The 9th Mindanao International Studies Society Convention was held from February 18 to 20 at the Grand Astoria Hotel and Convention Center. Each day involved different sessions that were focused on multiculturalism. Keynote speakers for various topics were present during the event. The event ended with a cultural night on the evening of the last day of the convention.
This year, the International Studies students of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University were tapped to organize the event.
One of the participants, Alanna Michelle Escudero, praised the organizers, “I would like to praise the AdZU organizers for doing a job well done for their first time. They did excellent!” During the course of the event, she claimed that she was able to befriend the different delegates coming from different schools. While she was at the convention, she surveyed the other participants about the event and their responses were favorable. “They all enjoyed Zamboanga, so that’s very good,” she added.
Escudero said that she attended the convention because, accordingly, the topic of multiculturalism piqued her curiosity. Before the event, she had expected to gain “a lot of information on the current Mindanao and International situations that Philippines is part of.” She said that she learned a lot from the convention, but gave a few points for improvement. She claimed that the organizers needed to improve on time management and to have a budget for emergency expenses. She suggested that the delegates should have been given the opportunity “to see and taste Zamboanga.”
As for the organizers’ end, Deorenzie Frances Carreon also claimed that the organizing team’s goals were met due to the evaluation that was given by the participants. She said that they had two goals in mind: “to prove to most of these participants, particularly the first-timers, that Zamboanga is not—if I may borrow our moderator’s term”—Afghanistan” to be afraid of” and “to be able to top the previous MISSCON hosts even through the speakers and the topics.”
Compared to previous conventions, Carreon pointed out that this year’s event stood out due to three points. First, she believed that this year’s theme was very relevant because she believed that “it is something that must be tackled and shared especially to us future diplomats.” She acknowledges the fact that past conventions had good speakers, but she said that this year was different because the speakers were experts in their respective fields and they worked internationally. Lastly, this year’s convention stood out because it’s the only one that treated its delegates to a night tour to the historical spots of the city.
As for points for improvement, Carreon believed that there were instances when “things got out of hand,” but the organizing team was able to pull through due to the help from the School of Liberal Arts faculty and the El Consejo Atenista President. Overall, she believes that the convention was a success. Just like with Escudero, she said the participants responded positively about the event. “The feedback from the participants were all heart-warming and good.” She also added that, through the convention, relationships were built and the convention’s goals of learning about diplomacy and being able to practice it were met.
Photo Source: Official Facebook Page of 9th MISS Convention
