN was inaugurated by Chief Guest Mr. Roderick D. Fraser AM, Chairman, Round Square and Guests of Honour Dr. Sumer Bahadur Singh, Trainer and Mentor, Global Dimensions as well as Dr. Bijaya Kumar Sahoo, Advisor, Odisha Adarsha Vidyalaya Sangathan. Around 650 delegates and 10 International delegates from 8 different countries are participating in the event.

Participants from countries like USA, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, Canada, South Korea, France, Netherland and India including students from around 36 schools like Mumbai, Varanasi, Himachal Pradesh, Trivandrum, Hyderabad, Raipur etc participated in the mega event.

The Inaugural session was attended by students of Shri Harsha Memorial School for Deaf, Bhubaneswar, who will also visit Kala Bhoomi along with the International delegates to witness the State’s art and craft under one roof and encourage inclusivity.

On Day 2, renowned Motivational Speaker, Ms. Sharon Prabhakar conducted an inspirational session for students on how to become the Best version of themselves.

The Valedictory Session of SAIMUN 2019 held at SAI International School on Saturday, July 27, 2019, was graced by Chief Guest Shri Samir Ranjan Dash, Hon’ble Minister, School and Mass Education, Government of Odisha and Guest of Honour Dr. Bijaya Kumar Sahoo, Advisor, Odisha Adarsha Vidyalaya Sangathan, Government of Odisha.

Speaking to an assemblage of more than 650 students from 36 different schools across the globe, Shri Dash said that ‘this present congregation is a perfect training ground for nurturing young delegates and instilling the requisite knowledge and leadership qualities. He added that “International or National Conferences and workshops aiming to elevate the knowledge level of students are thoroughly appreciated” and advised the students to put into use the highly enriching and lifelong skilful learning accumulated during the three-day conference.

Dr.Sahoo shared with the students the significance of the theme of SAIMUN, ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’, through a wonderful real life story. He asked the young students to make optimal use of the learning and wished them a brighter future.

On the occasion, Hon’ble Minister, Shri Dash released the ‘SAI Tribune’, the newsletter of SAIMUN, which is prepared by the dynamic team of the International Press. The event culminated in the award ceremony where prizes and awards were given to outstanding participants from different committees.

This year, the students discussed, delved and deliberated on global issues in eight different committees including United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), World Health Organisation (WHO), United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), United Nations General Assembly – Disarmament & International Security (UNGA-DISEC), United Nations Security Council (UNSC), United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF), United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and The Economic & Social Council (ECOSOC).

SAIMUN is a duly accredited registered event of United Nations Information Centre for India and Bhutan (UNIC), under the aegis of the United Nations (UN). Initiated in the year 2013, the maiden event of SAIMUN was inaugurated by the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha, Shri Naveen Patnaik.

The event has been a changing platform for all the delegates to shape talent and leadership apart from fostering Global harmony and peace. It is held every year to build leadership skills; increase global literacy and expand critical thinking in a student by exposing them to the working of the United Nations.

Webinar for SAIoneers

“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” – Malcolm X

A Webinar was conducted for the Class XI Science students on Friday, July 12, 2019. Shri Preet Batavia, the Resource person spoke to the aspiring Science students on the topic “Perfect roadmap to become a successful Engineer.” He gave the students a brief description on how to select the college and course as well as shared valuable tips on getting prepared for the entrance examination. He also spoke about the pros and cons of being an engineer, benefits of passing from private Indian Colleges, and the job aspects of being an Engineer etc.

In another Webinar hoisted on Saturday, July 13, 2019 for the students of Class XI Humanities stream, the students learnt about the various opportunities in Liberal Arts. Professor Sean Bala from O.P Jindal School of Arts spoke on the topic “Opportunities for Liberal Arts”. He briefed the students on how choosing the stream would help in improving their soft skill ability and give a deeper impetus to focus on service learning, field work and take up internship. He also briefed the young students on the best Indian Liberal Arts colleges. Liberal Arts Education is all about enhancing these skills such as creative thinking, problem solving, critical thinking and analytics and thinking out of the box.

Webinars are conducted for the students of SAI International School at regular intervals to widen their learning horizon on a gamut of areas and guide them on choosing the right course and colleges to pursue their higher education.

A walk through the Stars

The greatest achievement of man is crossing the boundaries of this Earth and landing in Space.

Greetings! I am Samriddhi Agrawal of Class X F, a student of SAI International School.

I am fortunate to have embarked on an exposure visit to ISRO this year along with 19 other participants. ISRO is one of the largest space agencies in the world. Its vision is to harness space technology for national development while pursuing space science research and planetary exploration.

At ISRO I saw two kinds of satellites like Optical Wave Satellite and Micro Wave Satellite, which gives greater resolution and is compatible in all weather condition. The payloads I watched being made were designed and developed in a way which catered to the needs of that satellite perfectly. There I got to know that there are many kinds of rockets, satellites and spacecrafts, that are designed keeping in mind the challenges which can come across in space. I got to know about the increasing space traffic and the space graveyards that we have built.

I also got an opportunity to witness the massive ‘PLASIV’, which gave me the experience of real space photography carved out on a screen. The Vikram Sarabhai Space Exhibition and the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) at Ahmedabad helped us unravel many mysteries about space. I discovered that the Sun sings! At PRL, I got to know many more interesting facts and latest updates on the Sun, Moon, Stars and other Planets. The presentations gave me a clear insight about how we use our telescope with resolution to capture better images of the celestial bodies. It was wonderful to see the working behind Chandrayan.

The interaction with the Scientists really moved me. It was a dream come true for me. I went there with a plethora of questions to discover their answers and I came with plenty more! The humongous amount of appreciation that poured in from everyone filled my heart with deep joy. This made me realize that nothing is impossible. This gave wings to my imagination…I might be one of them in the future.

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