In the News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Linda Yepoyan
Phone: 610-408-0988
info@birthrightarmenia.org
September 19, 2003
BIRTHRIGHT ARMENIA
A New Bridge between the Diaspora and ArmeniaAs
the word birthright implies, the people behind this new non-profit
organization believe that it is the right of every Armenian born
in the Diaspora to have an opportunity to study, work and live
in Armenia. At the heart of Birthright Armenia is a commitment
to offer support and infrastructure to the existing programs and
organizations offering youth experiences in Armenia so that the
number of participating Diasporans increases exponentially. The
organization is focusing on programs geared towards young adults
in the 18-32 age bracket, as its founders see the importance of
instilling upon them an understanding, appreciation, and sense
of commitment towards our homeland, its inhabitants, and serving
the country’s needs.
Birthright Armenia’s founders are Edele Hovnanian
and Annita Nerses, who are both deeply involved in and have a
longstanding commitment to the Land and Culture Organization,
which sends young Armenians to historic Armenian lands every summer
to work side by side with locals on historical restoration and
socio-economic development projects. Their years of experience
have led them to believe that organizations offering youth opportunities
in the homeland could benefit from expansion and collaboration
to gain a greater focus on the impact they want to create, both
within Diasporan communities and in the homeland. This is where
Birthright Armenia hopes to make a difference.
New approaches can be found throughout Birthright
Armenia’s mission and guiding principles. First and foremost,
it will not create competing programs. Rather, it wants to support
existing organizations operating in Armenia—to provide them
and their infrastructures with the assistance needed to improve
the quality of the experience they make available to Diasporan
youth. “Observing the evolution and proliferation of volunteer
programs in Armenia over the last 10 years, one can’t help
but notice a level of inefficiency due to a duplication of efforts
in operations and scope. If Birthright Armenia can provide resources
that would help alleviate some of this redundancy and pave the
way for new programs that would serve to fill many of the gaps,
each program would be in a better position to focus on the more
important things tied to project success like recruitment and
program enhancement”, says Annita Nerses. Second, recognizing
that costs involved with travel to Armenia are a major deterrent
for students and young adults, Birthright Armenia hopes to make
a significant impact on the number of youths going to Armenia
to study or volunteer by offering financial incentives, such as
free airfare and room and board stipends.
Initially some youth program organizers may only
see the financial benefit that Birthright Armenia brings and how
that will help make their programs more affordable, thus allowing
them to expand their participant base. However, the founders believe
that in the long run these organizers will also see that Birthright
Armenia will be an impetus to enrich their programs and a facilitator
of shared infrastructure. This may include, but is not limited
to, a shared orientation program in country, a database that members
can utilize to access the wealth of knowledge and contacts gained
by prior participants, and coordination of alumni events.
Spearheading the creation of Birthright Armenia
is LCO President Edele Hovnanian. She feels the time is right
for the creation of such an organization to encourage positive
experiences in our homeland. “We need to recognize that
we have a new generation in the Diaspora, who were too young to
have been caught up in the post-earthquake emotion and in the
idealism that immediately followed independence, who may shy away
from their homeland which already is so foreign to them because
its music, its food and local flavor is so different than what
we think is Armenian. The risk of a long term disconnect is real
and although a Diasporan disconnected with the homeland can still
have a fulfilling experience as an involved Armenian within our
existing Diasporan institutions, I believe that the future of
our Diaspora today and its sense of purpose in the future must
be defined within the context of our independent homeland”,
says Hovnanian. “I have been growing concerned in recent
years over the slowly developing sense of polarization and disconnect
between Diasporans and local Armenians. The Diasporan idealism
and expectations about our homeland fell short and our compatriots
abroad saw that we were not the knights in shining armor they
imaged. Thus, we must teach this next generation, our future Diasporan
leaders, through long term interaction, to gain the patience and
understanding to respect our differences and embrace our similarities.
That understanding will only come with extended exposure and shared
experiences. By sponsoring youth willing to devote time in the
homeland and supporting the wonderful array of existing youth
programs we have, we will focus on the next generation, on rebuilding
our relationship with our homeland, and the vision of what our
new role within the Diaspora should be”, she adds.
Operating the organization on a day to day basis
is its director, Linda Yepoyan, who has gained a greater understanding
for the people of Armenia through her husband, a native of Yerevan,
whom she met during the many years she worked in Armenia during
the post earthquake through regained independence period. “Although
we have no doubts that our success will be measured with the ever
increasing number of Diasporans studying and working in Armenia
with each passing year, what we may not be able to measure so
readily is the impact we have on Armenia. I want to try to see
if we can measure the more qualitative benefits that Birthright
Armenia will bring with hundreds, no thousands, of young Diasporans
living, working and studying side by side with the locals, all
year long, year after year. In addition to seeing our youth gaining
a greater understanding and respect for their local peers in the
homeland, we hope the local youth will be infused with the sense
of hope for the future and a belief that they can make a difference
in the country’s future as well”, says Yepoyan.
Initially, Birthright Armenia will be focusing its
assistance on organizations that offer the longer-term –
six month to one year – work experiences in Armenia. But
it hopes to quickly expand sponsorship to include many of the
shorter term experiences such as the various summer internship,
language immersion and community service programs and more. Hovnanian
notes, “We have never sensed competition among the various
youth programs. In fact, they often pass on to one another names
of their past participants who may wish to have a second and different
experience in Armenia. Once these young adults get to Armenia,
no one cares with which organization they are associated. They
all have a common bond—one of the most unique and memorable
experiences of their lives. What great leaders they will make
for our communities in the future if we can encourage such non-partisanship
to be brought home with them”.
More About Birthright Armenia
For those interested in learning more about Birthright Armenia,
please bookmark the future Web site, www.birthrightarmenia.org,
which is currently under construction, or email the organization
at info@birthrightarmenia.org .
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