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Month: February 2024
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NPR News: 02-29-2024 3PM EST
GoToDili, a destination management organization, with the support of the Tourism Committee of the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Armenia and the participation of AR-trails, launched a new inclusive project called “Accessible Dilijan.” The application was created for people with hearing impairments, as well as for completely deaf/deaf-mute people.
“Accessible Dilijan” is an AR–tours around the city recorded by sign language interpreters in Armenian, Russian and English. This is the first project in Armenia that helps people with hearing disabilities to complete an excursion or a small hiking route without assistance.
You can use the tour by downloading the AR-Trails app. Three products are available in AR-trails: a city tour, a walking tour of the National Park, and a virtual visit to the tourist information center. After selecting a location, the app provides a route, and virtual sign language interpreters tell users about it.
The city tour will introduce users to the history of Dilijan and its famous landmarks. The hiking tour will lead to a hidden waterfall in the National Park, introducing the flora and fauna along the way. The AR-Trails app also allows you to visit a virtual information center, where the overview information about Dilijan is available. In total, virtual tours cover 15 locations in Dilijan.
“Travel must be accessible to everyone,” emphasized Sisian Poghosyan, the Head of Armenia’s Tourism Committee.
“Every visitor to Armenia, regardless of physical abilities, should have the opportunity to travel in our country, discover hidden paths, and equally experience all the interesting and unforgettable experiences. In this context, the Tourism Committee welcomes the creation of the ‘Accessible Dilijan’ tourist product, which is a new opportunity for individuals to discover the wonders of Armenian tourism.”
“Inclusive tourism plays an extremely important role for Armenia,” said Ani Avanesova, head of DMO GoToDili. “Products designed specifically for people with disabilities will not only significantly improve their standard of living and provide new conditions for exploring the tourist locations of the country, but also favorably promote socialization and bring benefits to the country as a whole, making it more attractive to tourists. The GoToDili team is happy to be one of the pioneers on this important path.
We sincerely believe that the day will come when Armenia will become as accessible as possible for everyone who wants to get to know it,” Ani shared.
Links to download the application: App Store, Google Play.
GoToDili is a destination management organization (DMO) aimed at developing Dilijan as a tourist destination. Since 2022, GoToDili has been introducing guests to Dilijan through its products (city tour, hiking, neighborhood tours, off-road tours, etc.). The project is being implemented with the support of Impulse Management Company within “Dilijan Development Program” launched by Ruben Vardanyan and Veronika Zonabend in 2012.
ANCA’s Swing State Project Spotlights Pivotal Role of Armenian American Voters in 2024’s Hotly-Contested U.S. Presidential Elections
WASHINGTON – The Armenian American community’s electoral response to President Biden’s complicity in Azerbaijan’s genocide of Artsakh’s indigenous Armenians was spotlighted this week in international news coverage of the Michigan Armenian “uncommitted” vote in the Democratic presidential primary, reported the Armenian National Committee of America.
Articles in POLITICO, The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, BBC, and Reason Magazine showcased ANC of Michigan efforts in support of the “uncommitted” movement, which garnered over 100,000 votes in Tuesday’s election.
The ANCA’s “Armenian American Swing State Project” is doing voter outreach to over 200,000 Armenians in six swing states in the run-up to the 2024 Presidential election
POLITICO was the first to report that the “uncommitted” campaign enjoyed broad support in the Armenian American community. “Dzovinar Hatsakordzian — a national board member of the Armenian National Committee of America — is urging Armenian Democrats in Michigan to vote ‘Uncommitted’ because he ‘armed Azerbaijan’s genocide of Artsakh’s indigenous Armenians.’ The ANCA has circulated graphics that read ‘Michigan’s Armenian voters will remember this November that Biden armed Azerbaijan and abandoned Armenians to genocidal killers.’”
Also citing Hatsakordzian’s op/ed in The Armenian Weekly, the New York Times reported, “A group of Armenian Americans is also urging an “uncommitted” vote to protest treatment of ethnic Armenians living in Azerbaijan.”
The BBC reported on the “failure of the Biden administration to address the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region,” as the reason for the record number of Michigan Armenian ‘uncommitted’ votes.
“The response has been overwhelming,” Hatsakordzian told the Washington Post, which noted that the ANCA “estimates that Michigan is home to about 72,000 Armenian Americans, including their family members and others close to the community. Hatsakordzian estimated that she had heard from at least 50 people who voted “uncommitted” to protest Biden’s support for Azerbaijan.”
ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian told USA Today, “We really feel like he broke faith with our community. Our thought is that type of complicity should have consequences.”
During interviews with Reason Magazine, Hamparian explained, “Everyone who voted ‘uncommitted’ went to the polls trying to bring accountability to our foreign policy system, and that’s a good thing. Exercises like this remind [politicians] that foreign policy doesn’t start and end at the State Department. It’s the property of the American people.” Hatsakordzian told Reason Magazine she does not currently plan to vote for Biden, and that in order to win back her vote, “he can sanction Azerbaijan, he can stop sending weapons to Azerbaijan, and take concrete actions to stop the genocide that is going on.”
POLITICO’s deep dive into California’s hotly contested Congressional race to fill Rep. Adam Schiff’s seat in Southern California spotlighted how the community’s frustration with President Biden’s failed Artsakh policy is playing a pivotal role there. The ANCA Programs Director Alex Galitsky told POLITICO, “Our community expects candidates to not only forcefully condemn Azerbaijan’s actions, but hold the Biden Administration to task for its ongoing refusal to impose consequences on Azerbaijan for its genocidal aggression against the Armenians of Artsakh.”
In January of this year, the ANCA launched the “Armenian American Swing State Project,” mobilizing voters of Armenian heritage in the swing states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin for the 2024 election. ANCA demographic research shows that the number of Armenian voters in these states is sufficient to decide or impact outcomes, particularly in a hotly-contested, three-way race.