Within the framework of the open call for grants supporting feminist events announced by the Women’s Fund Armenia at the beginning of the year, the following initiatives were selected on the theme of International Women’s Rights Day, March 8:
LOFT Ijevan Youth Center
The LOFT Ijevan Youth Center project aims to empower young women aged 16–35 in Ijevan and surrounding communities through a series of educational, cultural, and participatory activities connected to International Women’s Day. The initiative includes a photo exhibition on women’s rights and empowerment, a panel discussion with experts and activists on gender equality and civic engagement, a mentorship meeting with a successful woman who has overcome challenges, and an interactive workshop focused on emotional intelligence and personal development. Through these activities, the project seeks to strengthen critical thinking, confidence, and leadership among participants while encouraging their active involvement in community life. The exhibition will remain open throughout March, allowing broader community engagement and dialogue around feminist issues. At the conclusion of the program, a Women’s Development Club will be launched to provide a long-term safe and inclusive space where young women can meet regularly, organize discussions and creative initiatives, and develop leadership and advocacy skills. Grounded in feminist values of inclusivity and intersectionality, the project aims not only to celebrate March 8 but also to reclaim its meaning as a day for advancing women’s rights, raising awareness of gender inequality, and inspiring social change.
Spitak Helsinki Group Human Rights NGO
The project initiated by the Spitak Helsinki Group Human Rights NGO aims to create a safe and supportive environment where women and girls can express their concerns and experiences related to rights and social challenges through art therapy. Within the project, two art therapy sessions will be organized with the participation of 10–15 women and girls, during which participants will work with a professional art therapist to visually express their feelings, personal stories, and the rights-related issues that affect them in their everyday lives. The artworks created during these sessions will be presented on March 8 at an exhibition titled “When Art Speaks About Women’s Rights,” organized at the NGO’s office. The exhibition will also include a discussion on contemporary women’s rights issues and will bring together representatives of state institutions, civil society organizations, and community members. The initiative aims not only to raise awareness about women’s rights but also to provide women with an opportunity for self-expression and collective reflection. By creating a supportive space for dialogue, the project encourages women to speak openly about their experiences and challenges while promoting community engagement in addressing gender-related issues.
Berd Women’s Resource Center NGO
The Berd Women’s Resource Center NGO project is dedicated to International Women’s Day and aims to raise public awareness about the social, health, and demographic consequences of sex-selective abortion in Armenia. The central component of the project is the screening of the feature film “Congratulations, It’s a Girl” in the city of Berd in cooperation with the Arevaberd Cinema. The film presents the issue through human stories and social context, serving as a starting point for deeper discussion and reflection. Following the screening, a panel discussion will bring together healthcare professionals, representatives of public institutions, local government, civil society organizations, and community members to examine the gender stereotypes that influence reproductive decisions and social attitudes. Participants will anonymously complete the phrase “You are a girl, you have no right to…” highlighting discriminatory expectations and norms that persist in the community. In addition, a photography competition titled “Congratulations, It’s a Girl” will be organized among students and young people to encourage creative engagement with the topic. By combining film, dialogue, and creative participation, the project seeks to foster informed public discussion, promote gender equality, and create an inclusive platform for exchanging perspectives and solutions.
Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art (NPAK)
The project initiated by the Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art (NPAK) aims to research and publicly present the organization’s archive in order to highlight the participation of women artists and the exhibitions that have addressed feminist themes since the center’s founding. Through archival research, the project will document the number of women artists who have participated in exhibitions and analyze the thematic focus of exhibitions related to women’s rights and feminist perspectives. The results of this research will be compiled into an informational brochure containing a database of women artists, a chronology of exhibitions held at NPAK, and key thematic highlights. In addition, a dedicated archive corner will be established in the NPAK library, where visitors will be able to access video archives of past exhibitions and explore the research findings. By making this information accessible, the project aims to increase the visibility of contemporary women artists, encourage public engagement with feminist art and discourse, and highlight the important role women have played in shaping contemporary artistic practice.
Tatev Azizbekyan
Tatev Azizbekyan’s project “Don’t give me flowers if…” is a digital feminist awareness campaign that seeks to reinterpret International Women’s Day by shifting the focus from symbolic gestures such as flowers and gifts to the real issues of women’s rights, dignity, and equality. The campaign will produce a series of seven short video reels, each beginning with the phrase “Don’t give me flowers if…” and addressing a specific gender stereotype or violation of women’s rights common in Armenian society. Topics include stereotypes about women driving, stigma toward divorced women, pressure on women’s education and employment choices, expectations for women to remain silent or tolerant, control over women’s bodies, labeling of unmarried or child-free women, and limitations on women’s financial independence. The content of the videos is based on real-life statements and comments frequently encountered in social media and everyday discourse, revealing discriminatory attitudes that are often normalized. The reels will be distributed through dedicated social media pages and shared by partner organizations, activists, journalists, and individual users, encouraging widespread digital engagement and discussion. Through this approach, the campaign aims to raise awareness, challenge harmful stereotypes, and reclaim March 8 as a day of advocacy for women’s rights and gender equality.
Aghunik Ter-Stepanyan
Aghunik Ter-Stepanyan’s project seeks to make visible the often invisible and unpaid labor that women perform in urban environments in order to ensure their safety, fulfill caregiving responsibilities, and navigate public space. While cities are often designed and presented as neutral environments, women’s everyday experiences reveal the constant adjustments required to move through them safely. Women frequently modify their routes, schedules, body language, and social strategies to avoid unsafe areas, accompany children or others in need of care, and manage potential risks in public transportation and streets. These actions constitute a continuous form of physical, psychological, and social labor that is rarely acknowledged but accumulates as losses of time, energy, and financial resources. The project combines photographs of urban spaces with drawn interventions that illustrate these invisible movements and moments of vigilance, including detours, waiting, escorting, and bodily tension. Each situation is translated into a “receipt” or “recipe” format that documents the hidden costs of navigating the city as a woman. Through this artistic and analytical approach, the project offers a feminist critique of urban design and infrastructure, highlighting how cities often shift the burden of safety and care onto women themselves, while encouraging public reflection on gender inequality in urban spaces.
