President Vahagn Khachaturyan received Carolyn Mugar, President of the Armenian Assembly of America, and Anthony Barsamian

President of the Republic Vahagn Khachaturyan received Carolyn Mugar, President of the Armenian Assembly of America, and Anthony Barsamian.

Welcoming the guests, President Vahagn Khachaturyan expressed his pleasure in receiving the Assembly’s delegation and noted his familiarity with the effective and important work of the Armenian Assembly of America. The President emphasized the significance of the Assembly’s efforts as a vital source of objective information about the situation in Armenia and the region, particularly for American and international audiences.

The President also highly appreciated the Assembly’s ongoing work on issues of pan-Armenian importance, which aims to deepen Armenian-American cooperation and to elevate Armenia’s role both in the region and on the international stage.

President Khachaturyan highlighted the importance of the programs implemented by the Assembly in Armenia, stressing their relevance to the country’s development.

During the meeting, the sides also exchanged views on the importance of the 17th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP-17), which will be held in Armenia in 2026.

In this context, the Assembly representatives shared details with the President about various projects being carried out in Armenia with the Assembly’s support — in particular, the activities of the “Armenia Tree Project” (officially known as ATP charitable foundation) founded in 1994 by Carolyn Mugar.

Since 1994, ATP has played a significant role in combating desertification. As part of the project, over 8 million trees have been planted and restored, and numerous jobs have been created.

ATP’s work is aimed at promoting Armenia’s economic and social development by focusing resources on reforestation efforts.

The main objectives of the ATP program are:

1. Tree planting in urban and rural areas,
2. Environmental education,
3. Sustainable development and poverty reduction.

In 2004, ATP expanded its programs to include environmental education. At the same time, ATP published Armenia’s first environmental education manual, titled “Plant an Idea, Plant a Tree,” and established the Michael and Virginia Ohanian Center for Environmental Studies in the villages of Karin and Margahovit. As a result of this expansion, around 300 schools have been established.