Perhaps the most powerful motivator across all of Armenian society is fear of social ostracism. Here, nearly every individual perceives themselves as vulnerable if they lack the support of the collective.

In the last few months, I've had ample opportunity to refine the purpose of my experiment in societal development that began when I purchased my house in Kalavan village five years ago. I saw so much opportunity then among a small group of Armenian villagers who invited me to live with them and portrayed themselves as sharing the same core...

More than 100,000 Armenians have fled Artsakh into Armenia proper in the last weeks, fearing ethnic cleansing by Azerbaijan. It is doubtful they will return to their homes since the Nagorno-Karabakh territory will be fully signed over to Azerbaijan on January 1, 2024. That means there are now 100,000 people who need housing, food, utilities, and...

Recently, I was publicly accused in a News.am article of having "serious problems with integration" in Kalavan due to my "difficult personality." This was part of a denial about a claim I had made about having sent this man $500 at his request upon buying my house here so that he could send workers to install plumbing and...

Recently, I've heard from multiple local sources that there's a strong possibility the only school in Kalavan will soon be closing, leaving all children and teenagers in the area without any viable option for education.

Update: Alexandra Hunanyan, a journalist from News.am, read about how my interview with Arrajin Alik was distorted in editing and was kind enough to reach out to me and interview me for two much more accurate articles about my experience living in Kalavan. Read them here: