Harvard Model Congress - International Conferences

International Conferences

Harvard Model Congress Europe holds an annual conference in Brussels, Belgium in mid-March. Although it maintains a strong tradition of American government simulation, HMC Europe also has a strong focus on institutions of international governance, including (among others) the World Health Organization, Group of Eight, and World Trade Organization.

Harvard Model Congress Asia runs two annual conferences in Singapore and Seoul, Republic of Korea which are both held in January. The 2008 conference, supposed to held from September 4-6, was cancelled due to rebellion in Thailand. HMC Asia focuses on America's political system and governmental institutions. This conference boasts the lowest student-to-staff ratio of any of the model congress conferences. As the substitution for the cancelled 2008 HMCA, the 2009 session of Harvard Model Congress Asia was held in Seoul, Republic of Korea from January 22-24.

In both international conferences, students discuss and debate international issues from a more global perspective, formulating policy firsthand. The structured committee settings expose them to the realities of the democratic process, challenging them to forge compromise while advancing the interests of their constituency. The conferences seek to provide an unparalleled educational experience for talented secondary school students from around the world, offering hundreds of students each year an exciting opportunity to practice public speaking and policy writing. The conferences accommodate students with varying degrees of English ability, and the global diversity of participants and staff offers delegates the unique opportunity to approach challenging issues from numerous different perspectives.