The fall of grenada, 1492
The grand city of Granada has been a cultural and historical landmark for Islamic and Iberian history since the initial arrival of Tariq the Conqueror. After arriving on the Iberian peninsula in 711, a century after the birth of Islam, Tariq conquered the peninsula with the help of his Muslim Berber Army, gaining land that would host kingdoms to come. In 1232, the Nasrid Dynasty inherited the land after their predecessors, the Almohad Caliphate, unsuspecting that they would be the last Muslim dynasty to control the Iberian peninsula. With Muhammad V's death in 1391, the golden age of the Nasrid dynasty came to an end. The dynasty never recovered, and was beset by rivalries, assassinations, and succession conflicts until its downfall in the late 15th century.
As delegates dive into the 1400s, there is a chance that the Islamic Golden Age of Iberia will continue. This turbulent period is the last chance for Muslim rule in Iberia to survive both internal and external challenges. The Christian kingdoms of Castille, Catalonia, Aragon, and Portugal are constantly putting pressure on the Nasrid Dynasty, eager to retake territory and increase their power. The decisions that our committee makes will determine the Iberian Peninsula's fate, hopefully restoring it to its former glory.
Erica Olea Velazquez
Chair
Erica is a second-year at the college majoring in Biology and Public Policy on the pre-med track. She was born in sunny Santa Barbara, California, making the transition to the Windy City a little difficult.
Within MUN, Erica served as an assistant chair for The Kasparov Gambit: The International Chess Federation, at ChoMUN XXVII. Outside of MUN, Erica is very active in a wide variety of things. She is an intramural sports representative (even though she has never played half of these sports in her life) and does microbiology and immunology research. If she’s not in her lab or in the library (where she usually procrastinates on her problem sets), you can find her cooking or at the gym.
Erica is very excited to be an executive in 15th-century Granada and is excited to see how delegates will adapt and overcome the challenges that this weekend will bring. If you want to reach out to her about anything, her email is eoleavelazquez@uchicago.edu.
Rohanna hasselkus
Crisis Director
Rohanna is a second-year Math and Linguistics major from Denver, Colorado. Outside of coursework, she is very interested in visual arts and loves to draw. Additionally, she plays classical and jazz piano, often creating compositions in her free time. Fascinated by the mycological world, she can answer any of your fungi-related questions.
Feel free to reach out to them with your fungi-related questions at rihasselkus@uchicago.edu.
Gabriel Small
CRISIS DIRECTOR
Gabriel’s a second-year at UChicago, majoring in computer science. He’s from New York and loves to talk about it with patriotic vigor at any available moment.
In the past, Gabriel has been an Assistant Chair for the Kasparov Gambit at ChoMUN XXVII, and by now he has also been an Executive Assistant Chair for a committee at UChicago’s high school conference, MUNUC.
Outside of MUN, Gabriel loves to play music on piano and trumpet, ice skate, play video games, and practice cybersecurity pen-testing. He also loves cooking and anything else kitchen-related (yes that includes washing dishes — watch out I will steal your washing machines).
He’s super excited to be a Crisis Director for the Grand Granada Gambit committee, and can’t wait to meet you all! Feel free to reach out with any questions at gsm@uchicago.edu.
Secretariat oversight:
Khristian Bass, Under-secretary-general