How one Minnesota high school prepares teenagers to be heard by the United Nations

The class of Minnesota teens, dressed in business attire, understood the assignment: Roleplay how delegates from various countries, including Bhutan, Kenya and Suriname, would discuss and work toward solutions for human trafficking.

By the end of the seven-day Model United Nations course at the School of Environmental Studies in Apple Valley, the two dozen high schoolers had adopted the appropriate decorum and memorized the procedure for a simulation of U.N. business.

“It’s amazing how quickly they learn the vocabulary, the process, and the purpose of it,” Principal Lauren Haisting said about the class, which is offered as an elective “intensive theme” class, similar to a college J-term course. The school also teaches a shorter Model U.N. unit to all juniors and offers an after-school Model U.N. club.

“We pride ourselves on our kids going out to be leaders and affecting change,” Haisting said. “To see them do this — to choose this — is impressive and heartening.”

The School of Environmental Studies (SES) is a public magnet high school designed to immerse students in real-life opportunities to study and develop solutions for environmental topics and concerns. Located next to The Minnesota Zoo, the school serves about 400 students in grades 11 and 12.

Model United Nations fits the school’s goal by teaching the students to understand issues from multiple perspectives and reach compromise, said Chad Forde one of the course’s teachers. And because SES is one of just two U.S. high schools with consultative status at the U.N., some of the students who complete the course will be chosen to attend the Commission on the Status of Women and the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, both held in New York in the spring. SES students have been attending a variety of U.N. conferences since 2007.

“This is far more than just simply learning about a topic in the world and it’s not just a current events class for kids who like history,” Forde said. “This is a class that’s here to prepare you for adulthood and for a career.”

Plus, he said the conferences prove to students that they don’t have to be head of an NGO or a world-famous documentary filmmaker to draw attention to or propose solutions to a world issue.

“Sometimes the things that are pushed the most at these conferences are things that you and I can do,” he said. “It allows our kids to see that they, as an individual, can make a difference.”

Senior Sofia Templos said she’s been invested in the U.N.’s climate change discussions since she was in elementary school. Once she heard about SES’s consultative status, she was eager to attend the school and get involved. Now, she hopes to be one of the 10 or so students selected to attend a conference.

“These are real opportunities to make a real difference,” Templos said. “I want to be surrounded by people who care and be able to make an impact myself.”

For senior Nik Swenson, the course pushed him to consider other perspectives. Representing China in a discussion about climate change, for example, forced him to look beyond his own beliefs and understand China’s reasons for defending the use of fossil fuels.

“With the political divide in our country,” he said, “I think it’s really important to have an appreciation for understanding different perspectives.”

Haisting agrees.

“I think in 2024 the most difficult problems that need to be solved are not straightforward,” she said. “It’s so important for students to understand the complexities and perspectives involved.”

Forde said he sees that understanding develop in his students over the course of the class and especially when they get to participate in the conferences.

“Seeing it for real and in action gives them a sense of hope,” he said. “It’s really important that they see there are people that are informed, who are working together and looking at things from a global perspective. There’s real work being done and they can be a part of it.”