EVN Talks

David Barsamian of Alternative Radio speaks with Noam Chomsky, Institute Professor Emeritus at MIT about the Azerbaijani offensive in Artsakh, how the roots of the conflict stretch back through history when borders were drawn by powers pursuing their own self-interests and the need for international diplomacy. 

In Stepanakert, EVN Report’s Roubina Margossian spoke with Artsakh’s Ombudsman Artak Beglaryan about how the civilian population is being targeted by Azerbaijani forces, recent casualties, local and international journalists coming under fire, human rights violations and atrocities by the adversary and insufficient reaction and silence of the international community.

In Stepanakert, EVN Report's Roubina Margossian spoke with Armine Aleksyan, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh about the implications of Turkey's involvement, the arrival of mercenaries at the gates of Europe, the mandates of international organizations and their inaction and the need to look into history to understand the roots of the conflict.

Andre Gumuchdjian, a Belgian-Armenian philanthropist and entrepreneur was determined to eliminate his carbon footprint. That desire turned into My Forest Armenia, an initiative he launched two years ago with the ambitious mission of helping to increase Armenia’s forest cover by planting 400,000 trees a year.

Haik Kazarian, co-CEO and CMO of Smart Apaga, a private waste management service is filling a need in Yerevan - collecting and delivering plastic, paper and glass waste to a number of private recycling companies looking for recyclable material. Over 1000 households and organizations are currently using the services of Smart Apaga, which is also set to launch an app to ensure an even better customer experience and benefits.

Ani Avagyan, Director of the ROCHEMP Center for Cultural Heritage in Armenia spoke about the importance of the preservation of historic districts in contemporary global cities, the importance of properly restoring and preserving tangible cultural heritage and how education is the key.

Mariam Torosyan, Co-founder and CEO of Impact Innovations Institute speaks about an app they have developed called Safe YOU, which seeks to raise awareness, consult and empower women through community. It assists in the battle against gender-based violence in three important ways: prevention, protection and prosecution. 

Kayaneh Madzounian recently moved to Yerevan from Lebanon a few days after the catastrophic explosion at the port of Beirut on August 4. An expert in education, she spoke about being a child of the Civil War, the state of Armenian schools in Lebanon, living with trauma, preserving Western Armenian and more.

In the ensuing hours following the massive explosion in Beirut on August 4, the Howard Karagheusian Primary Health Care Center in Bourj Hammoud, treated 341 people while half the staff was clearing away the rubble and shattered glass from the damaged building. The director of the center, Serop Ohanian says being resilient is not easy but it is the only choice. And while it is anticipated that many people, especially the young, might leave the Armenian communities of the Middle East, Ohanian says the Center will always be there to take care of those left behind.

Gayane Vardanyan, a Yerevan City Councillor from the My Step faction spoke to EVN Report about some of the biggest challenges that city officials have had to deal with since coming to power almost two years ago from waste collection to replacing elevators.