Debunking Myths on the Road to a Sustainable Armenia

FAIR LAWN, NJ—On Wednesday, June 8, at 6:00 p.m. ET, Dr. Irina Ghaplanyan—author of Post-Soviet Armenia: the New National Elite and the New National Narrative—will present the third Zoom discussion in the What’s Next series on the post-war Armenian reality. The previous discussions—which featured analysts Lilit Gevorgyan and Armen Kharazian and examined the 44-day catastrophe and its aftermath within a wider context of Russo-Armenian relations and shifting geopolitical currents across the South Caucasus—can be watched on YouTube.

Dr. Ghaplanyan will be discussing:

Armenian exceptionalism and the clash of rhetoric and policy from Ter-Petrosyan to Pashinyan,
marginalization and empowerment of the Armenian citizen,
regime preservation and the subordination of national security, economic and social development, and a more productive relationship with the Diaspora, and
steps toward a more sustainable Armenia.

Participants should register online in advance to spend an evening in conversation with Ghaplanyan and explore the myths that administrations and their supporters have presented to the Armenian public in the homeland and diaspora in lieu of articulating a vision and working toward a sustainable and secure Armenia.

Dr. Ghaplanyan was recently featured in Civilnet with the headline Azerbaijan’s grand strategy to ethnically cleanse Karabagh Armenians.

Dr. Ghaplanyan is a political scientist, climate negotiator and published author. She holds a doctorate in political science from the University of Cambridge. Her main areas of expertise are political leadership, states in transition, climate politics, environmental management, gender and gender in conflict as well as security studies. Her education includes a master’s degree in diplomatic studies from the Diplomatic Academy of London and a Bachelor of Arts degree in international relations from the University of Malta. Dr. Ghaplanyan served as Deputy Minister of Environment for the Republic of Armenia between 2018 and 2020. She is the current senior advisor on climate change to the World Bank Group and teaches at the American University of Armenia. Dr. Ghaplanyan has worked in several international organizations and think tanks around the world including UNDP, Georgetown University, Eurasia Foundation and Chatham House.

The event is jointly sponsored by AGBU Ararat, AIWA NJ Chapter, Ararat-Eskijian Museum, Armenian Democratic Liberal Party-Ramgavars, Justice Armenia, Knights of Vartan-Bakradouny Lodge, National Association for Armenian Studies and Research (NAASR)—Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation Lecture Series on Contemporary Armenian Issues and Saint Leon Armenian Church.