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  • This House Opposes the rise of Universes Beyond inside of Magic: the Gathering

    Infoslide

    "Magic: the Gathering is a popular competitive trading card game created in 1993, with around 50 million players worldwide. Players build decks of cards to compete against one another in a variety of different formats. Some formats rotate, only allowing the use of cards from the last few years. New cards are released as part of themed sets that are usually self-contained stories in their own worlds, with new sets of ~300 cards being released 4-5 times a year. The theming of Magic: the Gathering is reminiscent of classic high fantasy media such as Dungeons & Dragons or Lord of the Rings, with the players representing powerful wizards who can travel across the different worlds sets are contained on. Sets rarely deviated from this theme, with those taking place in cyberpunk or steampunk settings being few and far between. Universes Beyond was announced in 2024 as a way to bring new players into Magic: the Gathering by having 1-2 sets per year based on third-party IPs. So far, full sets based on Final Fantasy, Spiderman, and Avatar: the Last Airbender have been announced, with cards from these sets being fully legal in all formats of play."

    Connections IV 2025 · Round 2 · 2025-08-30

  • This house believes that governments should prioritise supply-side solutions over demand-side and redistributive solutions to address housing crises in major cities

    Infoslide

    In many major cities, housing costs have risen rapidly due to population growth, urbanisation, and limited new development. Economists broadly agree that two leading strategies can reduce housing costs: Supply-side solutions aim to increase the total number of housing units, primarily through zoning reform, easing building restrictions, and incentivising private development. Demand-side and redistributive solutions aim to help individuals afford housing through government interventions such as rent control, public/social housing, rental subsidies, or taxes on vacant homes. While both approaches can coexist, governments often have limited resources and must prioritise one approach in both funding and political capital.

    Cambridge Union Schools Debating Championship Australia New Zealand Round 2025 · Round 5 · 2025-08-30

  • This house supports the international seabed authority expediting the finalization of deep sea mining rules

    Infoslide

    The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is an intergovernmental body established under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to regulate mineral-related activities in the international seabed area beyond national jurisdictions. It is partially funded by mining revenue. The international seabed area contains valuable minerals such as cobalt, nickel, and rare earth metals essential for renewable energy technologies. Current mining activity largely prevented by lack of regulatory structure, making mining de facto illegal in many places. The ISA is negotiating a Mining Code to set environmental safeguards, revenue-sharing mechanisms, and rules for partnerships between states and mining companies. The United States has not ratified UNCLOS and is not a party to the ISA. The International Seabed Authority (ISA)'s rules for deep-sea mining include provisions for the equitable sharing of benefits, with a focus on developing countries, including Small Island Developing States (SIDS). However, the core exploitation regulations, which would outline the specific partnering and benefit-sharing mechanisms, have not yet been finalized, despite the ISA's mandate and the expiration of a two-year deadline in 2023 to finalize them.

    Connections IV 2025 · Round 3 · 2025-08-30

  • This house believes that the European Union should abandon its fiscal rules (i.e., debt and deficit limits) in favor of growth-first national economic policies

    Infoslide

    The European Union’s fiscal rules, known as the Stability and Growth Pact, require member states to limit their annual government deficit to 3% of GDP and public debt to 60% of GDP. A growth-first policy prioritizes economic expansion and employment, even if it requires sustained public spending and debt accumulation. It often entails deficit-financed investment in infrastructure with the assumption that growth will stabilize debt ratios over time.

    Connections IV 2025 · Round 5 · 2025-08-30

  • This house supports the Yellow Envelope Act.

    Infoslide

    """The Yellow Envelope Act is a labor law reform in South Korea, which passed the legislature recently and about to be implemented in 6 months. It has the following characteristics: 1) It expands the definition of “employer” to include not only direct contractors but also parent companies or entities that effectively control working conditions. 2) It broadens the scope of lawful labor disputes to cover key management decisions, such as restructuring, outsourcing, and mergers. 3) It curtails corporation's ability to sue unions or individuals for financial damages after strikes."""

    India ABP Fundraiser 2025 · Round 2 · 2025-08-30

  • This house believes that the Brazilian government should extend the Trans-Amazonian Highway to Pucallpa

    Infoslide

    The Trans-Amazonian Highway starts from Brazil’s Atlantic Coast and stretches 4000km across the Amazon, stopping at The Uncontacted Frontier. The Frontier contains the highest concentration of isolated tribes. Some tribes have asked for support from the Brazilian government. Others choose to be alone, and many have never been contacted. On the other side of the Frontier is the Peruvian city of Pucallpa, a thriving city with a bustling economy.

    VDC Contentions 2025 (English) · Novice Semifinals · 2025-08-28

  • This House Believes That developing countries should introduce significant rewards for local officials whose regions achieve high rates of economic growth (eg financial bonuses, career benefits, political promotion etc).

    VDC Contentions 2025 (English) · Round 3 · 2025-08-28

  • This house believes that the RBI should prioritize external macroeconomic risks (e.g., global trade tensions, foreign monetary tightening) over domestic inflation targets when setting monetary policy.

    K Pre-ABP Debate 2025 · Semifinals · 2025-08-23

  • This house predicts that by 2100 the number of animals in factory farms will have fallen to less than half of today’s total

    Infoslide

    Factory farming is an industrial approach to the production of meat, fish, eggs, and dairy that confines large numbers of animals in tightly-packed, controlled, often-indoor environments. Globally, over 90% of farmed animals live in factory farms, including an estimated 74% of farmed land animals and virtually all farmed fish.

    Drexel Pre-WUDC 2025 · Pro-Am Final · 2025-08-23

  • This house would take a 36-month long position in NVIDIA stock rather than remain flat

    Infoslide

    NVIDIA is an American multinational technology company known for designing graphics and artificial intelligence chips. NVIDIA’s current market capitalization is around USD 4.34 trillion. NVIDIA’s stock price, which has risen 43.84% in the last twelve months, is currently trading at USD 177.99 per share. For this debate, you are a mutual fund with several billion dollars in assets under management. When an investor takes a “long position” in a stock, they buy and hold the stock. When an investor “remains flat,” they maintain zero net exposure to that stock.

    Drexel Pre-WUDC 2025 · Grand Final · 2025-08-23

  • This house regrets Chile’s adoption of the AFP system

    Infoslide

    Before 1981, Chile primarily used a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) pension system. Under this system, workers did not have personal accounts. Instead, employers and active workers paid into occupational social-insurance funds (cajas), which used mandatory current contributions to pay current retirees in that fund. Each caja had different rules for exact worker payouts, often based on their wage history and years of contributions to the fund. PAYG was public and pooled by occupational fund, with some exceptions (e.g., predominantly state- financed pensions for the police and armed forces). In 1980–1981, under the military government, Chile replaced most civilian PAYG coverage with the Administradoras de Fondos de Pensiones (AFP) system. Under this system, each worker’s mandatory contributions went into their own investment account managed by a private pension fund (an AFP). A worker's retirement income depended on what they put in, investment returns (after fees), and payout choice (e.g., programmed withdrawals or purchasing a life annuity from an insurance company). Upon adoption of the AFP system, new civilian workers had to join, while existing workers could choose to switch to an AFP or remain in PAYG. Those already retired stayed in PAYG with state financing.

    Drexel Pre-WUDC 2025 · Round 2 · 2025-08-23

  • This house supports global tech awards and grants prioritizing frugal innovation over cutting-edge innovation

    Infoslide

    Frugal innovation is an approach to innovation that focuses on creating affordable, resource-efficient, accessible, and scalable products, services, or technologies. On the other hand, cutting-edge innovation refers to the most novel, advanced, and innovative tools, systems, or methods in a particular field.

    7th Bicol Debate Open 2025 · Round 4 · 2025-08-23

  • This house, as an developing country, would heavily subsidise it's "H-1B visa's"

    Infoslide

    The concept of a "H-1B visa" is a non-immigrant visa that allows employers to temporarily employ foreign workers in specialty occupations and professions such as IT, engineering, finance, medicine, architecture, and more. It may take on a different name, such as South Africa's "Critical Skill Visa" or Nigeria's "STR visa".

    Friday Night Debates 2025: An African Debate Super League · Power Pair 7 · 2025-08-22