Robert Dietrich

I wanted to throw up some pictures of one of the many monasteries to be found here in Armenia – all old, all beautiful, all interesting and haunting in their own way.  The priests that had occupied this particular monastery over the many hundreds of years that it has been in existence had a tradition of having their natural remains buried under their gravestones in one of the many walkways lain throughout the structure.  It was supposed to a final act of humility, allowing ones’ gravestone to be used as a cobblestone. 

I actually take quite a few pictures, I just don’t get the chance to post them - these pics were taken in better, warmer days (this past August).  The connection speed here is SO slow, but regardless, I’ll try and get a few up whenever I can to keep things fresh. 

This has been a pretty slow week – we’ve all had travel restrictions because of the elections here (protests and rallies and such).  But I’ve tried to keep busy with my counterpart organizing the implementation schedule for the marketing plan we’re getting ready to start on March 1^st.  In essence, we’re coordinating three separate marketing programs for the three independent print media vehicles we’re working with in our Marz (state), under the umbrella project, Gegharkunik Print Media Empowerment Project.

All the marketing consulting I’m doing with the Harsnaqar Hotel Complex is coming along well.  We start pushing a sales initiative focusing on our B2B market segment, along with our institutional market segment, next week.  It’s the first step in the implementation of the marketing plan I devised for them.  And more than the marketing / promotional side of things, we’re also reorganizing the product and service offering of the complex, and devising a new line of services to appeal to tourism consumer market segments that are seeking a truly “cultural” experience while they’re in Armenia.  We’ve got some really interesting stuff cooking for Harsnaqar and I’m looking forward to seeing how everything comes together.  Also, we’ve put out invitations to artists within our Marz to submit their work for consideration in the new Armenian Artists Direct souvenir shop we’ll be opening in the hotel complex, new this season – I have high hopes for this new offering within Harsnaqar.  I’m hoping it will not only strengthen the viability of the arts within my Marz, but also provide local artists with a commercial outlet so they might better sustain themselves through their individual gifts and talents.

Also, this past Sunday, I had the honor of giving a presentation on Business Ethics & Networking for AIESEC.  I spoke to a group of members who will be leaving to start internships in Western European, American and Latin American business entities and/or NGOs.  In total, there will be 12 Armenians headed out for internships ranging from 2 to 12 months, working with their respective host organizations.  I was scheduled to speak for 45 minutes, but we ended up going for over 2 hours.  I never thought I’d actually enjoy discussing business ethics, but as it turns out, globalization, business ethics and corporate social responsibility are hot topics and I was fully engaged (I think we could have kept going, if the next speaker hadn’t been such a rub).  Anyway, an enormously gratifying experience for everyone involved.  AIESEC is a truly amazing organization with over (I’m pretty sure) 20,000 members worldwide; check them out.

Beyond that, I’m keeping busy with studying, reading and watching Teaching Company lectures.  I’m working on the course series, “Great Authors of the Western Literary Tradition.”  It’s a great series with over 84 lectures from the most incredibly engaging professors you could possibly imagine.  I’ve got another course coming in the mail, so I have that to look forward to after I finish the material I’m currently working through.  Check out their website: www.teach12.com, they’ve got courses on everything from philosophy, physics and political science to religion, history and the arts. 

In terms of books, I’ve just finished up Karl Jaspers’ “Way To Wisdom,” which I highly recommend.  As one of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers gives a concise summery of the basic tenets of his philosophy.  Having finished that book, I’ve decided to explore his corpus of work at greater length, but later I think.  I’ve begun Herman Hesse’s, “Demian,” having finished all his other works except for “The Glass Bead Game.”  I’ve been going through books at a pretty good rate, dedicating a lot of my free time to personal study.  My sister should be sending out Hegel’s “Phenomenology of Mind,” Kant’s “Critique of Pure Reason,” “Critique of Practical Reason,” and, “Critique of Judgement,” as well as Eric Fernie’s “Art History: A Critical Anthology.”  I’ve read the latter two, but hope to dedicate more time to studying them during my time here, especially Kant’s work.  I’m just getting into Hegel, and want to explore his crowning achievement, having finished his “Philosophy of Right,” and “Philosophy of History.”  I took a huge number of books when I moved out here, which was painful to be sure (we had to conform to rigid weight restrictions with our checked luggage – I lugged out over 80 pounds of books in a carry-on), but I’m glad I did.  The selection in the PC library is limited at best, unless you’re a big fan of Danielle Steele, T. Brown and Grisham.  Eek.

I’ll try and compile a list of books that I would recommend, and post that next time. 

Other than that, I try and keep warm.  The winter is vitiating both physically and emotionally after a time; I am greatly anticipating the warmer months to come. 

Hope all is well wherever you are.

-Dietrich

Hey everyone, I hope this entry finds you all well.  It’s been awhile since my last update, so this will be a long one.  Before I start, I just want to thank the guys over at Rassai Interactive (www.rassai.com) for hosting this site for me.  They’re doing really interesting things – check out their website!

I’ve found a lot of opportunities for business development and marketing within my community.  And I also received my first grant – this one totals a little over $10K.  It’s for a project I wrote with my counterpart called, “Gegharkunik Marz Print Media Empowerment Project.”  The grant proposal was submitted and accepted by the US Embassy’s Democracy Commission Small Grants Program.  We just got the contract last Friday, and we’re really excited.  We’ll be implementing a marketing plan that aims to increase brand awareness of the three main independent print media vehicles within our marz, increase subscription rates, and increase paid-for business advertisements within the print media vehicles.  It’s going to be a six-month project and it’ll keep me pretty busy managing everything with my counterpart.

I also have begun working with the Harsnaqar Hotel Complex and Waterworld.  It’s the largest and most luxurious hotel complex in my community.  It’s famous all over Armenia and is a multi-million dollar operation – it’s going to be a great professional development opportunity for me.  I’ll be working long-term as their marketing consultant.  I’ll be training another individual within my community in everything I’ll be doing, so my work with the business will be sustainable.  I’m in the process of organizing an integrated marketing & communications plan for the business, which has taken quite a bit of work.  I had to complete a lot of survey and focus group research in the capital and within my marz, which took me almost a month and a half.  But now I have a good deal of qualitative information to build on the quantitative data I already had in addressing this business’ problems, goals and objectives.  I’ve also just finished designing a new set of marketing collaterals, and will begin work on their website next month.

I’ve got a new Small & Medium Enterprise Development project too.  With the Regional Development and Research Center NGO I have developed and provided a training schedule to offer local businesses within the Sevan MSA business training seminars.  The SME Project training materials and training schedule have been approved and we are planning on moving forward with advertising the project to potential attendees in two weeks.

My USAID Cross-Cutting proposal for a tourism exchange has been approved, as I wrote previously, and I finished consulting with the implementing agency in working out all the details.  That’ll be executed soon; I’m waiting on the final draft from the implementing agency to review. 

Also, taking advice from the CAPS (Competitive Armenian Private Sector) office, and drawing from personal experience, I have entered into discussions and am drawing up a project plan for a private tourism center, to be located in the Harsnaqar Hotel Complex, for private enterprise tourism industry businesses to advertise their goods and services in a very public and well-known area.  I am hoping that this private tourism center will act as a tourism commerce bureau that will help develop a more collaborative business culture.  I’ll let you know how this works out.

I’ve been devising a strategy to further the online presence of the Sevan, and Armenia, tourism destination brands.  Travel and tourism websites abound and tourists are always looking for information on potential getaways.  I believe Armenia is really under-the-radar, as a brand, and I think that a guerilla marketing campaign might exact some very positive outcomes in this vein.  I don’t think there’s a holistic view of what Armenia really is, as a tourism product, and I’d like to design a campaign to address this fragmented brand perception.  I’ve made a matrix of all possible travel tourism website portals that I’ve come across thus far, and have devised a way to promote the individual, marz and national brand in a subversive way that will appeal to potential tourists making plans to visit the Caucusas region.  I’ll be implementing this in March.

I also created a Tourism Prospectus Packet, which I’ve begun to send around to travel agencies in the US.  This idea was broached by one of my father’s contact who owns a travel agency in California.  The purpose of this packet was to help provide appealing information about what Sevan – and Armenia in general – has to offer as a travel destination.  It was created to be a destination marketing collateral that would be shopped around to customers of travel agencies in the United States.  This item was developed in tandem with my counterpart, Lusine.  The outcome of this collateral is yet to be seen.  I’ll let you know how this works out.

The Youth Career & Professional Development Center is coming along well.  We’ve finished writing the organizational plan, and grant proposal.  It’s going to be an expensive project – the requested total amounts to around $50K.  We’re working with the Center for Development of Civil Society NGO out of Yerevan in implementing the center in Sevan.  We are in the process of seeking funding sources, and have set meetings with the aim of doing so.

My Capacity-Building Initiatives are coming along extremely well.  I’ve been providing assistance in developing resumes and personal and professional facilitation, as time allows.  Various community members have approached me to request assistance in applying for jobs, as well as to find out about possible work- and study-abroad opportunities.  Currently, I’m aiding several separate individuals with their resumes, while also providing advice on how they might develop more professional experience (through volunteerism, etc.).  I’m using the resume writing “workshops” to help me develop a ready-resource of potential applicants for various programs I may encounter in the future, or as potential / future participants in the Youth Career & Professional Development Center.  Armen, our former technical trainer was able to provide me with some guidance in finding out about available study abroad opportunities.  Right now, I’m in the process of looking for organizations that provide opportunities that I might be able to help plug qualified applicants into; I have been somewhat successful in plugging individuals into opportunities to this point.  I just finished finding interpreter positions for three highly-qualified individuals I work with for the upcoming elections, working for OSCE (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe).  I’ve also plugged quite a few people into internships in the capital.  This is really fulfilling work, I must admit.  I hope to find more opportunities soon.

I also finished my Language Tutor Business Plan last month.  Having discussed the language tutoring business with a relative of my Shahumyan host family, that currently resides and works in Yerevan, I found a strong need for an openly available organized business plan for language tutors.  I developed the business plan and provided it to this aforementioned individual along with four other individuals in Yerevan.  I hope to circulate it more widely moving forward.

I’ve been providing a good amount of business consultation to business entities within my community as well.  I’ve completed a telephone and security installation business consultation already, which worked out extremely well.  I’m also working on a business plan, along with some general business advice, for a plastic bag manufacturer in Sevan.  I’ve finished a small-scale marketing project for a restaurant here, Ekipaj Bistro, which proved to be very effective; they went along with all my advice and are very happy with the results thus far.  What else – oh, I finished my ‘Detroit Rock City’ business and marketing consultation project.  They’re an entertainment group who are doing some really exciting and progressive things in-country.  That was a really fun project where I developed and designed marketing collaterals, including: brochures, posters, t-shirts, menus and table tents.  I also designed a website for them and am in the process of minor revisions before an anticipated launch in May.

I’m also writing a commercial fish farm business plan.  I’ve done a lot of research for this project, and we’re in the process of writing a project & implementation plan so we can apply for start-up funds.  I’m hoping to get $20K to get things rolling.  I want this to be a capstone project for my service here.  I’ll let you know how this progresses.

I recently found and assisted five young women with UGRAD applications, which will give them a study abroad experience in the US.  Two of them got interviews and we’re waiting to here if these individuals will go on to the next round.  Fingers crossed.

I also developed and designed marketing collaterals for the Gyumri IT Center.  The materials were tailored for a fundraising campaign they’ll begin next month.  Best wishes for their success in finding the month they need to keep things rolling.  They’re doing great work.

And on and on and on – I try to stay really busy here.  And I’ve been successful in this up to now.  I have other things going on, but no need to get exhaustive.  I’m really learning a lot of valuable lessons personally and professionally that I believe will greatly aid me moving forward in life.  I no longer see problems; I see opportunities for development and solutions.  I don’t see walls; I see ways to expand my horizons.  It’s almost like I’m discovering a “new mind” here.  I’m excited about where I am right now, and I’m hoping things continue to progress as they have been.

I hope all of you are well.  I’ll update again soon.   

-D.

Hi everyone,

I’m coming off a great couple of weeks and have a lot to update you all on.  On November 16th, I checked into the Hrazdan Hotel in Yerevan for the annual All Volunteer Conference.  It’s a time for us to review our first three months on site, get updated and refreshed on admin-, program-, and work-related information.  We also group share information, have sector training, language training, guest speakers and then, on the final day, a Development Fair where representatives of international, and national, developmental organizations are present to talk about their activities, programs and opportunities for collaboration, etc.

I have to say, the only thing I did on that first day was take an hour-long shower and revel in a comfortable bed set in a warm room.  Bliss.  The next day we started up early, and I co-facilitated an opening session with our Associate Country Director, Jason, on surviving the first three months.  We talked about our CORE competencies, reviewed some material from this summer’s Pre-Service Training and then talked about our experiences on site.  It was a really interesting session, especially in terms of finding out about some of the activities of other volunteers on-site.

That first day was pretty busy.  That night a bunch of us went out on the town and got a little more familiar with Yerevan.  The next day was Language Camp, where we got refreshed on the Armenian Language, self-assessing our progress.  That night myself, Andrea and Corey (two other CBD Volunteers) went out to visit our old LCF (Language and Cultural Facilitator) from PST (Pre-Service Training).  I’m getting good with acronyms, by the way.  Her place is in a suburb of Yerevan.  Her family prepared a fantastic dinner for us, after which we hung out, sung and chatted a bit.  Here’s a clip of Lusine (our old LCF) and her sister (who’s a professional singer) giving us a traditional Armenian duet:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hS7oxHQU0Bg

Another LCF from a different village was present with his family, too.  His daughter likes to play with cigarettes – yeah, I’m being serious.  Here’s a clip of what happens when you take her daddy’s cigarettes away from her:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z81_F2iP-eg

So that night was great.  After the dinner, we went back to the hotel, and just rotated from room party to room party.

Next day we had more PC-related stuff, after which we got ready for our big (early) Thanksgiving meal.  The US Government finances the meal for us and I have to tell you: IT WAS AMAZING.  The government may pay for it, but the volunteers have to prepare it, and they did a bang-up job: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, dressing, corn, green beans, cole slaw, cranberry sauce, apple sauce, fresh rolls, and on and on.

That night it was my birthday, which was great.  I got a pretty amazing take, believe it or not.  I had another volunteer stitch me a beanie, I got a hand-carved pipe, cologne, a bottle of booze, and a couple of CDs.  That night I took it easy; I needed some recoup from the previous two nights.  The next day was the Development Fair.  That was a really productive opportunity to network.  I met some people representing various organizations that I was already incommunicado with, as well as some new ones.  The most promising outcome for me was meeting Dr. S. Aslanyan, who works at the University of International Relations.  She works mainly in women’s advocacy here in-country, and through speaking with her, broke upon Lusine M.’s idea (my counterpart) for creating a professional and career development center, for plugging in promising youth (especially women) into relevant positions.  This country is really into the “good ol’boy” system of farming out good jobs and professional development opportunities to friends and relatives.  This center would help not only empower youth and women with skills that they could utilize in pursuing their various career interests, but also in providing some professional networking facilitation in knowing about relevant opportunities for these same youth and women.  In effect, we’re thinking it will have a head-hunting capacity.  We’re still developing the organizational plan, but Lusine and I will be setting a meeting with Dr. Aslanyan to figure out a time to meet.  We really would need the backing of an established NGO to get the funding necessary to start a project like this, and Dr. Aslanyan is the director of just such an organization with a great running history of successful project implementation and management.  So anyway, it’s an exciting development.

Made some other good contacts, which I’ll spare you – suffice it to say, it was a great time.

The next weekend, I had a meeting with our Country Director, along with three other volunteers, to explore ways the Peace Corps Caucusas countries might facilitate better collaboration between various volunteers under their respective programs, in addressing issues together that have an overall commonality.  The outcome was the four of us will be developing a schematic and vision statement for our idea, and then gauging a level of interest from the other two Caucus countries (Peace Corps posts).  I’ll let you know what comes of it all.

And then tonight, I have a dinner meeting again with the Country Director and a couple of other volunteers with the acting director of USAID, as well as a few of their program managers, and the director of the Millennium Challenge Account for Armenia.  We’ll be discussing development in-country.  I’ll update you all on what comes of the meeting.

And I’m also just starting to teach a business class at the Sevan State College – I’ll have a translator and be teaching general business concepts.  I’ve had one class, and am looking forward to getting back into the fray on Monday.  I’m hoping I’ll have the chance to meet some bright kids through this experience.

Anyway, that’s it for now guys.

-Dietrich 

Hi everyone,

I’ve got a few updates.  My article came out in my town’s newspaper.  So it’s official, I’m famous.  The article reports on an interview I gave the paper about the business environment in my town, my role within the community and my perceptions of Armenia.  Here I am:

And the snow continues to come – it’s actually kind of nice right now:

I’ll be glad to get out of town tomorrow!  I’ve got a five-day conference in Yerevan that I’m excited about.  I’ll be co-facilitating a lecture with our Associate Country Director, Jason, about how to integrate more fully into ones’ respective community.  I’ll let you know how that turns out – I’ve got till Saturday to prepare. 

I’ve also got some fantastic news:  Lusine M. has just gotten her first internship!!!  I found out about 6 short-term internship positions for the ATHGO Global Symposia on bridging the development gap in ICT between developed and developing countries.  People from the UN and UNGAID will be there, as well as delegates, leaders in European Industry and people from private sector technology businesses operating out of Armenia.  She applied and passed the first round last week, then early this week had her first interview ever – and then this morning she got a call to let her know she had been chosen for one of the positions!  Can you imagine!  I’m really proud of her; this is a big first step for her getting a career started.

I’ll let you know about what transpires this weekend – hope all is well.

Hey everyone,

So everything’s good here.  I’ve really been focusing on integrating into my community and networking, so I can draw resources and projects in to help address the multifarious needs of my area.  In the world of developmental aid, who you know is everything.  The good thing is that the circles are pretty small and not that hard to break into.  Having professional experience, and showing some insight, is all you really need to be taken seriously.  Everyone I’ve met thus far has been extremely helpful in offering advice, and opening up opportunities for me to take advantage of on behalf of my community and key individuals that I’m helping.

I have a really exciting update on an exchange program proposal I wrote almost two months ago for USAID.  A little background:  I had met the Cross-Cutting Program Manager for USAID when senior USAID personnel came and presented to all the PCVs in-country during a training seminar on their current initiatives and things happening on a policy-level in-country.  After the presentation, I introduced myself to several of the presenters and exchanged contact info.  On further follow-up, I was invited to submit my ideas for an exchange program by the Corss-Cutting Program Manager, Yeva.  The proposal I submitted for the exchange program, centered on the tourism industry.

To better communicate business and organizational ideas in practical terms, the program will connect entrepreneurs and business leaders who are positioned to capitalize on Armenia’s burgeoning tourism industry in an interactive dialogue with American counterpart organizations, associations, businesses and entrepreneurs in advancing, improving and expanding opportunities within Armenia through a transfer of knowledge, skills and attitudes apropos the tourism trade.  The program will focus on enhancing performance on a personal, professional and organizational level.

By engaging a cross-section of the tourism business community in situations where they’re encouraged to interact with people from outside their usual social patterns and professional associations there will be great momentum for inspiring personal and professional understanding through group study, having engaged them in a thoughtful process concerning pursuits and goals they have in common – in this instance, capitalizing on the tourism industry.  By introducing diversity into otherwise familiar community scenarios and business situations, this cross-section of entrepreneurs and business leaders will be exposed to new perspectives, ideas and strategies, as well as different concerns and obstacles from those that they may have yet faced, all while addressing issues that have an overall commonality as well as a personal and professional relevance.

The Tourism Community Exchange Program: Entrepreneurial Enterprise will focus on garnering individuals from the business arena who are in positions to not only appreciate and utilize the experience, but translate their Entrepreneurial Enterprise Exchange experience for others within their home community through leadership, communication and facilitation.

Currently the Armenian tourism business community lacks practiced knowledge in: (1) how to capitalize on tourism effectively and efficiently, (2) how to better provide for the industry and cultivate a positive and marketable tourism product, (3) how to communicate the benefits of the community to its current and prospective consumer markets, (4) how to approach tourism in a holistic manner, as seen as an asset that is to be managed, cultivated and provided for, and (5) how to collaborate across business-groups within the tourism industry to address issues that have an overall commonality.

The exchange program will focus on key issues in the tourism trade on a business and community level.  Group projects, case studies, interactive learning and dialogue will help participating individuals learn to approach tourism matters through collaborative efforts, and learn the benefits of cooperation.

Anyway, back to it – the proposal was approved by the ACG committee.  Project Harmony will be the contractor implementing the project and I’ll be working with them to flush out the details for implementation.  I’m really excited about that.

Also, the marketing project for the Sevan Newspaper, underwritten by Eurasia Foundation, was finished and presented to the director of the paper and Eurasia staff.  The feedback was very positive, and I’ll be helping with the implementation of the plan soon.  I also gave an interview to the Sevan Newspaper and will be featured in an upcoming feature article – so that’s pretty cool. 

I also have a meeting with the Competitive Armenian Private Sector (CAPS) tourism team on Wednesday of this coming week, at their offices in Yerevan.  We’ll be discussing some ideas I have for tourism development within my community, as well as past successes and failures of CAPS within other communities around Armenia, that I might be able to learn from in creating a vision for the Sevan tourism “product.”  I’m really excited about this meeting, and what I’ll be able to learn from the experiences of the people at CAPS.  I got the meeting set-up through a chance encounter with the CAPS Chief of Party at a tourism expo I was attending.  He was very gracious in setting this up and I’ll look forward to updating you all on the outcomes.

I’m also getting ready to start designing some marketing collaterals for a wonderful organization based out of Gyumri, which is the second largest city in Armenia.  The Gyumri Information Technology Center, or GITC, was established in August of 2005.  It’s a 2-year post-graduate program with a market driven curriculum.  They have two main programs, one focusing on Hardware Design and Software Development and then one in Web Technologies.  Their first class had 100% job placement – so amazing!!!  The model they’re utilizing is really effective; they have a teaching faculty taken from top Armenian Universities and IT companies, drawn mainly from the capital.  They’re basically adjuncts, and are driven in on a rotating schedule, 6 days per week for 10 academic hours per day.  The objectives of the organization are to promote IT industry expansion from Yerevan out into the Northern region of the country, drive the formation of an IT infrastructure in the Northern region, promote employment opportunities in the Northern region, prepare qualified IT professionals to work in a production environment, train the work force coming out of their programs with a “Western-minded” business mentality (time = value = money), and finally, bring e-Readiness to the Gyumri area.  Their Executive Director is a really dynamic woman, and I’m excited to help her raise funds with this new marketing push.  They’re in a real crunch to meet budget needs, and I’m going to do what I can.

On a personal level, I’m getting ready for winter.  We had three feet of snow the other day – I’m breaking in my shat-tak-e duds.  I’ve busted my ass a few times on the ice here, it’s a serious challenge to get to work without eating mud-slush-tar-gunk at least a few times on the way.  I’ve started wearing my Yak-Tracks and it’s mid-November.  Yikes.

And my birthday is almost here - November 18th.  I’ll be in the capital for an all-volunteer conference, so I have that to look forward to.

What else…I guess that’s it for now – I’ve got a lot of other things going on, but I’ll save that for my next post.  Hope all is well for you guys, and I’ll update again soon.

And I just want to say thanks again to the guys over there at Rassai Interactive for making all this possible (www.rassai.com)!!!

-Dietrich

Hi everyone!

Well, things have been progressing well on-site.  I actually am returning from a weekend in the capital, which was extremely productive.  On Friday, I was one of two volunteers who represented the US Peace Corps at a US Educational Fair, held at the American University of Armenia.  The conference was geared toward youth and professionals who were interested in studying in the United States.  It was a great chance to meet some really motivated youth in-country and network with other organizations.  I met, and will be helping, three individuals in particular with their applications for Muskie grants, that would fully facilitate a study-abroad opportunity in the US (for their Masters).  My role will center around providing technical assistance and thoughts on the required essays, as well as other relevant application advice.  I’ll look forward to doing whatever I can!  These applicants are amazing candidates.

On Saturday, I had meetings with members of various developmental organizations and on Sunday night I had a dinner/meeting at our country director’s home to discuss youth development with leaders of relevant organizations operating within Armenia and abroad.  I had the opportunity to take two other people, and I chose another business volunteer working in a youth development NGO in the north, as well as Lusine, the young woman I’m working with in Sevan.  It was a very interesting time, and a great opportunity to discuss how youth can get plugged-in here in Armenia.  It’s a difficult prospect, embarking on a career here in Armenia and the task can seem insurmountable at times – especially for women.  For women, they’re not only fighting their lack of professional experience, but also gender stereotypes.  I have hope that the meeting will have some productive outcomes relating to my future service here, in terms of knowledge, contacts and professional development opportunities for a few sharp, young Armenians I’m currently working with.  I’ve posted a picture below of a few of the attendees of our meeting.

Other than that, everything is great!  I’ll look forward to posting another update soon!  Make sure to forward on any questions you might have, or any help you might be able to offer apropos anything I’m doing!  Refer to the previous blog entry for ways you might be able to help in particular!

-Dietrich

Hey all,

Thanks for visiting my blog site!  My name is Robert Dietrich and I’m a United States Peace Corps Volunteer, working in Armenia.  This site is to inform those of you who are interested on what exactly I’m doing here in Armenia.  Before I get going, I need to state that this is a PERSONAL site and is to be in no way confused with an official Peace Corps site.  The opinions and views expressed here are my own.

Also, I need to do a little shout-out:  this site has been made possible by a generous donation from Rassai Interactive (www.rassai.com).  Many thanks to them for hosting this site, which enables me to keep you all informed!

Now, for those of you that know me, please excuse me indulging in a little bit of background for those who are visiting this site randomly.  Specifically, I work under the Community and Business Development (CBD) Program as a Small Enterprise Development Advisor.  Peace Corps has four different programs in Armenia, to which volunteers are assigned.  Each program has a different purpose and framework for operations.  Within the Community and Business Development Program we work with local organizations, businesses and community members to improve the quality of community life through effective use of communication, business and organizational skills and creating cooperative networks to share information and resources. 

Each volunteer, within the CBD program, is assigned to an NGO (non-governmental organizations) within our permanent site, where we spend the majority of our time during our two year, three month service tour.  Most of us have very distinct skills and experiences that especially suit our service for a particular community’s multifarious needs.  The process of choosing and selecting sites is a fairly complex and detailed process, which our Program Manager facilitates before we arrive in-country.  And when we arrive on-site, as was the case in my experience, there is plenty to do.  Mainly, we work in the areas of: business skills development, project planning and management, personal and professional development, organizational development, teamwork and leadership, communication skills building, business networking and community networking.  And those are formal objectives; informally, there is much, much more.  Essentially, there isn’t much that we don’t do.  The needs of our communities really define our deliverables.  Every service opportunity here is very unique, and we all work in many different capacities with extremely varied outcomes. 

Armenia is an incredible country, and my experience here thus far has been amazing.  The people and culture are especially striking.  I have never encountered such hospitality and warmth.  As volunteers working in rural areas, we’re greeted as friends and embraced as family.  And all this in a country that faces some striking problems in terms of development.  There are two Armenias, in my opinion.  There’s the Armenia that’s seen in the capital (Yerevan) and the Armenia that’s seen everywhere else in the country.  There is a relative abundance of opportunities and resources in the capital, but very little of those resources leak out into the rest of the country.  But that’s a generalized statement, and you need to qualify the way in which I employ the terms ‘opportunities’ and ‘resources’.  Armenia has a developing, though struggling, economy.  Jobs are scarce – really, really scarce.  A lot of the men leave for extended periods to work in Russia.  Corruption is rampant, and can be tough to deal with.  There is still a pervading Soviet mentality that can be difficult to deal with.  Infrastructure is improving, but can still be a problem.  Trade routes are limited.  The political situation is delicate.  And I could go on.  And these problems I mention aren’t unique to Armenia, as a former Soviet socialist state, though in some areas there are some very acute manifestations of the above mentioned issues.  But I have confidence in what I’m doing here.  The Armenians have endured hardship after hardship and shown amazing resiliency.  You have to ask yourself, where are the Babylonians?  This is an ancient and enduring civilization and culture, and I have great hopes for its future.

Okay, to get back to specifics, within my community – a town of about 40,000 – I am facing some very interesting challenges and have been very busy to date.  Below, you’ll find a point-by-point summary of my activities to date:

(1)  Within my NGO, RDRC: 
My primary organization on-site is RDRC, Regional Development and Research Center.  We’re a small NGO with a staff of about ten.  Currently, our main projects are as follows:

A.  Expanding the Media’s Role in a Burgeoning Democracy
Through a grant from the Eurasia Foundation, my NGO is currently helping the local paper expand its role as a viable information source and communication vehicle within our community.  We want to expand the paper’s readership within our community, while increasing revenues through subscription rates and business advertisements.  We are in the process of establishing benchmark research to help us better understand the demographics, psychographics, attitudes and consumption patterns of the local populace.  We have just finished surveying three separate audiences: general consumers, customers of the paper and local business owners.  The final marketing plan will be completed in the next couple of weeks.  This is the first such project my NGO has undertaken, and I’ve had my hands full facilitating and managing the venture.  One of our major tasks, manifest in everything we do here, is capacity-building.  And that certainly has been the case here.  It’s difficult to teach and “do” at the same time.  But it’s exciting to see how fast and willing everyone is to learn these somewhat foreign concepts and implement them on a grass-roots level.  And on a more personal-professional level, for myself, I’ve learned so much through this process!  Conducting a marketing-driven project like this opens you up to problems I wouldn’t have ever encountered doing business in the states.  It really has broadened my business acumen for doing business in a foreign context.

B.  Small & Medium Enterprise Development Project
Through a grant from a USAID implementing partner, our NGO is working on a business consulting project, helping local businesses develop formal business plans and address outstanding problems, needs and issues.  We have until Dec. 15^th to consult with five separate business entities.  We’re working with a local manufacturing plant and a retail outlet, currently.  Again, this project is another first for my NGO.  This project has been especially rewarding for me, as I’m learning how to adapt Western business “best practices,” to the local market.  Learning how to do business in a completely different foreign cultural context is a fascinating experience.

C.  Anti-Corruption Project
This project is pending, while the grant is still under review, but assuming final approval, several members of my NGO will be a part of an exchange program focusing on knowledge transfer of best practices in the areas of Anti-Corruption (which is extremely important for Armenia), and Civic Advocacy within the Caucuses region.  My NGO has traditionally worked in implementing anti-corruption and civic advocacy programs throughout their Marz (state) region.  Though now we are expanding our capacity for business enterprise development, as that is a major need here in Armenia.  My work here at the NGO focuses on expanding the organization’s viability as a provider, and facilitator, of relevant assistance.

D.  Website Project
This is more of an internal project, which entails us coming up with a web presence.  We’re going to develop something simple, highlighting our capabilities, reviewing past and current projects as well as providing contact information.  I’m designing the whole thing, so we’ll see how it all comes out.  Right now, I’m swamped with other projects, so it’s on the back-burner till I can find some time to play with it this winter.

E.  And more to come!!!
We’ve got lots cooking right now, and are considering several other grant applications.  There is a very real need, within my community, for customer service training, and my NGO is trying to find ways to acquire funding to provide seminars that would help bridge this knowledge gap.  My site is a very viable, and somewhat established, tourism destination, both for the internal, national market, and the external, international market.  Though how to capitalize on that position is something businesses here are still grappling with.  There are lots of areas in which my NGO can help, and we’re trying to get started with general business consultation and customer service training.  We’ll see what we can come up with!

(2)  Tourism Development
My secondary organization is the Tourism Office for my town, which is an extension of the municipal administration.  Currently, we’re working on the following items:

(A) Tourism Center
Right now, there’s a real focus on developing our area as a tourism destination.  Our community sits on the coast of one of the largest alpine lakes in the world, and has a wealth of activities, cultural heritage sites and other features that make it a natural fit for any tourist visiting Armenia.  And they do.  But the “product” as a whole is fragmented, and a tourist visit is almost always haphazard and usually limited to a day-trip.  We want to increase the time spent on site, and encourage visitors to engage the “product” and interact with the local community.  Ways to accomplish this that we’re exploring are as follows:

-Centralized Tourism Center:  Our community is a natural gateway for tourists looking to explore the north half of the country, being an hour’s trip up from the capital.  We’d like to capitalize on this position by establishing a centralized tourism center that would be located right off the main highway, just outside of town.  The center would offer much needed information and guidance to tourists, wherever their final destination would be.  There are plenty of resources out there available to tourists on what to do in Yerevan, but not much information is readily available on things to do outside of the capital.  Not only would we provide information on places to stay and things to do within our community, but we would also serve as a locus of information for other areas that tourists might find worth visiting.  Hotels, hostels, bed & breakfasts, home-stays, restaurants, cultural heritage sites, activity-organizers, eco-tourism outfits, etc. from different areas will all be to advertise their services and products within the center, and knowledgeable staff will be on hand to field questions and provide recommendations in English, Russian, French and Armenian (we’ve got the staff, but not the center).  We’re finishing up developing the organizational plan right now, and are in the process of seeking funding sources.  This is a huge priority for my town, and will have a great impact on the developing tourism sector within the north half of the country – if we can get the idea off the ground.  If anyone out there knows of a potential funding source – email me!  I’ll keep you apprised on any developments.

-Tourism Website:  Most tourists planning a trip to Armenia do exactly that: plan.  We’d like to develop an online tourism resource to connect with travelers early on to encourage them to visit our area, and other sites-of-interest in the north half of the country.  This is going to take a lot of work on my part.  I’m saving the development of this project for the winter months, when I’m huddled around my little gas heater. -Tourism Collaterals:  We have some great brochures that we designed and had printed through funding from the city, but we’re out!  And our community doesn’t have the funds to have a new batch printed.  The brochures are full-color fold outs that provide tourists with a map of the entire Marz (state) and marked areas of interest, in English, Russian and Armenian.  It’s such a great resource!  We definitely have to find funding to have more printed, and are in the process of seeking out funding.-Tourism Seminars:  There is some great research being conducted right now by the USAID CAPS (Competitive Armenian Private Sector) Project on knowledge gaps within the tourism industry.  We want to design a series of seminars to address these defined knowledge gaps for local businesses that would benefit.  The seminars will focus on basic, practical areas to improve general operations and service.  We’re currently organizing course content and lesson plans, and should have a proposal ready within the next few months to start seeking out funding.(B) Grenoble, France Rural Tourism Development Collaboration
My community has a “Sister Cities” type of arrangement with a city in France that is helping them develop their viability as a more organized tourist destination, mainly through capacity building.  They have hosted a very beneficial exchange program where two staff members from the local tourism office traveled to Grenoble to learn about how the area markets itself as a destination. As the staff members returned, the tourism office hosted a conference on what the exchangees learned on their trip where several members of the Grenoble municipal tourism office were in attendance.  Local Armenian businesses attended and were encouraged to offer up any questions they had, discuss issues and brainstorm on how to collaborate.  Developments to date are still in an inchoative stage and right now we’re still exploring how we might leverage this sister city-type relationship to further benefit the community.  I’ll let you know what happens! 

C. Marketing Plan
I’m also working with the acting head of the tourism office to develop a tourism marketing plan for the area.  This is a huge project that will require some time to develop, but we’re moving in the right direction and making some headway.  It’s difficult because you can’t just fly solo, you have to teach along the way and introduce new concepts and adapt and explain them.  But it’s exciting, and I’m working with a really sharp individual on this project.  I have high hopes in terms of outcomes.  Another difficulty is we have to work ahead of ourselves at times.  So as we’re developing the plan conceptually, we’re also having to solidify certain elements at a tactic-level to make headway for this next upcoming season, starting May (destination prospectus packet, website, online guerilla marketing campaign, some PR, etc.).  This is a really exciting, though challenging aspect of my role within the organization.  I’m learning a lot!!!

D.  Lonely Planet Guide
This is done and DONE!  I was able to connect with the writer of the Lonely Planet Guidebook for Armenia (he’s updating content for the new edition), which is really great for the area.  He came to my site for a day and I was able to showcase the area; we were able to add a significant amount of material for the area’s chapter.  This was a great success!

(3)  Capacity-Building Initiatives [READ THIS SECTION]
So, probably the most fulfilling aspect of my service to-date is working to make an impact on the lives of individuals on a grass-roots level.  You meet so many incredible people here:  so much potential, so much passion, so much intelligence, so much enthusiasm – and all with so little opportunity.  It really sucks.  And it’s difficult for them to work through it.  There are successes, and then debilitating defeats.  It’s a constant battle, but I admire and most of all, respect, their resiliency in striving forward to make something happen.  Below I’ve highlighted some of the exceptional people I’ve encountered to-date, and how I’m working with them – and in some cases, how you can help!

(A)  Lusine M.
Lusine is an extremely bright, intelligent, and motivated 23 year-old young woman that I am working with on several different projects.  She has recently graduated from a university in Yerevan, majoring in English and minoring in Spanish.  She’s fluent in both languages, and also Russian.  She has some professional experience, but is looking for any opportunities to expand her professional capacity.  She faces a unique set of challenges in Armenia, being from a rural area.  As I had previously stated, Yerevan is much different than the rest of Armenia.  The reason we volunteers are assigned to sites outside of the capital is to draw resources out of the relatively resource-rich urban capital.  It’s like night and day, I’ve got to tell you.  And for a woman here who wants to have a career and do more than get married at a young age and play caddy to her husband, it can be extremely difficult.  Lack of opportunities, gender bias, harassment, a serious “glass ceiling,” stereotypes, etc. etc.  I wouldn’t say the situation here is unique, I think women in developing countries typically face similar problems.  But nonetheless, it’s tough to see them struggle with it.  Lusine is trying to enter in upon a professional career, and to do this she’s trying to find a job or internship opportunity in the capital.  Women have a much better chance to “make it” working in the capital, her opportunities out here in a more rural township are limited to non-existent.  She has a passion for youth development, and she has so many great ideas!  I think she’ll use her career and any opportunity she’s afforded for the greater benefit of her community, and country, at large.  So right now, I’m working on teaching her anything and everything I can.  She assists me in translating just about everything, as well as helping me in the areas of general project administration and design.  She’s got a very intuitive and analytical knack and I’m often surprised at the insight she’s able to offer.  I see her as being the most valuable resource I’ve encountered on-site, and I’ll hate to see her go, but she has the potential to do so much more and to do that she’s got to make it into the capital!  She’s reading anything and everything in terms of professional literature, and attempting to enroll in any seminar that comes up (competitive admission is pretty normal here for these sorts of professional development seminars), as an opportunity to evolve professionally and network.  This is certainly difficult though, considering her location an hour outside the capital (public transport is tough) and lack of money (most people in the rural areas are really strapped for cash).  So anyway, the two areas in which Lusine can benefit from your help are:
1.  Through your donation of professional work clothing.  It’s expensive here!  She doesn’t have anything suitable for a job environment and / or an interview and she really needs it for work in the capital.  So, if any of you ladies have an old pantsuit, blazer or some other type of professional women’s wear that you don’t wear anymore, or if you feel like burning some of that hard earned cash on someone who could really benefit from it – we’ll take it and appreciate it GREATLY!  Contact me for particulars: robert.w.dietrich@gmail.com. 
2.  Knowledge regarding opportunities for advancement.  If you know of a study abroad opportunity, a (credible) internship opportunity, a work opportunity, any sort of “in” or contact that she might be able to take advantage of, let me know!  We’re really hoping to find something in Yerevan, but she’s open to anything.  Please, contact me with any opportunities you might be aware of: robert.w.dietrich@gmail.com.

(B)  Zhenia P.
Zhenia is another extremely bright, enthusiastic and driven young professional woman here in Armenia.  She’s 22 and working in the capital currently.  She was rather lucky, better said, rather persistent, in finding employment and she’s got a job to show for her efforts.  One of the reasons she was able to accomplish this, was due to her ability to live in the capital with relatives for a period of time – long enough to find work.  Now she’s out on her own and working like crazy.  She works 12 hour days, six days a week, and still somehow finds time to run her own tutoring business.  I’m currently collaborating with her on developing a business and marketing plan for her tutoring business.  She’s thought of some really dynamic angles to employ, and I’m excited to be working with her on this project.  And, what’s more, she wants to make the plan available to other young women who are working through school, or trying to start a career, to help enable them to support themselves financially utilizing the skills at their disposal with a flexible schedule they can self-manage.  And all this is coming from her; I’ve been really impressed!  Currently, she’s working in a position that doesn’t utilize her potential – at all – so we’re actively seeking opportunities for her as well.  I have confidence that she’ll find something, as she’s in a good position to do so living now in the capital.

(C)  Aren G.
Aren is a really creative, hard-working young man living just outside the third largest city in Armenia.  He’s 21, engaged and working hard to establish some resources to start a family.  I’m working with him on developing some business ideas having to do with agri-products that he has ready access to from a village resource.  He’s learning how to be a middle-man, successfully I might add.  He’s as entrepreneurial as they come, and the biggest challenge I’m facing with him is getting him to focus on one of his ideas, currently that’s the one dealing with produce.  He’s also got an idea for a transport service that he thinks there’s a real market for.  We’ll have to see, I’ve got my hands full with just one of his ideas.  I know there’ll be more to report soon, as he’s always hustling.

(D)  The K. Family
I’m working with a really motivated family that wants to start growing a rare type of mushroom and sell it at market in the capital.  They live in a village, and have access to the type of controlled environment that would be needed to facilitate the growing effort.  This particular type of mushroom sells for quite a bit, and is considered a delicacy.  The hitch is that it’s also a real pain to grow, and there’s a large amount of technical knowledge that’s needed to successfully pull the venture off.  So I’m helping them apply for technical assistance through a USDA project.  I’ve also written a few specialists back in the states, at various universities, on any information they might be able to provide.  No word back yet, so we’ll have to see.  If you’d like to help this family, here’s how you could do so:
1.  Do you know anyone who knows anything about growing Champion mushrooms?  If so, please let me know – or have them get in touch with me!  robert.w.dietrich@gmail.com.  
 
(4)  Organizational Initiatives
I’m also working within Peace Corps Armenia on the following:

(A)  PR Initiative
I’m working as a co-chair on this initiative currently, in implementing a communications plan for our organization in-country.  The person who manages our PR program currently does an AMAZING job, but we’re trying to de-centralize the task, somewhat, by making individual volunteers more accountable for promoting and increasing awareness of their efforts (especially their successes).  I’m collaborating with three other volunteers right now in drafting it, and we’ll be submitting it soon for more official review. 

And on, and on:  I’m also working with a group of men on developing their business idea for a fish restocking business; building a compendium of resumes from qualified applicants I might be able to plug into various opportunities, as I encounter them; finding English resources for the English Department of the local state college; doing minor consultation for a security installation business.  I’m also doing some consultation on other projects, collaborating with other volunteers on projects for their respective sites’, as well as working on one other organizational initiative.  I don’t know, I’m working seven days a week right now, and there’s no end in sight – and I couldn’t be happier. 

If you’re ever interested in finding out more about what I’m doing here, or have questions, please feel free to get in contact with me!  I’d love to answer any questions.  And if you want to help, again, please get in contact with me; there are so many ways you can make an impact over here, and if you’ve got an idea, please let me know.  The thing about working with Peace Corps Volunteers is you’re not dealing with a bureaucracy, you’re working with a grass-roots volunteer.  We know the needs of the community, we know the people who are going to utilize the assistance effectively, we can monitor the implementation first-hand – we’re on the level!  So again, get in contact if you have anything to offer: an idea, some technical skill, an old laptop, some clothing, some English books…anything…and I’ll let you know how you can make a real difference in the life of someone over here!  robert.w.dietrich@gmail.com.  Okay, that’s enough of a sell (for this entry).

Oh, and before I end off, I want to send a special thanks out to Laura Mayberry for donating a great resource on marketing!  Thanks so much Mayberry, I’m able to teach with it and the people I’m working with are really getting the material. 

I’ll update again soon.

–
Robert Dietrich
Enterprise Development Advisor
Armenia