Abbreviation GIRA Headquarters Washington, D.C. USA Founded 1969 Type Nonprofit organization | Formation 1969 Website modelun.org Main organ Board of directors | |
Purpose International relations education Affiliations Georgetown International Relations Club Similar Delta Phi Epsilon, Students of Georgetown - Inc, International Law Institute, Georgetown University | ||
The Georgetown International Relations Association, Inc. (GIRA) is a non-profit organization that promotes scholastic and collegiate student engagement with international affairs. Founded and incorporated in 1969 as an independent 501(c)(3) corporation, GIRA is operated entirely by undergraduate students of Georgetown University. Though the two maintain a close relationship, GIRA is neither funded nor managed by Georgetown University.
Contents
- Governance
- Conferences
- North American Invitational Model United Nations
- National Collegiate Security Conference
- Millennium Conference Series
- Philanthropy
- Global Generations Grant
- References
The mission and functions of GIRA is multi-faceted. It hosts its two primary conferences, the North American Invitational Model United Nations and the National Collegiate Security Conference, as well as a third India-based conference which it co-hosts. Another of its activities is to fund the university-affiliated Georgetown International Relations Club (GIRC), which is largest student organization on campus. GIRC is the competitive, traveling Model United Nations team of Georgetown University that was ranked third in the world division by Best Delegate for 2014-2015. Additionally, GIRA awards grants to students who wish to pursue projects abroad. Lastly, it provides foreign immersion opportunities for students.
Governance
The Georgetown International Relations Association is principally governed by a board of directors on which its CEO (who serves as chairman), CFO, COO, and Executive Secretary sit, alongside current and former conference executives. The conference executives consist of the Secretary-General and Executive Director for each of GIRA's two annual conferences.
In addition to two executives, who are appointed by the board of directors, each conference is operated by a secretariat composed of senior staff that is selected by the conference executives. Members of the senior staff take the positions of "directors" of their respective departments (for the administrative side of the conference) or under secretaries-general of their respective organs (for the substantive side of the conference). The largest functional body is the junior staff, which is selected by the executives and secretariat. It carries out the day-to-day operations of the conferences including the functioning of individual committees and assemblies.
Conferences
One of GIRA's primary activities is the operation of its two annual Model United Nations conferences: the National Collegiate Security Conference and the North American Invitational Model United Nations. It also operates a third conference, the Millennium Conference Series, which is based in India.
North American Invitational Model United Nations
The North American Invitational Model United Nations, commonly referred to by its acronym, NAIMUN, was founded in 1963, making it one of the oldest continuously running Model UN conferences. The annual conference is held in Washington, D.C. and includes high school students from around the world. It is also the largest student-run MUN conference in North America, attracting over 3,000 delegates to each conference and staffed by approximately 200 Georgetown students.
National Collegiate Security Conference
The National Collegiate Security Conference, which commonly goes by the acronym NCSC, was founded in 1972. It is unique among Model United Nations conferences in that its primary focus is crisis-based committees and issues pertaining to global and regional security. The annual conference is held in Bethesda, Maryland and welcomes around 800 college undergraduates from around the world.
Millennium Conference Series
The Millennium Conference Series (MCS), founded in 2015, is the first collegiate Model UN conference in India. It is a twice-occurring conference that is sponsored and run by the Georgetown International Relations Association in conjunction with MUNCafe, a Model United Nations organization. It takes place on the campuses of the Indian School of Business in Mohali and Hyderabad and hosts students from India and around the world.
Philanthropy
As a non-profit organization, the Georgetown International Relations Association undertakes several philanthropic efforts. A major component of both the NCSC and NAIMUN conferences is philanthropy. Each year an international charity is selected by the secretariat of each conference for which money is raised.
Global Generations Grant
The Global Generations Grant program is an annually-awarded grant to undergraduate and graduate students of Georgetown University. The grant is disbursed to students who seek to initiate projects that teach youth about international relations and global affairs.