King School Delegates Shine at 2025 Brown University Model UN
King School’s Model UN team made an impressive showing at the 2025 Brown University Simulation of the United Nations (BUSUN), where upper school delegates tackled global issues alongside high school students from across the country.
This year, the conference was especially notable as it marked the first without long-time advisor Christos Galanopoulos, who retired after many years of guiding King’s Model UN. While his presence was missed, King’s delegates kept his legacy alive, approaching the competition with the same thoughtfulness, tenacity, and maturity, demonstrating the strength of the program he helped build.
Several students earned special recognition for their work in the committee. Max Marti ’27 received a Diplomatic Commendation, Izzy Ryan ’28 and Lilah Mehta ’27 were both awarded Honorable Mention, Justina Marque ’27 earned an Outstanding Delegate award, and Nick Marti ’27 took home the prestigious Best Delegate award. Their accomplishments reflect both the skill and dedication of these students, as well as the spirit of the entire King delegation.
Justina served on the ECLAC committee, addressing economic and social issues in Latin America and the Caribbean. Her committee focused on protecting food security systems in the face of climate-driven disasters.
“This topic was particularly interesting because to successfully find a solution for this problem, I had to combine knowledge from across various disciplines such as environmental science, global studies, political science, and bioethics,” Justina said.
Debates ranged from the ethics of solar geoengineering to the impact of drug cartels and corruption on access to aid.
“It was a collaborative effort that would not have been successful without the wide range of subjects I study here at King or the equal preparation of my fellow delegates,” she said. “It was extremely rewarding seeing the effectiveness of not only having my ideas heard, but also seeing them expand with other people's perspectives.”
Justina earned diplomatic recognition as a Grade 9 student at last year’s Harvard Model UN. Though intimidated when heading to Harvard, she built on the experience this year.
“After attending a couple more conferences, I realized the privilege it is to be in a room full of such passionate people who have an equal desire to make the world a better place,” she noted. “I began to view Model UN not as a competition, but rather a collaborative environment full of opportunities to learn more from distinguished students and the equal value their perspectives have with my own. From then on, my confidence to assert myself in crowded rooms increased, as I realized staying in my comfort zone only prevented me from learning.”
Nick represented Oman in the ECOSOC committee at BUSUN, where delegates tackled the global challenge of providing access to clean drinking water. He prepared by researching past UN actions and his country’s efforts, looking for ways to partner with other nations to create effective, universal solutions.
During the conference, the committee split into two blocs, each pushing its own resolution. Tensions rose as the blocs debated which resolution was better.
“Realizing we were not making any progress, I spoke up to try and resolve the tension,” Nick said. “I argued that both resolutions, despite their differences, were vital towards helping those in need, and it would be better to try and pass both instead of picking only one or the other. After some more debate, both resolutions ended up passing successfully."
This year’s conference highlighted the continued excellence of King’s Model UN program. Students earned accolades and expanded their skills in diplomacy and negotiation.
“All of our delegates worked incredibly hard over the past three days,” said English teacher Lindsay Stone, who, along with history teacher Lindsey Rossler, served as the team’s advisors. “They balanced intensive committee sessions with very little free time, and their engagement and thoughtfulness in addressing complex global issues were remarkable.”
Congratulations to all the following students who participated in this year’s conference:
Olivia Ajayi ’27
Joaquin-Antonio Arteta ’26
Steven Blanco ’26
Siena Gambino ’27
Ian Kurlander ’27
Hathaway Liparidis ’26
Coco Liu ’29
Justina Marque ’27 (Outstanding Delegate)
Max Marti ’27 (Diplomatic Commendation)
Nick Marti ’27 (Best Delegate)
Brendan McCarthy ’27
Lilah Mehta ’27 (Honorable Mention)
Noor Nomani ’27
Isabella (Izzy) Ryan ’28 (Honorable Mention)
Anaiya Shah ’27
Alex Shaw ’29
Lucia Vivanco ’26
Leon Wang ’26
Supported by the Annual Fund
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