About · Committee Structure
How a UTMUN Committee WorksIntroduction to
Committees
We are privileged to welcome delegations from around the world. Because the language of Model UN shifts from place to place, here is how our committees are built, and who brings them to life.
The Committees
Four Streams
of Debate
Every committee belongs to one of four streams, each with its own rules, pace, and ideal delegate.
Most rooms run on UTMUN’s traditional Rules of Procedure, balancing formal and informal debate as delegates build working papers and resolutions. Crisis rooms run on Crisis Rules of Procedure instead, where delegates respond to live updates and issue directives as the situation unfolds. Here is how the four compare.
General Assemblies
Broad global issues debated by the book, from established UN agencies to historical and conceptual councils. The classic Model UN experience.
ECOSOC & Regional Bodies
The same traditional structure, focused on the issues of a specific region or community and the solutions suited to them.
Specialized Agencies
Boardrooms and niche forums that trace the economic and social fallout of policy. Often our most inventive rooms.
Crisis Committees
Fast rooms rooted in history, where delegates react to real-time updates and produce directives as events escalate toward crisis.
Whatever the stream, all committees are open to all delegates, regardless of experience or grade. For a fuller look at each stream and past committees, see What is UTMUN?
The Team
The People Behind
Every Committee
The quality UTMUN is known for comes from a dedicated committee team: Directors, Vice-Directors, Moderators, Crisis Managers, Crisis Analysts, and Logistics Officers, each with a distinct role in the room.
Masters of the Craft
The Director
Every committee
The Committee Director oversees the planning and delivery of the committee as a whole. They author the Background Guide, a substantial academic paper on the committee’s setting and situation, and where relevant a Mechanics Guide and a Character Guide. During the conference they run the front room, where delegates give speeches and work toward solutions, and they steer the committee alongside their team so every theme and subtopic gets its due.
Directors answer delegate questions through the committee email once Background Guides are published. Every committee has a Director, with the sole exception of the ICJ, which is led by its President.
Architects of Excellence
The Vice-Director
GA, ECOSOC & select SA
The Vice-Director supports the Director across every stage of preparation, from co-authoring academic material to reviewing position papers, answering questions, and making sure delegates arrive ready to debate.
Vice-Directors serve in the General Assemblies, ECOSOC and Regional Bodies, and select Specialized Agencies. The ICJ is supported by its Vice-President.
Order Amidst the Chaos
The Moderator
Every committee
The Moderator presides over debate and holds delegates to the UTMUN Rules of Procedure, balancing debate and negotiation with solution building, timed speeches with presentations, and formal sessions with informal ones. They keep a constant eye on the front room and on delegate decorum while the Director or Vice-Director reviews working papers, position papers, and directives.
Every committee has one dedicated Moderator.
Setting the Stage
The Crisis Manager
Crisis & some SA
The Crisis Manager presides over the backroom, shaping new turns of debate that keep delegates in a rolling cycle of consequences. They surface the underlying pressures the front room has not yet considered, then appear throughout the committee to deliver crisis updates with equal measure flair and focus. They also help author the Mechanics and Character Guides where those apply.
The Crisis Manager leads a team of Crisis Analysts, and the role is exclusive to Crisis Committees and some Specialized Agencies.
Executing the Vision
Crisis Analysts
Crisis & some SA
Crisis Analysts are the creative team who originate the engaging, complex updates that test how well delegates negotiate and solve problems. Working in the backroom, they keep the committee moving forward while giving each issue the time and care it deserves, and they lend a hand on the Mechanics and Character Guides.
They work alongside the Crisis Manager in Crisis Committees and some Specialized Agencies.
Central to Success
Logistics Officers
Every committee
Every committee team is completed by its Logistics Officers, or Pages, who review and deliver the notes delegates send during session. They play a central role in keeping debate equitable and on schedule, supporting the Director, Vice-Director, and Moderator in setting the pace of the front room.
Where there is a crisis team, they also move notes quickly between the front and back rooms. Every committee has a Logistics Officer.
Knox College, U of T
Queen’s Park, Toronto34 Committees, Four Streams
Choose Your Room
Now that you know how a committee runs, find the one that fits how you like to debate.