The biggest news for GCDC came at the UNA-NCA Board of Directors meeting in November 2019. Global Education Managing Director Nicole Bohannon announced that she will depart GCDC to pursue a graduate degree. Nicole has served as director since August 2017, and previously worked as the Program Coordinator and a GCDC Intern.
After receiving over 30 applications from highly qualified candidates, Jaiya Lalla has been selected as the GCDC Deputy Manager. Jaiya will work under Nicole until June 2020 to get a full training experience before assuming the director role.Jaiya (left) is currently finishing her Bachelors of Arts in International Affairs at the George Washington University, where she focuses on Asia and Security Policy. In addition to previously acting as the GCDC Program Assistant, she has experience in the Senate, at Peace Corps headquarters, the State Department, Women's Watch-China, the National Endowment for Democracy, and the Interfaith Council of Metropolitan DC. Jaiya hails from Southwest Florida and enjoys Bollywood dance and exploring the interfaith landscape of the District.
Looking ahead into 2020, Public Registration for the Spring Model UN Conference opened on January 15. As of January 22, over 300 middle and high school students are registered across 16 schools. That figure is the largest number of students registered this early for any Spring Conference – a testament to the dedication and passion of the students, educators, and volunteers in the GCDC program.
In addition, we have confirmed Donya Nasser as the keynote speaker. Donya served as the 2015-2016 U.S. Youth Observer to the UN, and continues to work as an active Gender Equality Advocate, Youth Strategist, and Social Entrepreneur.
Most importantly, GCDC has a number of key partnerships in coordination with the Spring 2020 Conference. We are again working with the International Labour Organization (ILO) to collaborate on a topic for the Spring 2020 Model UN Conference. Students will debate how to "Integrate Just Transition Towards a Green Economy". The ILO is a tripartite UN agency that works on international labor standards, social protection, and more.
We will also again work with International Organization for Migration (IOM) to teach students how to "Protect Against Forced Migration Due to Conflict". Last but not least, for the first time UN Environment Programme (UNEP) will be sponsoring the Spring 2020 Model UN Conference. Although they are not sponsoring a topic, we will be collaborating on having environmental experts support our students during the conference.
