Ruben Vardanian and Veronika Zonabend

Reflecting on what the world will be like in the future, we realized that society would gradually shift from its current form to the one where individuals are the key drivers of change. These would be the people who not only make money for themselves, but create an effective, comfortable and socially oriented ecosystem for everyone else. In the new society, talented people would predominate; they would understand the purpose of what they do and would make society more balanced and holistically coherent.

Thus, educated and talented people will be the key feature of any country’s success in the 21st century. Education is likely to become critical not only for society but also for the economy. The most important question is what kind of country do we need to build to retain our own talent and attract other talented people to study in Armenia and stay in our country.

One of the key challenges we need to respond to is understanding that education for all age groups and lifelong learning will be among the key drivers in the future, and here we have a competitive advantage. We are a nation with a vast heritage of smart, dedicated people who have invested, and continue to do so, in education.

The American University of Armenia is a great example of the success of this model, and, being partners of the AGBU, we are delighted to support this project, which was started thanks to the brave and visionary people within the Union who realized that education is the key to a sustainable future for Armenia. We’re strong believers in education, and we believe that it is time for education in our country to advance to the next level. The American University of Armenia needs to become an institution not only for local and diaspora Armenians, but the one that engages non-Armenians from around the world. This is a new standard that we need to set for ourselves.