By Jamie Chen and Natalie Boyle
At a moment’s notice, the intended guest speaker for THIMUN-Singapore 2007, Thelma Kay, was called away by the United Nations to deal with a situation in Myanmar. After the unfortunate loss of Ms. Kay, Mr. Dennis Boyle-Woods, Advisory Panel, has graciously stepped up to the plate. With a copious amount of experience behind him, Mr. Boyle-Woods is enjoying his return to familiar territory after his move from Beijing, China to Doha, Qatar. Mr. Boyle-Woods is grateful for more free time with his wife, a direct benefit of his transition to the American School of Doha. Due to a rigorous and exasperating schedule in Beijing, the time he had to himself and with his wife was dwindling, eventually catalyzing their move. Mr. Boyle-Woods claims that he “immediately felt at home” in Doha due to the warm people, students, and colleagues that he encountered in their sweltering new environment. The Boyle-Woods have even become comfortable enough to adopt two new kittens, Chandler, ironically similar to the beloved character in Friends, and Gracie, an uninhibited feral feline straight from the wild.Though the couple “[loves] the food” and Middle Eastern culture, the separation from ISB (International School of Beijing) students and colleagues is hard to bear. He categorizes the relationship that he and his wife shared with many ISB students and colleagues as “special,” probably “unlikely to happen again.”Mr. Boyle-Woods views the cancellation of the planned guest speaker as a “disappointment,” but also respects the reality of the UN’s fast-paced schedule. After spending many years in the MUN community, he considers this opportunity as an honor. In his speech during the opening ceremony, Mr. Boyle-Woods focused on ongoing gender equality and the standard student impact and future involvement in social issues after MUN. We are annually told that we MUN participants are the future of the world, the leaders of tomorrow, and the best of the best. Though we heard the same thing this year, it was delivered in a completely different and more effective manner. Certainly, we are young and privileged, but in experiencing MUN, we automatically put ourselves in a powerful position. Though our motivations may differ—some come for the shopping, others for the chance to miss class—some actually attend because they want to make a difference. Everyone has undergone a selection process in some form, and all have put in the effort and most importantly, the participants of THIMUN-Singapore, according to Mr. Boyle-Woods, “represent the best schools ” and are, in some ways, the institution’s “report cards.” To reiterate his point, Mr. Boyle-Woods cited several examples of former MUN participants who have become movers and shakers of the world community at a very young age. Mr. Boyle-Woods expressed the desire that we should all “keep [the issues] in the front of [our minds] and to remember that these are what we want to solve someday.” It is his hope that we are then able to go out after college and make a difference.In step with this year’s conference theme “Gender Equality,” Mr. Boyle-Woods focused on how far young women have come in the thirty-or-so years that MUN has been around. When the MUN movement began in the 1970s, it was mostly seen as an extension of debate clubs and a way for public speakers to gain valuable experience debating world issues. In the early days of MUN, seven out of every ten participants were male. Now, most conferences’ gender ratio is 60:40—but most delegates are now women.As the third annual THIMUN-Singapore commences, Mr. Boyle-Woods continues to be a beacon of inspiration for new and experienced delegates and MUN Advisors with his contagious passion and interest in the issues at hand. As a guest speaker, Mr. Boyle-Woods has not only influenced the MUN community as a whole, but has also challenged the youth of today to take their rightful positions as leaders who will create change in the future.
At a moment’s notice, the intended guest speaker for THIMUN-Singapore 2007, Thelma Kay, was called away by the United Nations to deal with a situation in Myanmar. After the unfortunate loss of Ms. Kay, Mr. Dennis Boyle-Woods, Advisory Panel, has graciously stepped up to the plate. With a copious amount of experience behind him, Mr. Boyle-Woods is enjoying his return to familiar territory after his move from Beijing, China to Doha, Qatar. Mr. Boyle-Woods is grateful for more free time with his wife, a direct benefit of his transition to the American School of Doha. Due to a rigorous and exasperating schedule in Beijing, the time he had to himself and with his wife was dwindling, eventually catalyzing their move. Mr. Boyle-Woods claims that he “immediately felt at home” in Doha due to the warm people, students, and colleagues that he encountered in their sweltering new environment. The Boyle-Woods have even become comfortable enough to adopt two new kittens, Chandler, ironically similar to the beloved character in Friends, and Gracie, an uninhibited feral feline straight from the wild.Though the couple “[loves] the food” and Middle Eastern culture, the separation from ISB (International School of Beijing) students and colleagues is hard to bear. He categorizes the relationship that he and his wife shared with many ISB students and colleagues as “special,” probably “unlikely to happen again.”Mr. Boyle-Woods views the cancellation of the planned guest speaker as a “disappointment,” but also respects the reality of the UN’s fast-paced schedule. After spending many years in the MUN community, he considers this opportunity as an honor. In his speech during the opening ceremony, Mr. Boyle-Woods focused on ongoing gender equality and the standard student impact and future involvement in social issues after MUN. We are annually told that we MUN participants are the future of the world, the leaders of tomorrow, and the best of the best. Though we heard the same thing this year, it was delivered in a completely different and more effective manner. Certainly, we are young and privileged, but in experiencing MUN, we automatically put ourselves in a powerful position. Though our motivations may differ—some come for the shopping, others for the chance to miss class—some actually attend because they want to make a difference. Everyone has undergone a selection process in some form, and all have put in the effort and most importantly, the participants of THIMUN-Singapore, according to Mr. Boyle-Woods, “represent the best schools ” and are, in some ways, the institution’s “report cards.” To reiterate his point, Mr. Boyle-Woods cited several examples of former MUN participants who have become movers and shakers of the world community at a very young age. Mr. Boyle-Woods expressed the desire that we should all “keep [the issues] in the front of [our minds] and to remember that these are what we want to solve someday.” It is his hope that we are then able to go out after college and make a difference.In step with this year’s conference theme “Gender Equality,” Mr. Boyle-Woods focused on how far young women have come in the thirty-or-so years that MUN has been around. When the MUN movement began in the 1970s, it was mostly seen as an extension of debate clubs and a way for public speakers to gain valuable experience debating world issues. In the early days of MUN, seven out of every ten participants were male. Now, most conferences’ gender ratio is 60:40—but most delegates are now women.As the third annual THIMUN-Singapore commences, Mr. Boyle-Woods continues to be a beacon of inspiration for new and experienced delegates and MUN Advisors with his contagious passion and interest in the issues at hand. As a guest speaker, Mr. Boyle-Woods has not only influenced the MUN community as a whole, but has also challenged the youth of today to take their rightful positions as leaders who will create change in the future.
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