Foundation for Global Political Exchange
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The Armenia Exchange September 19–26, 2021, is an effort by the non-partisan, non-profit Exchange Foundation to promote a deeper understanding of Armenia as well as peacebuilding and security in the region. As such, the seven day, in-person conference will provide participants with an opportunity to meet, listen and engage leading social, political and economic actors from across the spectrum in Armenia, in both the capital Yerevan as well as for at least two days in the province of Syunik.
Upcoming virtual event organized by the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies and The Exchange Foundation.
Our first Armenia Exchange will be held over seven days in Armenia and will open with an orientation briefing at 8pm on Sunday, September 19, at the conference hotel venue in Yerevan. After five days of meetings in and around Yerevan (including several outside of the conference hotel), on Friday, September 24, we will travel by bus to Syunik and conduct sessions with our speakers in the region. The return to Yerevan will be on Sunday, September 26, where we will close the Exchange by 1pm at the conference hotel.
In order to promote small group dynamics, the number of participants will be capped at 25. Sessions will be conducted on an individual rather than a panel basis and will generally allow ample opportunity for question time (translation into English will be provided when necessary). All sessions will also be held under the Chatham House rule, although we customarily work with our speakers to approve any quotes/references that participants may need for their own work.
All funding for the Exchange comes from only two sources: The participants themselves who pay the participation fee or scholarship recipients who benefit from individual, charitable contributions designed specifically to broaden the social, political and geographic diversity of each Exchange table. As such, there is no government, commercial or non-profit support, an aspect that we believe provides an objective platform for dialogue and understanding.
Additional Costs:
Accommodation – In addition to the participation fee, participants wishing to stay at the conference hotels (Tufenkian Heritage Hotel – Yerevan; TBA in Syunik) should expect to pay an average of $80 per night for a single room, including breakfast and taxes (other meals are not included). Except for those persons already residing in Yerevan, we recommend that all participants in the Exchange reside at the conference hotel during the program.
Airfare – $500, approximately from the European Union; $900 from the United States.
The Exchange Foundation currently has two Scholarships (covering the participation fee, travel/lodging and a per diem) available in each of two categories: A) An Armenian/Armenian origin person who can demonstrate a lack of institutional or self-funding ability; B) The Global Exchange Scholarship available for journalists or researchers who will deepen the social, political and geographic diversity of the Exchange and who can document a lack of institutional or self-funding ability. For any questions related to scholarships, email: info@globalpoliticalexchange.org
Speakers will discuss the prospects for peace and security for the people of Nagorno-Karabakh amid a tenuous ceasefire, and as questions linger as to the mission of the Russian peacekeepers, whose mandate is set to expire in four years. International legal experts will discuss the principles of territorial integrity versus self determination, while regional analysts and Yerevan-based foreign diplomats will examine what kind of settlement may be possible to secure the future of what remains of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. Government officials will discuss the ways in which the war was conducted and the various outcomes as well as their strategy for a secure and peaceful Armenia and Artsakh.
Over the seven days of the Exchange, we will hear from leading figures in the government as well as the opposition and discuss their plans for the future of Armenia, broadening its foreign relations and securing its borders after a devastating war.
We will meet business leaders to learn about their challenges under three decades of blockade by Turkey and Azerbaijan, the possibilities for trade with both the East and the West and their desire for or aversion to greater connectivity with neighbouring Turkey and Azerbaijan. We will also learn about competing visions for regional trade, including Turkey’s desire for a transit corridor through southern Armenia, as well as Iran’s position against such a corridor – and revived interest in shoring up its links to Armenia.
Several sessions will be devoted to veteran investigative journalists and activists who can speak to the issues of corruption, human rights, security and socio-economic challenges that go well beyond the current focus on the warscape. To this end, we will also meet representatives of the minority Yazidi community to learn about the issues they face.
N.B.: Partial list only; the final agenda with confirmed speakers will be made available to admitted participants one month in advance of the Exchange.
Karma is a Mediation Advisor with UN Women and Senior Policy Fellow at the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut and the Lead Advisor on their Women, Peace and Security initiative. Karma is also an adjunct instructor in International Affairs and Women Peace and Security, a member of the Executive Board of the Intisar Foundation and a member of the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network. Stemming from a strong interest in empowering women in the field of diplomacy, peacemaking, mediation and negotiation, Karma founded the #Diplowomen initiative to share knowledge, develop mentorship opportunities and strengthen networking in this field. Prior to this, she was the International Affairs and Relations Advisor to former Prime Minister of Lebanon Saad Hariri, where she served as the focal point for all international dossiers. Karma has also worked at the office of the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon and at the Department of Political Affairs and the UN Secretariat in NY.
Nicholas is the co-founder of The Exchange Foundation (2008) as well as the Beirut-based news translation service Mideastwire.com (2005). He currently serves as a Political Advisor at the Geneva-based Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue.
Alison is veteran foreign correspondent, spending the past decade reporting for AFP, the world's third largest news wire, NPR and most recently as regional editor for the Asia Times. She is a newly appointed Senior Fellow at the Regional Studies Center (RSC) in Yerevan and a Strategic Advisor at DeepStrat consultancy out of New Delhi. Her research focuses on Armenia's evolving global alliances and strategies for navigating the regional power negotiations between Russia, Turkey and Iran.
A well-oiled program that brings you an impressive number and selection of speakers from across the spectrum. Worth every penny!
I learned more in my 10 days at the Beirut Exchange than in any university course! This was a wonderful experience filled with fascinating speakers.
Illuminating and life changing experience. I will recall the Exchange as one of the most authentic educational experiences of my life.
Email: info@globalpoliticalexchange.org
Co-founder Nicholas Noe: +961.81.797.943 (Beirut/WhatsApp)
