AUA Researchers Share Findings from H. Hovnanian Family Foundation-Funded Environmental Project

YEREVAN — On July 13, the American University of Armenian (AUA) hosted a presentation titled “Project Results and Achievements: H. Hovnanian Family Foundation Environmental Grant,” highlighting research on Lake Sevan aimed at strengthening Armenia’s national hydrometeorological and environmental monitoring capacity.

Earlier this year, Dr. Habet Madoyan, AUA assistant professor and chair of the Bachelor of Science in Data Science program, was awarded a highly competitive environmental grant from the H. Hovnanian Family Foundation to enhance how Armenia analyzes and uses its water quality data.

Dr. Madoyan’s proposal was selected as the overall winner of the H. Hovnanian Family Foundation Environmental Grant, distinguishing itself among 106 concept notes. Following a rigorous evaluation of 37 full applications from an exceptionally competitive pool, the Foundation awarded nine projects in its third-quarter 2025 environmental grant cycle.

The project combines research and capacity-building activities intended to improve Armenia’s environmental monitoring and data analysis capabilities. Key outcomes include the development of forecasting tools for spring flood characteristics, capacity building in climate data processing using the climatol R package and an automated air pollution dashboard for real-time monitoring and visualization of air quality indicators.

The project is implemented in close collaboration with the “Hydrometeorology and Monitoring Center” SNCO under the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia. The research team includes Dr. Habet Madoyan; Dr. Vahe Movsisyan, AUA adjunct lecturer; Dr. Gayane Shahnazaryan, deputy director of the Hydrometereology and Monitoring Center SNCO; Dr. Martin Schultze and Dr. Wolf von Tümpling researchers at the department of Lake Research, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, and Dr. Alexander Arakelyan an independent researcher.

In his opening remarks, Dr. Madoyan thanked his fellow researchers for their contribution in supporting the project. “We are very thankful for their investment in developing this procedure,” he said. Dr. Madoyan also elaborated on the components of the research and what it involved. “We developed analytical products and the second component was focused on scientific research, where we investigated the spatial and temporal patterns of water chemistry in the tributaries of Lake Sevan,” he explained.

Following Dr. Madoyan’s remarks, Dr. Movsisyan presented the project’s findings and described the research process. “In parallel with development, we were discussing the results, getting feedback, and improving the solutions,” he highlighted. Dr. Movsisyan also addressed the topics the research involved. “The project contained two specific tasks. The first task was to build a solution which will allow us to predict the start date of the overflow in different rivers and the date when the overflow is maximum. The main concept of working with our colleagues was that we paired our research and software development with trainings,”he said.

Dr. Shultze concluded the event by addressing the future direction of the research and covering additional questions on various data relationships.

The presentation was followed by a Q&A session that allowed participants to gain further insight into the project, its goals, and upcoming research initiatives.