Concrete Steps Towards Positive Action

"Towards Positive Action: Tapping Diaspora’s resources to face global challenges facing Armenians" is a tall order to tackle in a single lecture, but Montreal’s Viken Attarian, MSc., MBA, was more than up to the task he had set up for himself at a lecture he delivered in Toronto on Nov. 6. The event, at the North York Central Library auditorium, was organized by the Yerevan Club and the Armenian Association of Toronto.

Among the ideas Mr. Attarian offered in his gripping and pithy audio-visual presentation were the Armenian Genius Project, Diaspora’s participation in the Legislative Assembly of Armenia, and a Global Mobilization Learning Initiative.

The "Genius Project" would encourage and nurture ‘geniuses’ by securing regional or international funding support. The "Mobilization Learning" initiative would mobilize and motivate Diaspora youth to participate in local and international issues. Another proposal was a stamp project, whereby communities and groups would campaign their governments to issue Armenian-themed stamps, similar to the project that former MP Sarkis Assadourin helped launch several years ago.

"Towards Positive Action: Tapping Diaspora’s resources to face global challenges facing Armenians" is a tall order to tackle in a single lecture, but Montreal’s Viken Attarian, MSc., MBA, was more than up to the task he had set up for himself at a lecture he delivered in Toronto on Nov. 6. The event, at the North York Central Library auditorium, was organized by the Yerevan Club and the Armenian Association of Toronto.

Among the ideas Mr. Attarian offered in his gripping and pithy audio-visual presentation were the Armenian Genius Project, Diaspora’s participation in the Legislative Assembly of Armenia, and a Global Mobilization Learning Initiative.

The "Genius Project" would encourage and nurture ‘geniuses’ by securing regional or international funding support. The "Mobilization Learning" initiative would mobilize and motivate Diaspora youth to participate in local and international issues. Another proposal was a stamp project, whereby communities and groups would campaign their governments to issue Armenian-themed stamps, similar to the project that former MP Sarkis Assadourin helped launch several years ago.

In limning current Armenian Diaspora life, Mr. Attarian talked about such challenges as the preservation of identity, lack of a viable intellectual life, disinformation, and legitimacy issues which plague the Armenian global community. He then proposed instructional, organizational and intellectual models to address these vital issues.

The thought-provoking and challenging lecture pushed the envelope of current thinking and action in the Armenian community. A testimony to the relevance of the topic discussed and Mr. Attarian’s command of the subject was the audience’s broad participation in the Q & A portion of the evening’s program. Shahan Deirmenjian, a veteran of Toronto Armenian community affairs, acted as master of ceremonies.