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Gulbenkian Foundation Appoints Panossian Armenian Communities Direct

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  • Gulbenkian Foundation Appoints Panossian Armenian Communities Direct

    GULBENKIAN FOUNDATION APPOINTS PANOSSIAN ARMENIAN COMMUNITIES DIRECTOR

    http://asbarez.com/107862/gulbenkian-foundation-appoints-panossian-armenian-communities-director/
    Thursday, January 24th, 2013

    Dr. Razmik Panossian

    LISBON-The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation announced today the
    appointment of Dr. Razmik Panossian as the new Director of the
    Armenian Communities Department in Lisbon. He will assume the post on
    February 1.

    Panossian holds a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics and
    Political Science, where he also taught. He has published widely on
    Armenian-related issues, including a critically acclaimed book on
    Armenian national identity. He has extensive experience in senior
    management, including the administration of multi-million dollar
    programs, as well as the allocation and distribution of international
    development grants. For many years he served as the Director of
    Policy, Programs and Planning at a Canadian governmental organization
    based in Montreal. He has worked for the United Nations Development
    Program. He is fluent in English, French and Armenian.

    "I am both thrilled and humbled by this appointment," said Panossian.

    "This is one of the most important positions in the Armenian Diaspora.

    I am looking forward to continuing the work of my predecessors and
    further strengthening and expanding the activities of the Calouste
    Gulbenkian Foundation in a focused and systematic manner within
    Armenian communities around the world."

    Martin Essayan, the Trustee responsible for the Armenian Communities
    Department, and great grandson of Foundation founder Calouste
    Gulbenkian, said: "I am delighted that Dr. Panossian will be the new
    Director of the Armenian Communities Department. He comes with
    outstanding credentials for this role and brings the international,
    integrative perspective we need. The appointment followed a global
    search during which we were able to consider many excellent
    candidates."

    Razmik Panossian is the author of The Armenians: From Kings and
    Priests to Merchants and Commissars (Columbia University Press/Hurst &
    Co., 2006). He received his PhD from the London School of Economics
    and Political Science. His thesis won the prestigious Lord Bryce Prize
    for Best Dissertation in Comparative and International Politics in the
    UK (2001) granted by Britain's Political Studies Association.

    He received his MA from York University in Toronto, Canada, and his BA
    (honors) from McGill University in Montreal. Panossian has taught at
    the London School of Economics and at the School of Oriental and
    African Studies (University of London) on the subjects of nationalism,
    ethnic conflict, post-Soviet transition/democratisation, and
    comparative politics. In 2004 he assumed the position of Director of
    Policy, Programs and Planning at the International Centre for Human
    Rights and Democratic Development, a Canadian federal institution
    devoted to the promotion of democracy and human rights.

    He managed the Centre's international programming in Latin America,
    Africa, the Middle East and Asia. His work took him to countries as
    diverse as Afghanistan, China, Haiti, Colombia, Egypt, Morocco and
    Congo. Between 2010 and 2012 Panossian worked as an international
    consultant, including at UNDP in New York.

    He has delivered numerous lectures and conference papers throughout
    the world, has participated in Turkish-Armenian workshops and the
    Armenia-Diaspora conferences. He has published many academic articles
    on Armenian national identity and nationalism, as well as on
    Armenia-diaspora relations. Razmik was born in Lebanon and immigrated
    to Canada at the age of 12. He has lived in English and French Canada
    as well as the UK.

    The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation is one of the top ten Foundations
    in Europe and one of the largest in the world with assets of ~@3
    billion and annual spend of around ~@100 million. It operates in four
    areas defined in its statutes: Arts, Education, Science, and Social
    Welfare. It was founded by Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian, an Armenian
    businessman and art collector who became a British citizen, conducted
    much of his work in Britain and France, and finally settled in
    Portugal. The Foundation was established in Portugal in 1956, a year
    after his death.

    The Foundation headquarters are in Lisbon and consist of the
    administration, which deals with grant-giving throughout the world,
    together with a Museum housing the founder's art collections -
    recognised as one of the world's best small museums - a Modern Art
    Centre, an art research library, a centre for scientific research,
    concert halls, an open-air theatre, exhibition galleries and
    conference halls, an orchestra and a choir. The Foundation also has
    offices in London and Paris.

    The Armenian Communities Department dates back to the creation of the
    Foundation and was set up by the founder's son-in-law Kevork Essayan.

    Since then the trustee in charge has always been a member of the
    founder's family. The mission of the department is: "to create a
    viable future for the Armenian people in which their culture and
    language are preserved and valued". Its work is inspired by the
    example of the founder who never forgot his Armenian roots but sought
    to engage with non Armenians and to bring different groups together.

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