This year, the girls’ initiatives once again show how creativity, curiosity, and care can turn into small but meaningful actions in their communities. Each group approaches empowerment in its own way – through reading, sports, technology, art, or open conversations – but they all share the same spirit of solidarity and learning from one another.
What stands out most is their ability to take initiative and organize by themselves, often with very few resources but a lot of enthusiasm. Whether it’s creating space for honest discussions about body autonomy, building small community libraries, or introducing peers to new technologies, these projects remind us that social change often starts with a few motivated young people who simply decide to begin.
Ellen and Eva (Yerevan)
This group of girls is continuing the work started by last year’s team, holding discussions and meetings with peers from other schools across Armenia on topics such as sexual and reproductive health, bullying, and body autonomy. This year, they also plan to expand the conversations by including more interactive formats – like Q&A sessions and creative workshops – so that younger participants feel more comfortable engaging in these sensitive but important discussions.
Kima (Bagaran, Armavir)
Kima and her friends applied together to organize educational meetups and reading sessions among their peers. They independently gathered feedback from teenage girls on what kinds of books they wanted to read, created reading lists, and are now trying to make reading a part of their daily routine. Their initiative is growing into a small reading circle that promotes both literacy and friendship among rural girls, giving them space to dream, discuss, and imagine freely.
Margarita, Ani, and Milena (Nerkin Tsaghkavan, Tavush)
This year, most of the teenage girls in their community are focusing on self-education and nurturing a love for reading. Margarita is among them – she wants to inspire her peers to read and discuss books together, and she’s also enriching the school library for future groups. Beyond that, they are hoping to invite local writers and educators to informal conversations, turning reading into a collective exploration of ideas rather than just an individual habit.
Nare Tovmasyan (Gyumri, Shirak)
Nare plans to record a few podcasts together with her friends, featuring marginalized and underrepresented teenage girls, giving them a platform to share their own stories and challenges in their own voices. The podcasts will touch on issues like access to education, self-expression, and community life in smaller towns – creating a valuable archive of real teenage experiences from different regions of Armenia.
Lusine (Qaghsi, Kotayk)
Lusine and her friends want to encourage other teenage girls in their community to be more active and connected. They plan to clean up a local space and organize tennis lessons together, using sport as a way to build teamwork and confidence. Through these activities, they also hope to show how movement and physical activity can improve mental well-being and create a stronger sense of belonging among local girls.
Tsovinar (Vanadzor, Lori)
Tsovinar’s idea stands out because it combines leisure, art, and healing. As a dancer, she wants to share her dance-based emotional release practices with other teenage girls, offering a safe space for relaxation, creativity, and self-expression. Her sessions will not only teach dance steps but also promote body positivity and emotional connection—showing how movement can be both joyful and empowering.
Syuzanna Vardanyan, Kima Yeghiazaryan (Jrarat, Kotayk)
Syuzanna and her friends plan to acquire new books for their literary club. Reading sessions will be both individual and group-based, followed by discussions that allow everyone to share thoughts and reflections. Their aim is to build a consistent reading culture in their village and make literature a space where girls can express opinions freely, build vocabulary, and connect through stories.
Mane Akhtskhhetsyan (Yerevan)
Mane and her friends plan to support other teenage girls in developing their skills in artificial intelligence and STEM. They will share their own experiences, inspire new ideas for startups, and organize meetings with professionals from the field. By doing so, they hope to spark curiosity among girls about technology and innovation, encouraging them to explore areas that are often male-dominated, and to imagine themselves as future creators, not just consumers, of tech.
