![]() On the F1 committee, the students have been randomly assigned a range of identities, forming a mix of drivers, team principals, various countries and power players like the FIA and Aramco. Cornell’s conference includes the Fortune 500, the 19th Century Crimean War, the Avengers’ fight against Ultron, and Formula One. The students I’m spending the weekend with are on one of the conference’s specialized committees, where they do the same kind of work in settings that are worlds away from the United Nations. They propose and debate resolutions to improve the world and their place in it. They study beforehand and write position papers. Standard Model UN fare has students represent countries, taking on their interests as they hash out global approaches to issues such as famine, human rights and nuclear disarmament. Of the hundreds of high schoolers at the conference hosted by Cornell University, these 30 are doing something different. ![]() ![]() Buzzing, they assemble into little groups, some spilling into the hallway, and start hashing out the repercussions of the race cancellations and potential responses. The students cheer for the suddenly spiced-up debate and swiftly vote to move into an unmoderated caucus. ![]() “It is up to you,” one tells the delegates, “to decide if and with what tracks you will replace them in future calendars and how to address future concerns about race cancelations, whether it be weather, war or protests.” The moderators - three college seniors who cooked up this scenario and have taken the teacher’s desk at the front of the room - have just informed the students that F1 has made a non-negotiable decision to stop investing in locales badly impacted by climate change and that it is canceling the contracts for the grands prix in Miami (due to flooding), Monaco (heavy rain on dangerously narrow streets) and Qatar (extreme heat).
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