Wednesday, August 17, 2022
No Result
View All Result
Asbarez.com
NEWSLETTER
ՀԱՅ
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports
No Result
View All Result
Asbarez.com
ՀԱՅ
No Result
View All Result

‘Tebi Yergir’ Information Fair Highlights Opportunities in Armenia

by Contributor
May 22, 2009
in Blogs, Featured Story, News, Youth Corps Blog
3
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
Participants at the Information Fair learn about the opportunities that exist for them to travel and repatriate to Armenia. Photo by Nora Yacoubian
Participants at the Information Fair learn about the opportunities that exist for them to travel and repatriate to Armenia. Photo by Nora Yacoubian


BY JULIETTE DAVTIAN and SEROUJ APRAHAMIAN

GLENDALE–From its very inception, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation came onto the world stage voicing the call of “Tebi Yergir.” It appealed to all Armenians to go to the homeland directly to take part in its defense and development. As an organization, the ARF has always believed that, ultimately, Armenia is the only place where we could truly flourish as a nation.

Today, after seventeen years of Armenian independence, a new generation of ARF activists is seeking to reinvigorate this age-old call to return home and engage in our nation’s advancement. Led by the ARF “Shant” Student Association (ARF Shant), an ongoing campaign has been launched to encourage students and Diaspora Armenians to travel, support, and ultimately resettle in their homeland.

The first event to kick off this Tebi Yergir campaign was an “Opportunities in Armenia” Information Fair held on Thursday, May 14, at the Glendale Hilton Hotel. A capacity crowd turned out for the event, which featured over a dozen booths, four speakers, a video slideshow, and a photo exhibit outlining the many opportunities existing in Armenia.

“The turnout was extremely encouraging,” said Vrej Haroutounian a lead organizer in the ARF Shant “Tebi Yergir” Campaign. “The over 150 people who attended only encouraged our committee to push forward with even more vigor towards our motherland. Each person there made us want to work that much harder to help achieve our common goal of returning to Armenia.”

ARF Shant Chairperson, Armen Aboulian, offers his opening remarks at the Tebi Yergir “Opportunities in Armenia” Information Fair.
ARF Shant Chairperson, Armen Aboulian, offers his opening remarks at the Tebi Yergir “Opportunities in Armenia” Information Fair.

The first portion of the program consisted of representatives from various organizations and institutions, which were stationed at booths along the perimeter of the hall, offering information to attendees about volunteering and moving to Armenia. Some of the groups involved included Birthright Armenia, Hamazkayin, Land and Culture, AGBU, Vernon Travel, AYF Youth Corps, Armenia Tree Project, the Armenian Consulate of Los Angeles, and Imega Tour and Travel. Booths offering testimonials from repatriates and information about job opportunities in Armenia were also featured, as well as a special “Armenia in Seasons” photo exhibit by noted repatriate photographer Arsineh Khachikian.

After about an hour of having everyone visit the booths and gather in the hall, Armen Aboulian, the Chairperson of ARF Shant and MC for the evening, welcomed the audience and invited them to take their seats. Aboulian began his opening remarks by stating that this was only the first of many events ARF Shant plans to organize to show that moving to Armenia is a realistic possibility. “Our goal is to make everyone realize that moving to Armenia isn’t just a dream for a few fanatics and hopefuls,” said Aboulian, “but a real opportunity for every Armenian to enrich, not only themselves, but their homeland.”

Aboulian then invited the winner of the 2009 “Visit Armenia, It’s Beautiful” Essay Contest, Nanar Derderian, to the podium. Derderian, an 11th grade student at Alex Pilibos High School, proceeded to recite her 1st place essay, for which she was awarded a $500 dollar prize. Written in Armenian, her paper was an expression of her anticipation and desire to visit the land of her ancestors.

“I want to visit Armenia for the simple reason that it is my homeland yet I have never seen it,” said Derderian. “Armenia is all I really think about when in class. I daydream about its rocky landscape, green fields and ancient monuments on a daily basis.”

An audience of over 150 gather at the ARF “Shant” Student Association’s Tebi Yergir Information Fair.
An audience of over 150 gather at the ARF “Shant” Student Association’s Tebi Yergir Information Fair.

Speaking about her own journey to Armenia, Anoush Tatevossian was next to address the audience. She explained how she first traveled there in 2004, upon graduating college, and described how she felt after volunteering there for six months with the Armenian Volunteer Corps (AVC).

“When I came back from Armenia, I worked in a boring, 9-to-5 consulting job. It was very monotonous and uneventful,” she recalled. “In Armenia, I was making things happen and seeing the fruits of my labor right in front of my eyes,” Tatevossian exclaimed. “I was making a difference.”

The relative emptiness in her US job led her to apply for the Executive Directorship of the AVC. “I got the job, applied for a 10-year residency in Armenia and rented an apartment in Yerevan,” she said. “I went to work every day like I would here, the only difference was that it felt like I was making much more of a difference.”

In addition to the more meaningful impact one can have working in Armenia, Tatevossian also insisted that life there is just as promising. “It’s very possible to have the same type of life there as it is here,” she said, adding that repatriation is a very tangible and practical approach to maintaining one’s Armenian identity at a level that generations past could only dream of.

Many of the youth in the audience shared Tatevossian’s assessment of repatriation. “Moving to Armenia is a very viable option for my generation,” said Greg Bandikian, a finance and real estate major who volunteered at the Armenian Ministry of Finance in 2006 and worked with the Central Bank of Armenia in 2007. “The jobs that have left the United States in the last decade are not coming back and things are not going to get better here any time soon,” argued Bandikian. “But Armenia is a developing country and has enormous untapped potential for economic growth.”

Following Tatevossian’s testimonial, the Vice-Consul of Armenia in Los Angeles Sahak Sargsyan took to the floor. Mr. Sargsyan spoke about the recent introduction of dual citizenship in Armenia and how one would go about applying for such status. To apply, those interested should make a request with the Consulate in Los Angeles, he explained, adding that once the Consulate’s new website is launched, Armenians will be able to apply for dual citizenship online. Accompanying his talk was a detailed power point presentation outlining the key parameters of the new law.

Dr. Stephan Astourian discusses the demographic challenges facing the Armenian nation in the 21st century. Photo by Nora Yacoubian
Dr. Stephan Astourian discusses the demographic challenges facing the Armenian nation in the 21st century. Photo by Nora Yacoubian

Concluding the program was the keynote speaker for the evening, Dr. Stephan Astourian, Executive Director of Armenian Studies at UC Berkeley. Drawing on his important study of the demographic challenges facing the Armenian nation in the 21st century, Astourian spoke about the changing landscape of both Armenia and the Diaspora.

According to his research, the traditional Diaspora of the Middle East and Iran is “melting away” at a rapidly concerning rate. This is a threat to the sustainability of the Diaspora as a whole, he said, because those communities that best preserved the cultural traditions and identity for generations are now shrinking and less organized. The majority of these Armenian’s have left for the West-the US, Europe, and Canada-where it is extremely difficult to maintain Armenian identity.

Meanwhile, Armenia’s population has been depleted since the collapse of the Soviet Union, with at least 600,000 to 1 million Armenians having left the country in recent years. “Today, it is highly unlikely that Armenia’s population exceeds 2.5 million,” Astourian explained, noting that this is a serious problem for a country with a small internal market and surrounded by enemies.

In this context, the Tebi Yergir movement becomes even more relevant, according to Astourian. It is a task that should be taken seriously if we care about the future of Armenians; something which should be approached in a practical and realistic sense. “Tebi Yergir means we should not just see Armenia in a romantic sense but also realize the plight of our people,” stated Astourian.

Dr. Stephan Astourian, Executive Director of Armenian Studies at UC Berkeley, speaks to a crowd of over 150 about the current demographic outlook of the Armenian nation and the importance of "Tebi Yergir."
A crowd of over 150 listen to Dr. Stephan Astourian as he speaks about the current demographic outlook of the Armenian nation and the importance of "Tebi Yergir."

He also emphasized the importance of not just sending dollars but engaging directly in the country’s development. “We must strengthen the rule of law and the independence and accountability of institutions because the economic progress and investments needed to make Armenia a viable place to live will not happen until the government becomes accountable to the people.”

Attendees at the event were visibly galvanized by all of the talks and information offered that evening. The vast majority of the audience remained in the hall following the program, continuing to visit the information booths and discuss the many points raised regarding repatriation.

“As the inaugural event in our newly-initiated campaign, the information fair succeeded in focusing our community’s attention on the critical need for us to look to our homeland for our future,” concluded Caspar Jivalegian, an organizer involved with the ARF Shant “Tebi Yergir” Campaign. “We plan on using the interest and enthusiasm generated from this event as a springboard for organizing a series of future activities which will intensify the growing movement of repatriation to Armenia.”
For more information about the ARF Shant Student Association and their Tebi Yergir campaign, visit www.ARFShant.org.

Contributor

Contributor

Next Post

Prominent Activists Rally Support for ANCA Endowment Fund Telethon

Comments 3

  1. Armanen says:
    13 years ago

    Not sure where Dr. Stephan Astourian is getting is population stats from, but having spoken with officials from the Foreign Ministry and the Migration Ministry, not to mention relatives in Armenia, the population is not less than 3 million and is more than likely near its pre 1991 levels.

    Reply
  2. Aryutz says:
    13 years ago

    Wow… Those of you who have ever watched the Armenian comedy/soap-opera “Vervaratsnern Untanikum” must have noticed that the ARF Shant chairman looks exactly like the character Askanaz “Jupul” from the show ( which coincidentally runs on Armenia’s Shant TV channel which has no affiliation with ARF Shant).

    There’s a picture of the said actor at:
    http://www.armenianow.com/?action=viewArticle&AID=3353&lng=eng&IID=1207&start=10

    On a serious note though, this event and these types of events in general should be encouraged as much as possible. If we are to remain Armenian, we either need to have frequent contact with Armenia or permanent residence there.

    Reply
  3. Haig Adomian says:
    13 years ago

    Noone at the conference addressed the key issues regarding repatriation.

    (1) How can I make a living if there are no jobs?
    (2) How can I start a business where there is pervasive corruption?

    Without the answers to these two questions, you are only attracting students and retirees. Few students will stay without opportunity. Few retirees will stay if their children cannot accompany them and make a living.

    And please don’t talk to me about working for the American Embassy or for some other CIA-front NGO.

    If Jews in the Holy Land had treated repatriating countrymen as their personal piggy-bank, the way corrupt officials do in Hayasdan, there would be no Israel today.

    My questions above are serious, and I invite serious replies.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Armanen Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recommended

Chamlian Kicks Off New School Year

Chamlian Kicks Off New School Year

52 mins ago
Search Continues for Missing People as Armenia Mourns Victims of Market Explosion

Search Continues for Missing People as Armenia Mourns Victims of Market Explosion

1 hour ago

Connect with us

  • About
  • Advertising
  • Subscribe
  • Contact

© 2021 Asbarez | All Rights Reserved | Powered By MSDN Solutions Inc.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports

© 2021 Asbarez | All Rights Reserved | Powered By MSDN Solutions Inc.

Accessibility

Accessibility modes

Epilepsy Safe Mode
Dampens color and removes blinks
This mode enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
Visually Impaired Mode
Improves website's visuals
This mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
Cognitive Disability Mode
Helps to focus on specific content
This mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
ADHD Friendly Mode
Reduces distractions and improve focus
This mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
Blindness Mode
Allows using the site with your screen-reader
This mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.

Online Dictionary

    Readable Experience

    Content Scaling
    Default
    Text Magnifier
    Readable Font
    Dyslexia Friendly
    Highlight Titles
    Highlight Links
    Font Sizing
    Default
    Line Height
    Default
    Letter Spacing
    Default
    Left Aligned
    Center Aligned
    Right Aligned

    Visually Pleasing Experience

    Dark Contrast
    Light Contrast
    Monochrome
    High Contrast
    High Saturation
    Low Saturation
    Adjust Text Colors
    Adjust Title Colors
    Adjust Background Colors

    Easy Orientation

    Mute Sounds
    Hide Images
    Virtual Keyboard
    Reading Guide
    Stop Animations
    Reading Mask
    Highlight Hover
    Highlight Focus
    Big Dark Cursor
    Big Light Cursor
    Navigation Keys

    Asbarez.com Accessibility Statement

    Accessibility Statement

    • www.asbarez.com
    • August 17, 2022

    Compliance status

    We firmly believe that the internet should be available and accessible to anyone, and are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of circumstance and ability.

    To fulfill this, we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level. These guidelines explain how to make web content accessible to people with a wide array of disabilities. Complying with those guidelines helps us ensure that the website is accessible to all people: blind people, people with motor impairments, visual impairment, cognitive disabilities, and more.

    This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.

    Additionally, the website utilizes an AI-based application that runs in the background and optimizes its accessibility level constantly. This application remediates the website’s HTML, adapts Its functionality and behavior for screen-readers used by the blind users, and for keyboard functions used by individuals with motor impairments.

    If you’ve found a malfunction or have ideas for improvement, we’ll be happy to hear from you. You can reach out to the website’s operators by using the following email

    Screen-reader and keyboard navigation

    Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various different behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with screen-readers are able to read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements, alongside console screenshots of code examples:

    1. Screen-reader optimization: we run a background process that learns the website’s components from top to bottom, to ensure ongoing compliance even when updating the website. In this process, we provide screen-readers with meaningful data using the ARIA set of attributes. For example, we provide accurate form labels; descriptions for actionable icons (social media icons, search icons, cart icons, etc.); validation guidance for form inputs; element roles such as buttons, menus, modal dialogues (popups), and others. Additionally, the background process scans all of the website’s images and provides an accurate and meaningful image-object-recognition-based description as an ALT (alternate text) tag for images that are not described. It will also extract texts that are embedded within the image, using an OCR (optical character recognition) technology. To turn on screen-reader adjustments at any time, users need only to press the Alt+1 keyboard combination. Screen-reader users also get automatic announcements to turn the Screen-reader mode on as soon as they enter the website.

      These adjustments are compatible with all popular screen readers, including JAWS and NVDA.

    2. Keyboard navigation optimization: The background process also adjusts the website’s HTML, and adds various behaviors using JavaScript code to make the website operable by the keyboard. This includes the ability to navigate the website using the Tab and Shift+Tab keys, operate dropdowns with the arrow keys, close them with Esc, trigger buttons and links using the Enter key, navigate between radio and checkbox elements using the arrow keys, and fill them in with the Spacebar or Enter key.Additionally, keyboard users will find quick-navigation and content-skip menus, available at any time by clicking Alt+1, or as the first elements of the site while navigating with the keyboard. The background process also handles triggered popups by moving the keyboard focus towards them as soon as they appear, and not allow the focus drift outside of it.

      Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.

    Disability profiles supported in our website

    • Epilepsy Safe Mode: this profile enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
    • Visually Impaired Mode: this mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
    • Cognitive Disability Mode: this mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
    • ADHD Friendly Mode: this mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
    • Blindness Mode: this mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.
    • Keyboard Navigation Profile (Motor-Impaired): this profile enables motor-impaired persons to operate the website using the keyboard Tab, Shift+Tab, and the Enter keys. Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.

    Additional UI, design, and readability adjustments

    1. Font adjustments – users, can increase and decrease its size, change its family (type), adjust the spacing, alignment, line height, and more.
    2. Color adjustments – users can select various color contrast profiles such as light, dark, inverted, and monochrome. Additionally, users can swap color schemes of titles, texts, and backgrounds, with over 7 different coloring options.
    3. Animations – epileptic users can stop all running animations with the click of a button. Animations controlled by the interface include videos, GIFs, and CSS flashing transitions.
    4. Content highlighting – users can choose to emphasize important elements such as links and titles. They can also choose to highlight focused or hovered elements only.
    5. Audio muting – users with hearing devices may experience headaches or other issues due to automatic audio playing. This option lets users mute the entire website instantly.
    6. Cognitive disorders – we utilize a search engine that is linked to Wikipedia and Wiktionary, allowing people with cognitive disorders to decipher meanings of phrases, initials, slang, and others.
    7. Additional functions – we provide users the option to change cursor color and size, use a printing mode, enable a virtual keyboard, and many other functions.

    Browser and assistive technology compatibility

    We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS and NVDA (screen readers), both for Windows and for MAC users.

    Notes, comments, and feedback

    Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs, there may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to