On the weekend of July 18-21, the Brazilian city of São Paulo was transformed into a hub for the most internationally diverse group of Armenian young professionals ever to attend the AGBU FOCUS summit, a global gathering held in a different destination city every two years. The group of young innovators and community leaders, along with hundreds of members and friends from the worldwide AGBU Young Professionals...

 

 

Taking advantage of a second opportunity since Armenia’s Velvet Revolution to personally engage with thought leaders and members of the AGBU community, Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan had a clear message for the guests assembled at a private dinner in New York City hosted by AGBU in his honor on July 15th: “Charity is good. But we are not asking for charity. Much better than charity is the knowledge, experience, and expertise of the Diaspora,” he emphatically stated....

 

 

Creative Armenia and the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) are pleased to announce the 2020 Creative Armenia-AGBU Fellowships, a year-long program designed to accelerate the careers of innovative Armenian artists across the world. Providing a full package of funding, mentorship, and tailored promotion strategies, the program empowers creative minds for a professional breakthrough. Applications will be accepted until September 30, 2019. “This is an excellent opportunity for rising talents across the arts who are ready to level up,”...

 

 

On June 5, 2019, on the heels of an official visit to Artsakh in support of the AGBU Fund for Artsakh, AGBU President Berge Setrakian had the opportunity to meet with Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan at the government building. Along with AGBU Armenia’s President Vasken Yacoubian and Executive Director Talar Kazanjian, Mr. Setrakian briefed the prime minister and key staffers on the successful Artsakh visit, presented the organization's strategy for accelerating socio-economic development in the war-torn republic...

 

 

Nouvelles d’Arménie Magazine: How did AGBU experience and perceive the Velvet Revolution?  
Berge Sétrakian: We followed the events with a lot of interest. It is indeed a popular movement unprecedented in the history of modern democracies. This change of popular upheaval also affects a lot of countries once referred to as the free world. 20 - 25 years after the fall of the Soviet Union, the people are asking questions and demanding accountability from their leaders. This ancient world has been confronted with a wave of popular discontent starting with the Brexit vote and continuing with the elections of Trump and Macron. It’s a form of questioning the traditional political establishment. This phenomenon has also left more or less of a stain on Italy, Austria, Hungary and elsewhere. These events are a result of the rejection of migration towards Western countries but more so, from the general social crisis, related to the increasing wealth gap between the richest and the poorest. This wealth gap is generating frustration and anger. Armenia has not escaped this phenomenon and the situation in the country had only been aggravated by corruption. It’s not like Armenia has a monopoly on this—this, alas, plagues the whole world. But the leaders could not cope with it. This was too much for the people and they said: enough!...