Letter Letter for You

Ecosystem platforms > HUMANITARIAN PLATFORM

AURORA FOR ARTSAKH

AURORA FOR ARTSAKH

On September 27, 2020, Azerbaijan, supported by Turkey, launched a war against Artsakh, which forced 90,000 people to flee their homes and affected thousands more. The Aurora for Artsakh program was created in November 2020 to help the children and adults facing a grave humanitarian crisis in the aftermath of this attack. Initially set on providing urgent aid to the locals, the program was later refocused on assisting projects that support and facilitate the region’s long-term social development.

Starting from November 2020, the Aurora for Artsakh program has been implemented with the funds raised through the #AraratChallenge movement, a global crowdfunding initiative addressing humanitarian needs in Armenia and Armenian communities globally.

In accordance with the updated objective of the Aurora Prize, aimed at directing part of its monetary award to combat one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world where human suffering requires urgent intervention, and considering the acute needs of the people in Artsakh, 2021 Aurora Prize Laureate Julienne Lusenge has also allocated $250,000 (or 25%) of her $1,000,000 award to address urgent humanitarian issues there. The Aurora Co-Founders matched this contribution, bringing the total amount to $500,000.

Overall, since the launch of the program, Aurora has allocated $2,2 million to support 93 projects implemented by 70 local and international partners. This includes a $1 million grant donated to Hayastan All Armenian Fund to fund their efforts to provide support to those affected by the war. The implemented projects were mainly focused on humanitarian aid, healthcare, social development, infrastructure restoration, education, culture, and sport. The Aurora for Artsakh program is set to conclude on June 30, 2023.

TOTAL NUMBER OF THE PEOPLE HELPED BY THE AURORA FOR ARTSAKH PROGRAM IS MORE THAN 150,000. MANY PEOPLE HAVE BENEFITTED FROM MORE THAN ONE PROJECT.

HUMANITARIAN AID PROJECTS

Almost half of Aurora for Artsakh’s projects are dedicated to providing people in need with appropriate clothing, heaters, shelter, bedding, food, agricultural goods, kits with essentials, hygiene product packs and supplies, gas canisters and furniture.

The program has also delivered laptops to children with hearing impairments, gave displaced children access to theatre performances and entertainment, organised transport and ensured psychological assistance and physical rehabilitation for those who required it, and sent Christmas presents to the children of Artsakh.

CHRISTMAS MIRACLE FOR ARTSAKH

More than 500 people from different countries, as well as 12 corporate companies became Secret Santas for the children of Artsakh. With the funds raised, we purchased gifts for these children who did not get their Santas, as well as about 3000 gift sets for children who simply could not and did not have a chance to send us a letter.

HEALTHCARE PROJECTS

Healthcare projects cover the involvement of medical professionals from Armenia and abroad in medical institutions in Artsakh. It also covers: the procurement of tools and materials for lower limb prosthetics, provision of orthopaedic items to wounded soldiers, provision of vital medication to elderly people, new ambulances for Artsakh, psychological support to servicemen and their families, equipment for the transfer of wounded soldiers with mobility issues, the development of a mobile clinic to provide healthcare services to the wounded, the rehabilitation of children and adults in Artsakh, organising at-home medical services for the wounded with limited mobility in hard-to-reach regions of Artsakh and Armenia, and an acupuncture training program for medical professionals in Artsakh for pain relief and mental health care in war and post-war context, amongst other things.

EDUCATION / CULTURE

Educational/cultural projects have, so far, aimed to create spaces to organise sports and educational programs for young women and children in Artsakh, organise Wushu classes for children living in the border villages of Artsakh, support a bilingual workshop (French Armenian) on Dramatic Art, facilitate the launch of football academies in Artsakh and the border region in order to support recently displaced community members impacted by war, and support the organisation of vocational culinary training for displaced people, amongst other things.

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

Social development projects have included the production of rehabilitation equipment that was designed and manufactured in Armenia during the war, as well as support for small businesses creating jobs for displaced people in Armenia; the economic empowerment of displaced youth; the development of an online platform to engage the Diaspora’s resources to mitigate the humanitarian crisis and boost the economy of Artsakh; professional training and new job opportunities for the displaced people; the “Made in Artsakh” brand; a humanitarian needs assessment survey; and a Social Integration Program for wounded soldiers, amongst other things.

HOUSING & INFRASTRUCTURE

Housing and infrastructure projects support the renovation of houses; restore and repair appliances in Artsakh hospitals, schools and kindergartens; restore the city’s infrastructure in Martuni; provide supplies to schools and kindergartens; support the renovation of Chartar hospital in the Martuni region and the restoration of water supplies in the villages of Taghavard and Dashushen; and provide diesel generators to communities without electricity in Artsakh.

< Previous
Next >

Projects

Projects
Back to top

Dear Visitor,

We are glad you are interested in the activities of the IDeA Foundation.

On this platform, you can learn about two-decades long thought, passion, commitment and hard work — all in pursuit of a more prosperous Armenia. The road has been long and reflections many. But we managed to achieve to a point where our work has left its mark on the lives of millions of people and we are really proud of it.

Our accomplishments are the fruit of a collective effort by hundreds of thousands of promoters and volunteers, tens of thousands of donors and supporters, hundreds of colleagues and dozens of founding partners. Together, we have shown what wonderous things can be achieved when people strive for realization of a common goal.

Allow our family, who was lucky enough to witness these remarkable achievements from the beginning, to express our sincere gratitude to numerous wonderful, caring, purposeful people and organizations that made all these achievements possible. We have the honor to present their successes and express our gratitude to them.

We have tried to present the key landmarks of our journey to a brighter Armenia, to chart the lessons learned, and some of the new approaches and initiatives they have forged — the 700 projects over the last 20 years.

We hope that learning about these works will be as pleasant for you as it is for us to tell about them.

But, more importantly, we would like to see you among those Armenians who will continue this path together with us in the future.

If a single community of like-minded people working towards the realization of a common vision of the future can achieve such a result, imagine what kind of changes can be made if the efforts of the entire nation were directed towards creation. Together we can dream.

And, together, we can make our dreams come true.

Thank You,

Ruben Vardanyan and Veronika Zonabend