Runner

In Model United Nations conferences, a runner is a volunteer or junior staff member whose primary role is to move paper communications around the committee room while session is in progress. Because delegates are generally not permitted to leave their seats freely or speak across the room, runners function as the circulatory system of a committee: they carry folded note-paper between delegations, ferry working papers and draft resolutions from sponsors to the dais for approval, distribute photocopied amendments, and bring requests for points or motions to the chair when needed.

Typical duties include:

• Note-passing: collecting notes from delegates and delivering them to the addressed delegation, sometimes after dais screening in crisis or novice committees.
• Document handling: shuttling working papers, draft resolutions, and amendments between sponsors, the chair, and the director for formatting and approval before they are introduced.
• Logistical support: distributing printed copies once a document is approved, retrieving supplies, and occasionally relaying messages to conference services or the secretariat.
• Crisis committees: in crisis simulations, runners often carry crisis notes (private directives) between delegates and the crisis backroom, making them essential to the pace of the simulation.

Runners are usually high school or undergraduate students new to staffing, and the role is widely treated as an entry point into MUN secretariat work — many chairs, crisis directors, and secretaries-general begin as runners before moving into substantive positions. Conferences such as NMUN, HMUN, WorldMUN, and most collegiate circuits list runner or page positions in their staff structures.

Because they handle sensitive notes (especially in crisis), runners are expected to maintain discretion: they should not read or discuss the contents of notes they carry, and they should move quickly and quietly to avoid disrupting debate.