How to write a Model G20 position paper, with a sample

A position paper is your country's opening argument. In one or two pages, it says what your country wants from the summit, why, and what it will propose. This guide shows you how to research one for a Model G20 or Model UN conference, how to organise that research with a PESTEL analysis, and what a strong paper looks like, with a full sample written as India.

What a position paper does

National Model United Nations (NMUN) describes a position paper simply: "a document in which a Member State or Observer lays out its position on a topic." Chairs read it to judge how well you have prepared. Other delegates read it to decide whether to work with you. A strong paper does three things:

1. States a clear position. What does your country want from this topic? Write it as one sentence a reader could repeat.
2. Backs it with evidence. Facts, figures and past actions that show the position is your country's real one, not invented for the debate.
3. Offers solutions. Concrete proposals your country would sign, and the partners likely to support them.

NMUN makes a related point: the most effective papers indicate "which components of the topic are most important to the delegation" and outline "how those policies are realistic and potentially appealing to others."

How a Model G20 paper differs from a Model UN paper

The G20 is small and economic. Its members are 19 countries plus two regional bodies, the European Union and the African Union, which became a permanent member at the New Delhi summit in September 2023. Official G20 sites say the members account for around 85 per cent of world GDP, around three-quarters of world trade and about two-thirds of the world's people.

The bigger difference is how decisions are made. The UN General Assembly has 193 members with one vote each, and its Charter requires a two-thirds majority of the members present and voting only for "important questions." The G20 does not vote. The real General Assembly also adopts most resolutions without a vote, but voting is its last resort when consensus fails. Its working groups produce "consensus-based recommendations," and India's government explains that the leaders' declaration is signed "after and if consensus is reached." The G20 also has no charter and no secretariat. A presidency that rotates each year sets the agenda.

The work runs on two tracks. The Finance Track is led by finance ministers and central bank governors. The Sherpa Track is led by sherpas, the personal representatives of the leaders, who oversee the negotiations. Under both, thematic working groups do the detailed work.

All of this changes how you write. Because the G20 aims for consensus and negotiators work to bring every member to accept the final text, a Model G20 paper must show where your country can compromise, as well as what it wants. A paper that only lists demands will struggle in a room that cannot outvote anyone. And the G20 produces declarations, communiqués and chair's summaries, not laws or resolutions, so propose political commitments, not binding rules.

Length and format

Conferences set their own rules, and they differ. NMUN allows two pages in Arial 10 point covering both committee topics. Harvard Model United Nations asks for one single-spaced page per topic. Harvard's WorldMUN asks for one to two pages. Harvard Model United Nations and WorldMUN both say the committee's background guide can override their rule. If your conference gives no rule, one to two pages, with your country, committee and topic at the top and sources at the end, is a sensible default. Our comparison of MUN position paper format and rules covers this in detail.

Research methods: a six-step workflow

Good research moves from the topic, to your country, to the other delegations, in that order. Spread it across several sessions in the week or two before the conference rather than one late night.

1. Unpack the topic. Read your conference's background guide twice. Write down every key term and look up any you cannot explain to a friend. List the three or four questions the committee must answer.
2. Learn what the G20 has already said. Read the most recent leaders' declaration and the relevant ministers' communiqués, and note the exact wording members have already accepted. Building on agreed text is far easier than inventing new text, and quoting it shows you are prepared.
3. Find your country's real position. Look for speeches by your head of government and ministers, national policy documents and statements at the UN or G20. Your position must match what your country actually says, not what you personally think.
4. Gather evidence. Collect five to eight key numbers, such as growth, emissions, trade or targets, each with its year and source.
5. Run a PESTEL analysis. Sort what you found into six lenses, explained below. This shows why your country holds its position and where it can bend.
6. Map the room. For each major member or group, note what it wants on this topic. Mark likely allies, likely opponents and swing countries. This becomes your negotiation plan.

The UN's own advice for Model UN delegates covers the same ground, though it puts the country first. It suggests starting with your country's geography, political structure, economic situation and demographics, then asking: "Are there other Member States or Observers who share your view? What Member States or Observers are opposed to your view?"

Where to look, and what to avoid

Build your paper mostly on the first two kinds of source in this list:

• Official documents: G20 declarations and communiqués, ministry websites, national budgets and official climate pledges, called Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Use them for your country's stated position and targets.
• International organisations: bodies such as the World Bank, the IMF, the OECD, UN agencies and the International Energy Agency (IEA). Use them for statistics that compare countries.
• Research institutes and think tanks: useful for analysis and context, but check who funds them.
• Quality news outlets: useful for recent events and leaders' quotes.
• Avoid as evidence: unsourced blogs, social media and answers from AI chatbots.

A word on AI tools. You may use them to explain a hard concept or suggest search terms, but never copy a number, quote or date from an AI answer into your paper. They often produce figures that sound real but are not. Conferences also have rules: Harvard Model United Nations bans AI use for its preparation work, including position papers, while NMUN requires a disclosure statement. Find every fact in a real source and cite that source.

Before you trust any source, ask four questions. Who wrote it? When, and is the figure recent? Why, to inform or to persuade? And can you confirm a key number in a second, independent source?

Keep one research log with five columns: the fact or quote, its source and link, its date, its PESTEL lens and where it will go in your paper. For example: "India's target of net-zero emissions by 2070 | Prime Minister's national statement at COP26, Glasgow | 1 November 2021 | Political and Environmental | country policy section." A log like this makes your source list easy and stops you losing track of where a number came from.

PESTEL analysis: why your country holds its position

PESTEL stands for Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental and Legal. It comes from business strategy: the CIPD, the UK's professional body for HR, describes the same framework (it writes PESTLE) as a study of "the key external factors" that influence an organisation. Delegates borrow it to understand a country instead. If you know the pressures a government faces at home, you can predict what it will accept abroad.

• Political: who is in power and what did they promise? Which groups and alliances does the country belong to?
• Economic: how big and fast-growing is the economy, what does it trade, how much debt does it carry, and who pays for the proposed policy?
• Social: how large and young is the population, how many people lack basic services, and which jobs depend on the issue?
• Technological: does the country make or import the key technology, and how strong is its research base?
• Environmental: how exposed is it to climate risk or pollution, and what are its emissions?
• Legal: which national laws and international agreements bind it, and what has it already signed?

PESTEL is research, not a section of your paper. Do not paste the table into your final draft. Instead, ask of each finding whether it pushes your country towards a deal or away from one. Pressures to act become your reasons. Constraints become your conditions. Strengths become your offers.

Worked example: India on financing a just energy transition

Here is the PESTEL a delegate might build before writing the sample paper below. Each finding ends with what it means in committee.

• Political: India held the G20 presidency in 2023, when the African Union became a permanent member. At the COP29 climate talks in 2024, India's objection to the new finance goal was backed by Nigeria, Malawi and Bolivia, according to the Press Trust of India. In committee: India can lead a coalition of developing countries and frame its demands as fairness.
• Economic: in the IEA's main scenarios, emerging and developing economies drive the growth in energy demand to 2050, "led by India and Southeast Asia." In a separate 2024 report, the IEA also found that the cost of capital for large solar projects in these economies is "well over twice as high" as in advanced economies. In committee: push for cheaper finance, not just more of it.
• Social: the UN climate convention says economic and social development and poverty eradication are "the first and overriding priorities" of developing countries, and the G20's New Delhi declaration says just transitions "can improve jobs and livelihoods." In committee: insist that the transition protects workers and growth.
• Technological: India's National Green Hydrogen Mission, approved in January 2023, aims for green hydrogen production capacity of at least 5 million tonnes a year by 2030, and India co-launched the International Solar Alliance with France in 2015. In committee: ask for technology partnerships and manufacturing investment, and offer India's experience.
• Environmental: Global Carbon Project data put India's fossil carbon dioxide emissions at 2.2 tonnes per person in 2024, against a world average of 4.7. Coal still generated about 70 per cent of India's electricity in 2025, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). In committee: India supports climate action but needs time and money to move away from coal.
• Legal: the UN climate convention's principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities" says developed countries "should take the lead." India's latest NDC, for 2031 to 2035, ties its 60 per cent non-fossil capacity target to "transfer of technology and low-cost international finance." In committee: anchor demands in principles that richer countries have already signed.

Before you read the sample, fill in a PESTEL like this for your own country and topic, with at least two sourced findings per lens.

The structure of a strong paper

Many strong position papers follow a similar pattern: a header and five parts. Check your conference's own layout first. NMUN, for example, asks for one section per topic with no overall introduction or conclusion, and leaves the school name out of the header. For a one-page paper of about 600 words, these rough word counts work well:

1. Header: country, committee or track, topic, delegate name and school.
2. Introduction and stance (about 80 words): why the topic matters, then your country's position in one clear sentence.
3. Background and global action (about 120 words): the problem in two or three facts, and what the G20 and other bodies have already agreed.
4. Country policy and interests (about 160 words): what your country has done and why it cares. Your PESTEL findings go here.
5. Proposed solutions (about 200 words): three or four specific proposals saying who does what, how it is funded and how progress is measured.
6. Conclusion (about 60 words): restate the stance, name your partners and signal where you can compromise.

Finish with a list of every source you used, in one consistent style. Then apply the one-sentence test: if a chair reads only your introduction, can they repeat your position in one sentence? If not, rewrite it until they can.

Sample position paper

This model answer is about 730 words, not counting the header and sources. That is longer than the 600-word guide above, with a fuller background and country section, so trim it to your own conference's limit. It is written for a simulation held in October 2026. Read it once for the argument, then again with the notes that follow. The committee name follows the working group as it was called under India, Brazil and South Africa; under the 2026 US presidency, the G20's energy work sits in a renamed Energy Abundance Working Group, so always use your own conference's committee names. Figures change, so check the latest before reusing any of them.

Country: Republic of India
Committee: Energy Transitions Working Group (Sherpa Track)
Topic: Financing a just energy transition in developing economies
Delegate: [Name], [School]

Introduction. The world cannot meet the goals of the Paris Agreement without the developing world, and the developing world cannot make its energy transition without affordable finance. The Republic of India believes that the G20 must turn climate ambition into investment that developing economies can actually reach. India's position is clear: a just energy transition requires cheaper, larger and more predictable finance, led by developed economies and reformed development banks, together with technology partnerships, so that growth and climate action go hand in hand.

Background and global action. In the International Energy Agency's main scenarios, emerging and developing economies drive the growth in world energy demand to 2050. Yet the IEA's 2024 survey of financiers found that the cost of capital for large solar projects in these economies is "well over twice as high" as in advanced economies, which makes the same solar farm much more costly to finance. In 2009 and 2010, developed countries committed to mobilise USD 100 billion a year for developing countries by 2020. The OECD found that the goal was first met in 2022, two years late. At COP29 in Baku in 2024, parties set a new goal of at least USD 300 billion a year by 2035, with developed countries taking the lead. India's delegate told the closing session, as reported by the Press Trust of India, that this sum "does not meet the needs and priorities of developing countries."

The G20 has laid foundations. In the 2023 New Delhi Leaders' Declaration, members said they "will pursue and encourage efforts to triple renewable energy capacity globally" by 2030, agreed to "work towards facilitating low-cost financing" for developing countries, and called for "better, bigger and more effective" multilateral development banks (MDBs). The 2025 Johannesburg declaration repeated support for tripling renewables and for low-cost financing, including blended finance and risk mitigation instruments.

India's policy and interests. India is acting at home. It has pledged net-zero emissions by 2070. Its 2022 national climate pledge set a target of about 50 per cent of installed power capacity from non-fossil sources by 2030, and India reports that it reached 52.57 per cent in February 2026, five years early. Its latest pledge commits to cutting the emissions intensity of its GDP by 47 per cent from 2005 levels by 2035. It also aims for about 60 per cent non-fossil power capacity by 2035, "with the help of transfer of technology and low-cost international finance." India co-launched the International Solar Alliance with France in 2015, approved a National Green Hydrogen Mission in 2023 and launched Mission LiFE, for sustainable lifestyles, in 2022.

India's carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels and industry, about 2.2 tonnes per person in 2024, remain less than half the world average of 4.7. Coal still generated about 70 per cent of its electricity in 2025. A transition that ignores the workers and regions that depend on coal would be neither just nor politically possible. India therefore upholds the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities": countries that industrialised first should take the lead.

Proposed solutions. The Republic of India proposes that the G20:

1. Lower the cost of capital. Ask MDBs to expand guarantees, currency-risk cover and blended finance, so that private investment in clean energy reaches developing economies at rates closer to those in advanced economies.
2. Deliver MDB reform at scale. Turn the shared goal of better, bigger and more effective MDBs into yearly targets for lending capacity, and report progress against them at each summit.
3. Support country-led just transition plans. Build on the voluntary G20 Principles for Just and Inclusive Energy Transitions, adopted under Brazil's 2024 presidency, by backing national plans that pair clean energy investment with retraining, social protection and new industries in coal-dependent regions, learning from the Just Energy Transition Partnerships agreed with South Africa, Indonesia, Viet Nam and Senegal, without imposing a fixed phase-out date.
4. Share technology and build supply chains. Ask G20 members and MDBs to co-fund joint research and manufacturing investment in solar, batteries and green hydrogen in developing countries, on voluntary and mutually agreed terms, so the transition creates jobs where demand is growing.

Conclusion. India stands ready to work with all members on an ambitious and fair outcome. It will build on the New Delhi and Johannesburg declarations with its partners in the developing world, including the African Union, and seeks common ground with developed economies on finance and technology. India is flexible on the mechanisms and timelines in these proposals. It is not flexible on the principle that the cost of the transition must not fall on the world's poorest people.

Sources. G20 New Delhi Leaders' Declaration, 9 September 2023. G20 Johannesburg Leaders' Declaration, 22 November 2025. National Statement by the Prime Minister of India at COP26, Glasgow, 1 November 2021. Government of India, Updated First Nationally Determined Contribution, August 2022, and Nationally Determined Contribution (2031 to 2035), April 2026. Prime Minister's Office, Cabinet approval of India's 2031 to 2035 NDC, 25 March 2026. UNFCCC, Decision 1/CMA.6 on the New Collective Quantified Goal, COP29, Baku, 2024. UNFCCC, Decision 1/CP.16, The Cancun Agreements, 2010. Press Information Bureau, Cabinet approves National Green Hydrogen Mission, 4 January 2023. Press Information Bureau, PM launches Mission LiFE, 20 October 2022. Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, International Solar Alliance. UK Government announcements of the Just Energy Transition Partnerships with South Africa (2 November 2021), Indonesia (15 November 2022), Viet Nam (14 December 2022) and Senegal (June 2023). Press Trust of India, report on India's statement at the COP29 closing plenary, 24 November 2024. OECD, Climate Finance Provided and Mobilised by Developed Countries in 2013-2022, May 2024. International Energy Agency, Reducing the Cost of Capital, February 2024, and World Energy Outlook 2025. Global Carbon Project, Global Carbon Budget 2025. CREA, India Power Sector Review 2025. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 1992, Article 3.

Why the sample works

• The introduction opens with a global hook, then states the stance in one sentence.
• The background cites what the G20 has already agreed, using its exact words, so new proposals build on accepted text. Notice that it quotes "pursue and encourage efforts to triple," which is weaker than "agreed to triple." Quoting the real wording keeps you accurate and tells you how much room there is to push.
• The figures come with dates and sources: USD 100 billion by 2020, met in 2022; USD 300 billion by 2035.
• The country section proves India is acting before it asks others to act, and turns PESTEL findings into reasons: the Social and Environmental lenses become the case for a just transition.
• Each proposal names an actor, an action and a mechanism, and none asks for something the G20 could not agree, such as a new treaty.
• The conclusion names partners and signals flexibility, which matters in a forum that works by consensus.
• Throughout, it speaks as the country in the third person, never "I" or "we think."

Notice what is missing too: no PESTEL table, no long history and no personal opinion. The research is all there, but it shows up as evidence and reasons, not as notes.

Common mistakes and how to fix them

• Writing your own opinion instead of your country's. Ask, "Has my country's government actually said this?" Then find the speech or document.
• A long background and short solutions. Keep the background to what the committee needs and give the proposals the most room, as the word counts above do. The sample's background runs long because it quotes G20 wording, so trim that first if you are short of space.
• Vague proposals such as "raise awareness" or "all countries should cooperate." Name who acts, what they do, how it is paid for and how success is measured.
• Numbers with no year or source. Every figure gets both.
• Out-of-date figures. Targets and pledges change. India's 2022 pledge covers the years to 2030, and a new one for 2031 to 2035 followed in 2026, so check for the latest version.
• Overstating agreements. Quote what a declaration actually says, not a summary of it.
• Ignoring the G20's past agreements. Build on the latest leaders' declaration.
• No room to compromise. End with what your country is flexible on, and what it is not.
• Copying from AI or websites. Write in your own words and check every fact in a real source.

Submission checklist

• The header has your country, committee, topic, name and school.
• Your stance fits in one sentence and appears in the introduction.
• At least three facts have years and sources.
• At least one reference to an earlier G20 agreement, quoted accurately.
• The country section shows what your country has already done.
• Three or four specific proposals, each naming an actor and a mechanism.
• The conclusion names partners and signals flexibility.
• It is written in the third person throughout.
• It follows your conference's length and format rules.
• Sources are listed in one consistent style.
• You have read it aloud once to catch errors.

Fill-in template

Copy this into your own document and replace every bracket.

Country: [official name of your country]
Committee: [track or working group]
Topic: [exact topic title from the background guide]
Delegate: [name], [school]

Introduction. [Why this topic matters to the world, in one or two sentences.] [Country] believes that [your position in one sentence].

Background and global action. [Two or three key facts, with years.] [What the G20 and other bodies have already agreed, quoted accurately.]

[Country]'s policy and interests. [What your country has done: laws, targets, programmes.] [Why it cares: your strongest PESTEL findings.]

Proposed solutions. [Country] proposes that the G20: 1. [actor, action and mechanism or funding]; 2. [...]; 3. [...].

Conclusion. [Restate the stance.] [Partners you will work with.] [What you are flexible on, and what you are not.]

Sources. [Author or organisation, title, date.]

What to do next

For the whole conference, from research to committee day, read how to prepare for a Model G20 or Model UN conference. Then turn your paper into a speech with how to give an MUN opening speech. For background on the forum itself, see what the G20 does and how a summit reaches agreement, and for the climate talks behind the sample, how global climate talks work.

For more background on the forum itself, read our explainers on the Sherpa Track and Finance Track, how a leaders' declaration is agreed, the 2026 presidency and engagement groups and the Y20.

Model G20 is One Young India's simulation of the G20 summit for students, held as a three-day residential summit at FLAME University, where delegates write and negotiate papers like this one.