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Forge Model of United Nations

The Forge Model of United Nations is an academic simulation designed for high school students. Hosted in Indore, IND, this conference provides a platform for young delegates to engage with global issues, hone their public speaking and negotiation skills, and develop a deeper understanding of the United Nations' functions. It offers a valuable opportunity for participants to step into the shoes of diplomats and address pressing international challenges.

Country perspectives

Where the most-relevant 4 countries stand on the dominant committee topic. Click through for the full country profile.

IndiaIndia

As a host nation, IND often emphasizes multilateralism and equitable global governance.

Role in topic

IND, as a major developing economy and a significant voice in the Global South, frequently advocates for inclusive solutions to global challenges, particularly those affecting developing nations. Its perspective often centers on sustainable development, climate justice, and reforming international institutions.

United StatesUnited States

The USA generally promotes democratic values and international security through alliances.

Role in topic

The USA, a permanent member of the Security Council, plays a significant role in shaping international policy. Its positions often reflect its strategic interests, economic influence, and commitment to human rights, frequently engaging in debates on security, trade, and global governance.

ChinaChina

CHN typically champions national sovereignty and a multipolar world order.

Role in topic

CHN, another permanent member of the Security Council, is a rising global power. Its diplomatic approach often emphasizes non-interference in internal affairs, economic cooperation, and the promotion of a more multipolar international system, particularly on issues of development and global trade.

RussiaRussia

RUS prioritizes national security interests and a strong state-centric international system.

Role in topic

RUS, a permanent member of the Security Council, frequently asserts its national interests in international forums. Its perspectives often center on issues of security, energy, and the balance of power, often taking a skeptical view of interventions in sovereign states.

Topics & background

The history behind each committee topic and the states that shape it.

1

Disarmament and International Security Committee (DISEC)

Disarmament & International Security Committee (DISEC, GA First Committee)

The Disarmament and International Security Committee, the First Committee of the UN General Assembly, was established in 1945 to address threats to international peace that affect the global community. Its mandate covers the full spectrum of disarmament: nuclear weapons, conventional arms, weapons of mass destruction, and increasingly, emerging technologies. Historically, DISEC shaped landmark instruments such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (1968), the Chemical Weapons Convention (1993), and the Arms Trade Treaty (2013), while operating alongside the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva. In recent years, the committee's agenda has shifted toward technology-driven security challenges. Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems (LAWS) have been debated since 2014 under the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, with a Group of Governmental Experts producing guiding principles but failing to reach consensus on a binding instrument. Parallel debates address the militarization of outer space, where stalled negotiations on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space (PAROS) coexist with anti-satellite tests by several major powers, and cybersecurity, where the Open-Ended Working Group on ICTs has produced norms but no enforcement mechanism. Today DISEC sits at an inflection point: traditional arms control architecture is fraying as New START expires in 2026 and the INF Treaty has already collapsed, while new domains outpace regulation. Delegates must navigate sharp divides between states favoring binding prohibitions and those defending strategic flexibility in emerging technologies.

Key players

2

United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC)

The Human Rights Council was created by General Assembly Resolution 60/251 in 2006, replacing the discredited Commission on Human Rights. Composed of 47 member states elected by the General Assembly, it serves as the UN's principal intergovernmental body for promoting and protecting human rights worldwide. Its signature mechanism, the Universal Periodic Review, examines the human rights record of every UN member state on a four-and-a-half-year cycle, while Special Rapporteurs and Commissions of Inquiry investigate thematic and country-specific concerns. The Council has faced persistent criticism over the membership of states with poor human rights records, politicization of country-specific resolutions, and the withdrawal and return of the United States under successive administrations. Substantively, its agenda has expanded well beyond classical civil and political rights to encompass the right to a healthy environment (recognized by GA Resolution 76/300 in 2022), business and human rights, and the human rights implications of emerging technologies, particularly generative AI as detailed in the 2024 OHCHR report. Current debates center on operationalizing the right to a healthy environment for climate-displaced populations, developing accountability frameworks for algorithmic decision-making, and responding to entrenched crises in Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan, Myanmar, and Xinjiang. Delegates must reconcile universal human rights norms with assertions of cultural relativism and state sovereignty.

Key players

3

Lok Sabha (House of the People, Parliament of India)

The Lok Sabha, or House of the People, is the directly elected lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, established under the Constitution that came into force on 26 January 1950. With 543 elected members representing single-member constituencies, it is the principal legislative body of the world's most populous democracy and the dominant chamber on matters of finance and government formation, as the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers are responsible to it. Since independence, the Lok Sabha has shaped India's trajectory through pivotal debates: the abolition of privy purses, the Emergency of 1975-77, economic liberalization in 1991, the Goods and Services Tax in 2017, the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019, and the contested farm laws of 2020-21. The 2024 general election produced a coalition government led by the BJP-headed National Democratic Alliance under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with a strengthened INDIA opposition bloc led by the Indian National Congress, reshaping floor dynamics after a decade of single-party majority. Contemporary agenda items typically include the Uniform Civil Code, electoral reforms including "One Nation One Election," data protection and digital regulation, federal-state fiscal relations, Manipur and northeast security, and India's foreign policy posture amid tensions with China and Pakistan. As a simulated domestic body, the Lok Sabha operates under Indian parliamentary procedure rather than UN rules of procedure.

Key players

4

Ad-Hoc Committee of the Secretary-General

The Ad-Hoc Committee is a crisis simulation convened at the discretion of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, drawing on the precedent of bodies such as the Ad-Hoc Committee on the Indian Ocean, the Ad-Hoc Committee on a Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, and various crisis cabinets assembled to address unfolding emergencies. Unlike standing committees, ad-hoc bodies are convened to address a specific, time-sensitive situation, and their composition is curated for relevance rather than regional balance. In Model UN, the Ad-Hoc format is distinguished by its secrecy: the topic is released only shortly before debate begins, requiring delegates to research broadly and react in real time. Such committees typically operate under accelerated crisis procedure, with directives, joint communiqués, and press releases replacing traditional draft resolutions. Topics historically range from nuclear brinkmanship and coup attempts to pandemic outbreaks, cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, and great-power flashpoints in the Taiwan Strait, the Arctic, or the Sahel. Because the specific scenario is undisclosed, delegates should familiarize themselves with contemporary flashpoints, the powers and limits of the Secretary-General's good offices under Article 99 of the UN Charter, and the procedural toolkit of crisis diplomacy.

Key players

5

Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)

The Commission on the Status of Women was established by ECOSOC Resolution 11(II) in 1946 as the principal global intergovernmental body dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. Composed of 45 member states elected on a rotating regional basis, CSW meets annually at UN Headquarters and was instrumental in drafting the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW, 1979) and convening the four World Conferences on Women, culminating in the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. The Commission's work is structured around an annual priority theme and review theme, with negotiated Agreed Conclusions that set normative standards on issues from women's economic empowerment and political participation to gender-based violence, unpaid care work, and women in climate and disaster response. CSW68 (2024) addressed poverty and gender, while recent sessions have grappled with the gendered dimensions of armed conflict, digital technology, and the rollback of reproductive rights in multiple jurisdictions. CSW negotiations are frequently among the most contested at the UN, with deep divisions over reproductive and sexual health rights, family definitions, and SOGI language. A coalition of conservative states often aligns against Western and Latin American states pushing for expansive interpretations, while civil society participation through NGO CSW remains uniquely robust.

Key players

6

United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the U.S. Congress, established by Article I of the Constitution in 1789. Composed of 100 senators, two from each state regardless of population, the Senate exercises distinctive powers including the ratification of treaties by a two-thirds majority, confirmation of federal judges and executive appointments, and the trial of impeachments. Its rules — particularly the filibuster requiring 60 votes to close debate on most legislation — give it a deliberative character that contrasts sharply with the majoritarian House of Representatives. The Senate has shaped pivotal moments in American history: the rejection of the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 after a 60-day filibuster, the Watergate hearings, the impeachment trials of Presidents Andrew Johnson, Bill Clinton, and Donald Trump, and the confirmation battles over Supreme Court nominees. Its foreign policy role is especially significant, as no major treaty — from NATO to nuclear arms control — can take effect without its consent, and it shapes defense, sanctions, and trade policy through authorizing legislation. The contemporary Senate is closely divided and intensely polarized. Its agenda routinely includes debates over Ukraine and Israel aid, immigration and border policy, AI and tech regulation, judicial confirmations, and the federal debt ceiling. As a domestic simulation, the Senate operates under Standing Rules of the Senate and Robert's Rules rather than UN procedure.

Key players

Key terms & resources

The concepts worth knowing before Forge Model of United Nations, plus lessons and profiles to go deeper.

13 Steps disarmament5+5 Joint Military Commission Libya9/11 Commission ReportAdvice and Consent of the SenateAfrican Union Commissionall-states formula

Lessons

Courses

Country profiles

In the news

Frequently asked questions

  • Where is the Forge Model of United Nations held?

    The conference is hosted in Indore, IND.

  • What is the eligibility level for delegates attending this conference?

    The conference is designed for high-school level delegates.

  • What is the format of the Forge Model of United Nations?

    The conference is an in-person event, taking place in Indore, IND.

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