EVN Talks

After moving to Armenia from France in 2015, contemporary art curator Nairi Khatchadourian has curated numerous exhibitions and been involved in a number of initiatives with practitioners in different fields of art, design, music and publication. Nairi speaks to EVN Report about the local art scene, the challenges and opportunities and the need for a national cultural policy and strategy.

In a polarized political landscape, how should the media operate or function. Karen Harutyunyan, the Editor-in-Chief of Civilnet and Artur Papyan, a digital security consultant and journalist share their thoughts about the state of the media in Armenia, misinformation/disinformation, the need for media ownership transparency and self-regulation.

Emergency departments are on the frontline of medicine. Delivery of emergency medical services during disasters is critical especially for a country like Armenia. Dr. Sharon Chekijian, who is in Armenia on a Fulbright Scholar Program award from the Yale Department of Emergency Medicine, spoke to EVN Report about the current state of emergency medicine and her work in emergency systems and curriculum development in Armenia.

After a long ratification process, the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) came into force on March 1. Providing a broad framework for cooperation, the ultimate goal of CEPA is to improve Armenia-EU relations. In this podcast, Andrea Wiktorin, Ambassador of the European Union to Armenia speaks to EVN Report about the benefits of the agreement, the EU’s position leading up to the war and its role in Armenia’s post-war reality.

Co-founder and CEO of Expper Technologies Karen Khachikyan talks about Robin, the world’s first emotionally intelligent robot his company developed. Used in a number of pediatric units in Armenian and American hospitals, Robin helps children cope with the stress of having to undergo treatment and has even become a trusted member of the medical staff.

Writer, journalist, author and documentary filmmaker Olivia Katrandjian founded the International Armenian Literary Alliance to support and celebrate writers by fostering development and distribution of Armenian literature in the English language.

Nerses Kopalyan, Assistant Professor-in-Residence at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas argues that in post-war Armenia the political crisis is at the structural-institutional level specific to the political elite and not at the societal level as the lack of widespread support for the opposition has shown.

Last week, Armenia’s Government introduced Bill C-894 on reforming the Electoral Code, a process that had begun in the summer of 2018. Hamazasp Danielyan, a Member of Parliament from the ruling My Step faction and coordinator of the Working Group on Electoral Code Reforms spoke about the importance of ensuring the bill, through consensus, becomes law before the looming snap parliamentary elections in June.

Following the 2018 Velvet Revolution, a group of civic activists came together and formed the Citizen’s Decision Social Democratic Party. Gor Hakobyan, Secretary of the Executive Board of the party says their objective was to be part of the country’s political processes. He talks to EVN Report about the need to change the political culture in Armenia, especially in the current polarized political climate following the 2020 Artsakh War. Instead of finding solutions and devising strategies, the “two sides” are blaming one another, he says.

Inga Harutyunyan is the founder and executive director of Pahapan Development Foundation that implements sustainable projects in borderline regions, primarily in Tavush, to ensure economic prosperity, welfare and safety. She spoke about a number of their projects, including building playground shelters for children. Harutyunyan is also the advisor to the Governor of Tavush and explained how their model of coordinating development aid to mitigate overlaps and duplication has led to more efficient delivery of services.