A Generous Donation to Zarmanazan Western Armenian Language Camp

11 scholarships awarded to young adults by Melkonian Global Overture

 LISBON — The Armenian Communities Department of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation has received a generous contribution from the Melkonian Global Overture (a Los Angeles based non-profit organization) to enable young adults to attend Zarmanazan Western Armenian Language Camp this summer. The donation of 10,000 USD subsidizes the registration fees of eleven university students from various countries: Lebanon, Greece, USA, Turkey, Canada and France.

The Armenian Communities Department launched in 2017 the educational project “Zarmanazan” as part of its Western Armenian revitalization programme. It is organized in partnership with L’association Mille et un Mondes (Lyon, France) and Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales (INALCO) (Paris, France). The Zarmanazan camp is certified by the French Ministry of Youth and Sports.

In 2018 Zarmanazan will take place high up in the mountains of the French-Swiss Alps Region of France, from 15 July to 9 August. Over 50 children and adolescents between the ages of 10 and 15, and 29 young adults between 16 and 24, will participate. It will also have a teachers-in-training component for 15 teachers from four countries. All the activities in the camp take place in Armenian.

“We are very grateful for this support,” said Razmik Panossian, the Director of the Armenian Communities Department. “It is encouraging to see that donors already acknowledge the value of Zarmanazan by contributing funds to young men and women to enable them to attend the camp.” Arsiné Shirvanian of the Melkonian Global Overture added, “Zarmanazan is an innovative, positive and creative platform for the youth to experience Armenian language and culture. We decided to offer these scholarships, in memory of K & G Melkonian, inspired by their benevolence and desire to help the education of Armenians around the world.”

 For more information please visit our website: gulbenkian.pt/armenian-communities/