United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs

Namaste Delegates,
I am Shakambhari Karnik and it is with immense pleasure that I welcome you to the United
Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs. I am delighted to serve as your Chairperson for the
committee.
Just like many other delegates, my first-ever MUN went rather quiet; and I barely managed a
GSL. I hesitated even when I knew what I wanted to say and started wondering whether I
actually belonged in that room ... .and after the conference ended, I walked away, convinced that
I’d never participate in an MUN again. It's safe to say that I was wrong. But what I learned from
that and many experiences that followed, became more important than any award or recognition
could teach me.
Outer Space is often seen as the ‘shared space’ or the ‘province of all mankind’, but who is
responsible for maintaining this shared domain? How do the various actors behave once they’re
up there? As delegates of UNOOSA, you will tackle all such questions and perhaps rewrite, not
the stars, but definitely the rules.
Whether you are a first-timer or an experienced delegate, I urge you to see these forthcoming
three days as more than just an opportunity to prove yourself. I will call this committee and my
role as your Chairperson, a success, when each of you walk out of the conference believing you,
too, can be a future leader, on this side of the dais. If you have any doubts or just want to talk,
my door is always open.
Until then, research well and get ready for an exciting committee! P.S. The only collision I hope
to see is one between great ideas, finding their way towards greater solutions.
Warm regards,
Shakambhari Karnik
Chairperson- UNOOSA
shakambhari.karnik.sjc6964@shishukunj.in