Dear Delegates,
Welcome to BERMUN2 2026! I will be chairing the Middle School MUN along with Nova and David at this BERMUN2 conference.
Our topic this year will be “Stopping Resource Theft”, a theme focused on preventing big companies and powerful countries from robbing poorer countries of their natural resources to enrich the already better off. This process is perpetuated by unfair trade deals, corruption, and economically desperate societies being in a weak bargaining position, that they are coerced into accepting extractive supply chains. Stopping the exploitation of less powerful countries by stronger powers is also what our at-large conference theme of “Decolonize.” is about.
The German word for natural resources is “Bodenschätze”, meaning treasures under the earth. For many countries that were colonies, their land is one of the few cards in their deck. The treasures of the earth, like oil, minerals, or forests, can be a lifeline for countries that can’t rely on their weak infrastructure or educational systems to promote any meaningful growth in their economies. Where classic colonialism stole national treasures like artifacts, neo-colonialism continues to steal treasures of the earth, pushing the already worse off further down. Because this goes against the UN mission of lifting the Global South out of poverty and equalizing the global playing field, this resource theft must be stopped. How this should be done and whether it should come mainly from the supply or demand side is the task of the Middle School MUN.
On a somewhat less serious note, I am in the 11th grade at the John F. Kennedy School in Berlin, Germany, and this is my 17th conference. I grew up in Berlin, Germany, and Vermont, USA. I love politics and debate, but am also interested in literature, fashion, and art. My family is very international. I have family in the UK, Canada, USA, Portugal, Austria, and South Africa, and I love meeting people from different parts of the world.
I can't wait to see you all in February.
Sincerely,
James Simanowitz
