Dear Delegates,

Welcome to ECOFIN! My name is Alisha Kumar, and it is my honor to be your Chair for UPMUNC 56 this year. I am a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences, in which I am studying Linguistics and Computer Science. It has been such a pleasure preparing for this conference over the past few months, and we cannot wait to share this incredible experience with you!

At Penn I am a copy editor for DoubleSpeak, Penn’s only journal for literary translation, and an associate editor for The Synapse, an intercollegiate science magazine. Outside of these editorial roles, I am apart of the consulting committee for the Penn Undergraduate Biotech Society and on the club tennis team. I previously served as the Under Secretary General of ECOSOC committees at UPMUNC 55.

MUN is where I have made some of my best friends - please use this conference as an opportunity to jump into the crazy, unpredictable world of diplomacy through creativity, innovation, and teamwork as much as you can, because you are our future global leaders. The fate of the world rests on your collective shoulders - I know it sounds cliché, but it’s true. I hope you all have a wonderful time at UPMUNC 56 - not only are you here to solve global issues, but also make new friends, explore what Penn and the amazing city of Philadelphia have to offer, develop new perspectives, and explore international relations in great detail. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out!

Keep calm and caucus on,

Alisha Kumar

Chair, ECOFIN

University of Pennsylvania Model United Nations Conference