PRESS RELEASE
Project Harmony Armenia
45 Sevastopolyan St
Yerevan, Armenia 375028
(374) 1-26-06-86
Contact: Knarik Nazaryan
knarik@projectharmony.am
Mobile Lab Hits the Road
Yerevan— June 11, 2004— The Mobile Lab, an innovative project that
created a Mobile Internet Computer Center to serve rural communities
in Armenia, will hit the road on June 14, 2004, with a ribbon cutting
ceremony at the border to the Gegharkunik region on the road to Lake
Sevan at 12:00 p.m. and with the official launch to the villages it
will serve from the Vardenis Municipality at 2:00 p.m. The Mobile Lab
is a component of the Armenia School Connectivity Program (ASCP), a
Program of the United States Department of State Bureau of Educational
and Cultural Affairs funded through FREEDOM Support Act and implemented
by Project Harmony.
The Mobile Lab is the first of its kind in Eurasia and will serve 20
remote border communities between the towns of Chambarak and Vardenis
in the Gegharkunik region of Armenia. A vehicle has been transformed
into a learning lab and is equipped with computer workstations
and satellite connection to provide Internet access. But besides
the hardware and Internet connection, the Mobile Lab will provide
free training for students and teachers of the villages, as well as
neighboring village schools. For these remote villages, the Mobile
Lab will offer an expanded worldview and exposure to new information,
and will allow students from rural communities to connect with others
as they never have before.
The Mobile Lab will remain in each of the 20 villages for a set amount
of time and will later return to the communities to provide users
with continued development of skills acquired during the initial
visit. Project Harmony anticipates the Mobile Lab will serve over
12,500 people in the 20 villages, including over 1900 students and
380 teachers, as well as many refugees, persons with disabilities,
and unemployed citizens.
Project Harmony builds strong communities by fostering civic
leadership, harnessing Internet technology and facilitating
cross-cultural experiential learning. Project Harmony was founded
in Vermont in 1985 as a grass-roots exchange organization for
Soviet and American high schools. Today, Project Harmony has 14
offices worldwide. In its 19-year history, Project Harmony has
facilitated educational, professional, cultural, and community-based
programs involving hundreds of families and individuals. Please
visit our web site: The Armenia-specific
web site is: U.S.: and in Armenia:
The Armenia School Connectivity
Program web site is: and the ZANG Armenia Legal
Socialization web site is: For
more information, please contact Project Harmony Outreach Manager
Siranush Vardanyan at siranush@projectharmony.am