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PRESS RELEASE
  
Thursday, March 12, 2020
  
AGBU WOMEN SHAPING THE WORLD CONFERENCE ADDS UNIQUE VOICE TO THE FEMALE 
EMPOWERMENT MOVEMENT

New York, NY: In celebration of International Women's Day 2020 and the 100th 
anniversary of the ratification of the women's right to vote in America, over 
200 attendees from across the region, as well as from New England and 
California, spent the day in the company of exemplary female leaders who are 
making transformational change through their careers, philanthropy and volunteer 
work.
 
The sold-out Inaugural AGBU "Women Shaping the World" (WSTW) conference, held in 
downtown Manhattan on March 7, 2020, was organized by a committee of 
distinguished women with three goals in mind: to provide a forum for sharing 
insights and ideas on challenges and opportunities facing women socially and 
professionally; create a space to work in solidarity towards gender equality and 
women's rights at home and abroad; and give women a platform for networking and 
exploring career development strategies, with guidance from industry 
specialists. 

The diversity and scope of the conference attracted a mix of co-sponsors, 
including Seta Nazarian and the Englestad Foundation as primary contributors, as 
well as global names such as Citi® Private Banking, We Work,® and Loréal® Paris, 
in addition to Congès fine jewelry and Keremo cakes.
 
In her welcoming remarks, advisory committee co-chair Claudia Nazarian set the 
tone for the three-part agenda, promising a day in which "women of all ages and 
a few brave men will come together to share their stories and leave feeling 
enlightened, inspired and challenged to do more." She assured guests that the 
conference was the first of many more to come. 

THE AGBU LEGACY OF FEMALE EMPOWERMENT 

AGBU Central Board member and Co-Chair of the AGBU Global Women's Empowerment 
Initiative Ani Manoukian presented a brief overview of AGBU's century-old 
commitment to the elevation of Armenian women in society. She highlighted how, 
as early as 1917, AGBU women mobilized a multi-national clothing drive in behalf 
of child survivors of the Armenian Genocide of 1915. AGBU also opened women's 
shelters, orphanages and trade schools as well as took up the daunting task of 
rescuing abducted Armenian women from Turkish homes. By the 1940s, women were 
serving on the organization's Central Board of Directors. The early 1990s saw 
Louise Manoogian Simone as AGBU's fifth president, during the critical years of 
Armenia's independence. Manoukian further noted that today 40% of AGBU chairs 
worldwide are women and, when looking solely at its Young Professionals 
leadership, the rate increases to 55%. She made a compelling case that Armenian 
women's voices do matter. 

"We can balance the conversation; we add value to the pool of visionaries and 
creators of our male counterparts. We are listeners, we are problem-solvers, we 
are collaborators," Manoukian stated. 

WISDOM AND PERSPECTIVE

The guest speaker segment opened with keynote remarks by Suni Harford, the 
president of UBS Asset Management. Long known for her advocacy in support of 
women leaders in finance and business, Harford described her own career path as 
mostly unplanned, and more a succession of opportunities that opened doors to 
others. She emphasized the importance of women as consumers and drivers of 
change, underlining that female empowerment is connected to the bottom line and 
there must always be an economic component to the movement. 

She also shared her "four pearls of wisdom" beginning with Visibility within the 
company's power structure by taking positions or getting involved in special 
projects that allow access to key decisionmakers in the organization. Next, was 
Don't Opt Out Early, when considering leaving the work world to start a family.  
"You don't know what lies ahead, and you don't know what your companies are 
going to look like," she noted. Third on her list was to Take Risks, saying, "I 
do believe women have as many opportunities as men, but too many women wait for 
these opportunities and don't raise their hands to take that risk." Her final 
token of advice was to Speak Up; recounting the time she applied for a 
leadership position in Tokyo to the surprise of her colleagues. "Everyone 
assumed I would never take that role, but I had never let anyone know that I 
wanted it." Though Hartford's big move never happened, she recalled that 
advocating for herself started an important dialogue in her workplace and opened 
other unanticipated doors in her career.
 
Picking up the threads of Harford's speech, panel moderator Alexis Alexanian, an 
independent producer and former president of the New York Women in Film & 
Television, opened the discussion with two high-powered Armenian-American women 
who exemplified the "shaping the world" concept: Mary Ellen Iskenderian, 
President and CEO of Women's World Banking, the world's largest network of 
microfinance institutions and banks; and Carineh Martin, a leading luxury brands 
executive who co-founded RAD, which partners with celebrity talent and brands to 
use the Red Carpet for advocacy and social good.
 
On the subject of using professional platforms to advance social progress, 
Martin made the case that good marketing can be authentic while creating social 
change, "Status and good design don't cut it anymore. Who you are and what you 
believe in can have a purpose and create social progress." 

Iskenderian's insights on empowering women financially were also instructive, 
"Finance can be a tool for change. When women are in control of resources, they 
play a much bigger role in household decision making, and money is spent 
unequivocally on saving towards goals." She noted that study after study showed 
that, women who are lifted out of poverty and are in charge of the purse 
strings, spend disproportionately on educating their children. She also stressed 
the need for financial literacy, explaining that having a bank account, and even 
buying insurance, can be just as important as receiving a micro-loan.

This theme prompted consensus among the speakers that education is paramount to 
female empowerment and each of them owed much of their own success to their 
academic experiences.  Martin mentioned that attending an all-girls high school 
led her to believe that women could do whatever they set their mind to, as the 
girl students assumed roles otherwise filled by boys.  It wasn't until she 
entered university that she understood that gender imbalance was real. 

Each discussant spoke with great passion about the reward of giving back to 
others through their professional expertise, which provided them with the 
resources, tools, exposure and access to forge their own paths to uplift others. 
"We can take our platforms and use them to make people aware of what is 
happening in the world," said Martin. "Shifting the culture is instrumental in 
creating change, and how we work together to change the culture in little ways 
can be impactful." 

On that point, Iskenderian-taking stock of the sea of Armenian women 
assembled-uttered a truth that resounded with many nodding heads throughout the 
room. "That ian/yan is like a secret handshake wherever you are. It's something 
ineffable we all share."

Alexanian expressed how impressed she was with the quality of the questions and 
issues raised, saying, "I've never been in a room with this many Armenian women, 
and it makes me emotional to be here today." She continued, "We all need a forum 
like this, we need to talk about the things that bind us, our similarities, and 
we need to talk about the differences. This is how we define our network." 
 
The conversation continued over lunch, where attendees could talk shop with 
peers and make new social and professional connections. An hour later, they were 
back in their seats for the unveiling of AGBU EmpowerHer, presented by AGBU 
Central Board Member and Co-Chair of the AGBU Global Women's Empowerment 
Initiative Arda Haratunian.
 
LAUNCH OF AGBU EMPOWERHER

EmpowerHer is a multi-dimensional initiative designed to promote gender equality 
in the Republic of Armenia, a country in which women (who represent over half 
the country's population) are still struggling for a seat at the table in 
business, economy and politics. They are also still grappling with outworn 
cultural norms that undervalue females in society and subject them to 
intergenerational household pressures that impede their personal growth. 

Thanks to the early support of donors across the diaspora, the AGBU EmpowerHer 
model has the capacity to combine education, training, institutional support, 
mentorship, and expertise from program partners and collaborators worldwide, 
including AGBU Hye Geen Centers for pregnant women and the Women's Support 
Center in Armenia for victims of domestic violence and abuse. 
 
Haratunian highlighted multiple ways that EmpowerHer can help Armenia's women 
gain social and economic independence, including learning workplace fundamentals 
and enrolling for trainings from Coding and IT to entrepreneurship and community 
leadership, along with a cycle of support through alumni services. 

She also invited the attendees to get involved in the EmpowerHer initiative 
through volunteering, connecting, mentoring, fundraising, donating, and other 
ways to help enhance the role of Armenia's women in business and society. 

"When you transform the life of a woman, it will change their communities, the 
organizations they work in, and the nation they create. You are empowered to 
EmpowerHer," said Haratunian. 
 
INDUSTRY BREAK-OUT SESSIONS

The remainder of the day was dedicated to networking and advice-gathering 
through small roundtables grouped by industries. Each was led by a specialist in 
the category, including Mary Ellen Iskenderian (Finance), Alexis Alexanian (Film 
& Entertainment), Sara Anjargolian (Armenia Current Affairs); Ani Aydin 
(Medicine & Health); Tamar Donikyan (Law); Houry Geudelekian (Gender & Women's 
Issues); Arda Haratunian (Communications and Marketing); Kris McGarry 
(NGO/Education); and Seta Nazarian (Philanthropy and Volunteerism). 

The sessions allowed participants to explore industry-specific issues and 
questions. For example, the Finance group, representing entrepreneurs, small 
business owners, and leaders in global companies like PayPal, PWC, IBC, and the 
World Bank, discussed topics from creating informal female support systems in 
male dominated offices to asking for the same opportunities and responsibilities 
as men. "Being the only woman in the finance department used to be the 
narrative" said Elizabeth Akian. "But now we have women running departments and 
it's fulfilling to see others grow." Others also noted the importance of having 
female leaders. "We have a gift as women in the way we nurture relationships," 
said Oriona Nikaj. "We can see that here today in this conference."

The Medicine and Health group shared insights on how to approach mentors in 
their field and how best to offer their skills in the Armenian world, 
considering EmpowerHer's new healthcare initiative. In the Armenia Current 
Affairs group, participants agreed with Sara Anjargolian, the chief of staff of 
Armenia's Office of the High Commissioner of Diaspora Affairs, who said "nation 
building is not a spectator sport." They discussed the changes in the country 
since the Velvet Revolution, and how unprecedented programs like "iGorts," which 
invites Diaspora Armenian professionals to work in Armenia's state institutions, 
are tapping Diaspora talent throughout the world. 

The heavily attended Film, Television and Entertainment session explored ways 
for aspiring creative types to build their personal brands and profiles on 
social media, recognizing the power of digital media to increase visibility and 
exposure of their work. Meanwhile, the Communications and Marketing group 
discussed the benefits of finding mentors and proactively reaching out to 
established professionals without the fear of rejection. The Philanthropy and 
Volunteerism session weighed the pros and cons of starting a non-profit 
organization from scratch versus partnering with more established organizations, 
thereby ceding some of one's decision-making power. 

INSIGHTS AND TAKEAWAYS

Positive feedback from the sessions was consistent among the groups. "I really 
got something out of this discussion today, said Katia Ariyan. "I expanded my 
network of Armenians in my industry, made connections, and learned more about 
how to put myself out there toward what I want to do." 
  
Her sentiments were echoed by attendees, speakers, and organizers, alike. "Being 
at an event like this, I now feel like I could push my Armenian world one step 
further into a more career-driven, professional, and inspiring place," said 
participant Shushan Sargsian. "I am so inspired by all of the amazing things 
Armenian women are doing here, in Armenia and all over the world, and this has 
given me a lot of ideas on how to get involved." Another participant, Lernik 
Essayei chimed in, "This is why we all need to be connected at least once a 
year, to remind ourselves why we are doing what we are doing." 

At the close of the day, Alexanian made an astute observation, saying, "I think 
we identified an underserved audience that needs this forum for empowerment, 
bonding, 'what Armenian means to me' and inspiration. It's so obvious. It was 
very impressive to see how many people are committed, passionate, want to 
network and connect."  

Nila Festekjian, the woman who first planted the seed of holding an 
International Women's Day conference over a year ago, characterized the event as 
an "unqualified success" and invited attendees to email their thoughts, ideas 
and suggestions for future forums to EmpowerHer@agbu.org.

The Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) is the world's largest non-profit 
organization devoted to upholding the Armenian heritage through educational, 
cultural and humanitarian programs. Each year, AGBU is committed to making a 
difference in the lives of 500,000 people across Armenia, Artsakh and the 
Armenian diaspora.  Since 1906, AGBU has remained true to one overarching goal: 
to create a foundation for the prosperity of all Armenians. To learn more visit 

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