Dear Delegates,

Welcome to UPMUNC 56! My name is Leanne Wattar, and I will serve as this year’s chair of the Perry Expedition and Opening of Japan to the West crisis committee. Through this committee, I am hopeful that you will work together to promote collaboration between Japan and the US. By compromising on trade agreements, you will aid in the further advancement of globalization in a rapidly developing world. 

I am a junior at the University of Pennsylvania from the suburbs of Cleveland, OH studying Political Science on the pre-law track. In high school, I was a part of our competition MUN club and was co-captain my senior year. I couldn’t quite leave behind MUN in college, and for two years, I was on UPMUNC secretariat, where I was an Assistant Secretary-General and a Director of Operations. I love chairing crisis committees, and I’ve done so in the past for ILMUNC, Penn’s high-school level MUN competition.

Outside of UPMUNC, I am the treasurer of and play the flute for the Penn Band, an associate copy editor for The Daily Pennsylvanian, on the board of the Government and Politics Association at Penn, and on the Exec Board for the Student Activities Council. In my free time, I love to read, explore Philadelphia’s ice cream shops (if you need a recommendation while in Philly, the best one is Jeni’s!), and travel.

I’m looking forward to running this committee alongside the crisis directors and seeing what you all have prepared for this conference! I hope to take this committee in new directions, and I’m excited to see where your creativity leads us. Please reach out with any questions while preparing for the conference, and I’ll see you all in November!

See you soon,

Leanne Wattar

Chair, Perry Expedition and Opening of Japan to the West