For the past fifteen years, DIAMUN has been the conference for all the innovative, visionary, and pioneering delegates and students from the Middle East and internationally. In these fifteen years, nations have proclaimed cease-fires, tackled racial and ethnic marginalization, banded together to combat climate change, faced natural disasters, seen technological advancements, and political conflicts. These are the fundamental, systemic issues that, despite the world's advancements, continue to have devastating effects on the very fabric that bind communities, groups, and people together. These are only a few of the several issues that DIAMUN 2023 hopes to tackle during the conference. Given this, it is a great honor and privilege for me to extend a warm welcome to DIAMUN 2023, our 15th Annual Conference.

 

Considering the increasingly liberal approach of policy makers towards the COVID-19 pandemic maturing at its 3rd year, society globally has shifted its focus towards the maintenance of peace with countries making increasingly bolder attempts at shifting the balance of power globally. With China’s economic rise and the US’s gradual stagnation catalyzed by the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the Tigray conflict in Ethiopia, global peace ever critically depends on the efforts made by international diplomats and policy makers. This is precisely how this year’s theme demonstrates its relevance. “Collaborating to Foster Sustainable Development” aims to combine the concepts of growth with the everlasting international goal of sustainability. Technology plays a significant role in modern society and its influence within the coming years is only destined to increase. Following through on the observations of Albert Einstein “it has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity,” and this year’s theme constitutes a shift in ideology in part of DIAMUN towards prioritizing innovative thinking and technology with respect to sustainability challenges.

 

In tandem with the selected theme, we have hand-picked a range of 16 committees for DIAMUN 2023, each one acting on a common goal of intermediation of conflicting viewpoints, perspectives, and understandings. Special to this year, the conference will also include the “Special Conference on Climate Change (SpC-CC)”. This is a highlight reference to this year’s COP 28 climate conference occurring in DIAMUN’s epicenter, Dubai. It is a great pleasure to be able to relay the positive and innovative initiatives taken on behalf of this nation towards such an important and increasingly irreversible topic. The conference will also feature the DIAMUN Press Corps which is a proprietary gathering of delegates passionate to create a wider audience for DIAMUN and increase its exposure.

 

DIAMUN is an opportunity for decision-makers and problem solvers to meet and discuss the most crucial issues facing our time. These very ideas could serve as the foundation for global initiatives and effectively solve modern world issues. In order to develop the solutions that will shape the world of tomorrow, DIAMUN has to be, and is more than just a conference. It is a synthesis of practicality and idealistic thinking. That idealistic mindset coupled with the desire to develop tomorrow's leaders, change-makers, and innovators serves as DIAMUN's fundamental driving force. This thorough process that DIAMUN has adopted to ensure the highest degree of development in our delegates truly allows the organization to set itself apart in its drive to develop, inform and widen the horizons of our delegates and participants. This, combined with the thousands of motivated, dedicated, and driven students from all over the world from a variety of cultural backgrounds, makes DIAMUN an unrivaled opportunity to network, mix with, and interact with different people and their ideas of change and innovation.

 

For 14 years, my predecessors have outlined their ornately thought vision for this conference and the future. Taking up that torch, I would say my message as the Secretary General would be this: Festina Lente. Hurry slowly. Its students’ hasty yet focused determination that provides the integral basis that brings favor to the side of humanity. This is the ethos of DIAMUN in its core. The ability to thoroughly combat world issues with valid arguments of substance and relevance all in the short time period of a weekend.