Application Deadline: April 22, 2026. For application and eligibility criteria, visit here.
Dates: May – September 2026
Number of Sessions: 12 sessions
Session Time: 19:00 – 21:30 (evening sessions)
Required: Understanding of the English language
Target Audience: Lawyers, policymakers, professionals working in environmental governance, regulation, and diplomacy, and related academic scholars
Description: International environmental law and diplomacy are gaining greater momentum in shaping relationships between states and communities. While the upcoming 2026 UN Biodiversity Conference (COP17) offers a timely platform to spotlight biodiversity, the Program situates Armenia’s priorities within the broader context of global environmental challenges, climate change, transboundary resource management, pollution, emerging technologies, and environmental rights. By connecting theory and practice, law and policy, local and international perspectives, the series will support Armenia’s evolution as a leader in sustainability and legal innovation. Programs and centers from the American University of Armenia (AUA), Yerevan State University (YSU), and the Armenian International Law Association (AILA) are joining forces to offer this first-ever professional program in Armenia on international environmental law.
For more information, visit https://ace.aua.am/projects/international-environmental-law-pdp/
On September 12, 2025, the Road to COP17 Initiative, a year-long series of activities to boost national awareness and capacities ahead of the 17th Conference of the Parties (COP17) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), to take place in Yerevan in October 2026.
Road to COP17 is co-organized by the AUA Acopian Center for the Environment, Armenia’s Ministry of Environment, and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
The main activities of the Road to COP17 Initiative include:
For the Road to COP17 Initiative webpage visit: ace.aua.am/projects/road-to-cop17.
See message from Astrid Schomaker, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity, on the launch of Road to COP17 in Armenia:
The AUA Acopian Center for the Environment’s combined 2024 and 2025 Impact Report is now available.
The Center’s level and intensity of activity have been unprecedented. We have delivered more policy advice, held more public outreach events, published more papers, and engaged with more national and international partners than ever before. Powered by the exceptional dedication and consistent performance of our team, the AUA Acopian Center for the Environment strengthened its role as a national platform for evidence-based environmental policy, applied research, and public engagement—at a pivotal moment when Armenia’s green transition agenda is gaining momentum, and the country is preparing for global visibility through UN CBD COP17 in Yerevan (October 19–30, 2026).
Take a few minutes to review our work in:
2024-2025 Impact Report of the AUA Acopian Center for the Environment
The USAID Armenia Improved Water Management for Sustainable Economic Growth Program (IWM) is implemented by Deloitte Consulting LLP. The Program aims to improve Armenia’s approach to water management by focusing on the equity of access to water while maintaining environmental flow and water quality for the protection of freshwater resources.
The AUA Acopian Center for the Environment was recruited to conduct a Political Economy Analysis (PEA) of the water sector in Armenia, identifying foundational factors, rules of the game, the here and now, and dynamics among the three to synthesize implications for the Program. This is intended as a first step in thinking and working politically and as an iterative process to continue beyond the initial assessment.
Armenia’s water-sector PEA will help gain an understanding of the underlying reasons why things work the way they do and identify the incentives and constraints impacting the behavior of actors in a relevant system. By helping identify these influences—political, economic, social, and cultural—PEA supports a more politically informed approach to working.
VISIT HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FULL REPORT, POLICY BRIEF, OR PRESENTATION SLIDES.
The AUA Akian College of Science and Engineering is offering a new undergraduate degree program starting fall 2023.
The four-year undergraduate Bachelors of Science (BS) program in Environmental and Sustainability Sciences (ESS) is designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills needed to understand and address sustainability challenges facing the natural and human-made environments.
The program will enable students to analyze human impacts on the planet’s climate system, biodiversity, biogeochemical cycles, water resources, land systems, and more. In addition, it will enable students to focus on sustainability of urban environments, including urban alignment with nature, mobility and energy solutions, air quality, use and disposal of water, waste and circular economy, disaster resilience, and more.
The program will equip students with knowledge and tools to work in multi-disciplinary, multi-cultural settings to begin addressing these challenges at the local, national, cross-border, and global levels.
For more information watch the program video below and visit the degree program’s webpage at the AUA Akian College of Science and Engineering website for details on the program and how to apply.
Dr. Garabet Kazanjian, AUA Acopian Center for the Environment fresh water ecologist, explains the causes for Lake Sevan’s algal blooms and what we can do about it. For more on AUA Acopian Center’s work on water-related issues, visit ace.aua.am/function-areas/water/.
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AUA plans to launch a bachelors degree on environmental and sustainability topics in Fall 2023. Check back for updates.
The AUA Acopian Center for the Environment has produced a series of 6 videos as a companion to the Field Guide to Birds of Armenia published by AUA Acopian Center for the Environment and Birds of Armenia.
The videos offer general information about birds worldwide and particularly in Armenia. Beginners will learn how to use the Field Guidebook to identify birds. They will also learn about main issues related to bird habitats, migration, and threats.
The videos is in Armenian with English subtitles. Each video is followed by a bilingual quiz.
Video 1. Introduction to the world of birds
This video will provide basic information about birds, their main characteristics. It will tell what is needed to start watching birds and will describe the structure of “A Field Guide to Birds of Armenia.” What is a bird? Number of species globally and in Armenia? Differences between non-migratory and migratory birds?
Video 2. What is needed for birdwatching
How to watch birds? What is needed for birdwatching? What is the structure of the Field Guide?
Video 3. Identifying birds: Morphology & Behavior
This video explains identifying birds using size, shape, plumage, behavior, and vocals/sounds. Ample examples are provided.
Video 4. Bird Habitats
This video explains what is habitat for birds and why it is important in bird identification. The main habitat types in Armenia are presented.
Video 5. Migration of Birds
This video gives an overview of bird migration, its causes and types. The importance of range maps, based on migration patters, are explained.
Video 6. Bird Species in Need of Protection
This video discusses bird species in need of protection. It presents the four groups that the birds are categorized into based on their abundance, population status, distribution, existing threats and other criteria [when the book was first published; though there is a translation of these categories to current accepted terms is offered?]. The video also discusses IUCN’s Red Lists of endangered species and efforts to protect them.
Working across scales, from environmental design to biological materials, Dr. Aroussiak Gabrielian, practicing designer and faculty within the Schools of Architecture and Cinema at the University of Southern California (USC), shares the climate focused work that she and her team of design-research students are advancing in the Landscape Futures Lab at USC, along with other noteworthy examples from the field at large. With the current state of crisis of the biophysical world around us, Dr. Gabrielian’s talk will address how to implement design and material innovation toward more regenerative and resilient futures.
More on her and the talk visit here: https://ace.aua.am/talk_seminars/environmental-futures/