Raw & Unfiltered

Palliative care is an approach that strives to improve the quality of life of patients who are terminally ill; it endeavors to provide a life of dignity. In Armenia, culture, stereotypes and entrenched practices make this approach very difficult to achieve, and instead of helping the patient, often causes them to lose their voice and their dignity.

This is a film about the Velvet Revolution, which took place in April-May of 2018 in Armenia from the perspective of Anna Hakobyan, the wife of Nikol Pashinyan, the man who led the nationwide movement that drastically changed the country's political landscape. The film portrays the personal side of Pashinyan’s political life and career.

Thirty years ago, a devastating earthquake ripped through northern Armenia, killing over 25 thousand people, destroying buildings, decimating entire villages and in its ominous wake, leaving a people traumatized. Today, 30 years on, Gyumri, one of the hardest hit cities, is rising.

Another case of a woman being killed by her husband has forced Armenian society to speak once again about the one thing it doesn’t like to address - domestic violence.

While Armenia has participated in several international comparative educational assessments, and has designed national assessment tools, neither have been implemented properly. Today, more than ever, there is a great need to properly analyze existing data that can inform educational policy making and curriculum development.

A prominent Armenian Bolshevik activist and head of the Baku Commune Stepan Shahumyan’s ghost now wanders through his native Caucasus. Armenians have largely forgotten his century-old verbal attacks on nationalism and insistence on internationalist fraternity of peoples, yet his statues remain and streets, villages and towns are named after him in Armenia and Artsakh.

Being born with Down Syndrome has not stopped Tigran Gevorgyan from pursuing his dreams. From winning gold medals at the Special Olympics to finding love, Tigran is not only breaking stereotypes, he’s creating a life of joy, fulfillment and meaning.

Education is an inalienable right, regardless of circumstances. Juveniles deprived of liberty in Armenia face challenges that include issues with rehabilitation and reintegration, but also with the right to education.

Even after Armenia gained independence from the Soviet Union, it is still reliant on many Soviet-built (sometimes very poorly built) infrastructure that can prove to be dangerous to local communities, flora and fauna, as well as the country’s economy and national security.

UNICEF Armenia recently held a conference discussing child abuse in Armenia, a topic that is often not talked about. Based on the Demographic and Health Survey conducted in almost 8000 households in the country, the numbers of children experiencing physical and psychological abuse are quite alarming.