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The Aurora Humanitarian Initiative will have an online discussion on April 24, 2020, the Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, at 8:30am (PDT), 11:30am (EDT), 3:30pm (GMT), 6:30pm (GMT+3), 7:30pm (GMT+4) to honor those who perished a century ago and celebrate modern heroes, including those fighting the global outbreak of COVID-19. The names of the 2020 Aurora Humanitarians will also be announced during the event, the initiative said in a statement. 

The online discussion will bring together Noubar Afeyan, Vartan Gregorian and Ruben Vardanyan, Co-Founders of the Initiative; Lord Ara Darzi, Chair of the Aurora Prize Selection Committee, and Marguerite Barankitse, Founder of Maison Shalom and inaugural Aurora Prize Laureate (2016). The event, hosted by the Futures Studio discussion platform, will be moderated by Nicola Stanisch, Executive Director of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative.

April 24 has always had a special place in the hearts of all Armenians, but this year, it’s particularly remarkable as we’re honoring the 105th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and the 75th anniversary of the Holocaust, as well as celebrating Aurora’s 5th anniversary. For years, Aurora has been upholding its symbolic traditions of remembering the Armenian Genocide martyrs at a flower-laying Ceremony in Tsitsernakaberd, the Armenian Genocide memorial complex, and honoring modern heroes by announcing the Aurora Humanitarians at Matenadaran, the national repository of ancient manuscripts, and inscribing their names in the Chronicles of Aurora.

"Now that the global agenda is focused on COVID-19, we cannot gather at Matenadaran as usual and have to adjust our plans accordingly. But we still stand together, and this online event will give us an opportunity to celebrate the 2020 Aurora Humanitarians while touching upon Aurora’s core philosophy: our strong belief in second chances for everybody and our commitment to turn the gratitude to our ancestors’ saviors into action.

"As descendants of the survivors of the Armenian Genocide we understand better than most what some people are going through right now. We treasure the knowledge, gained from a personal experience, that after survival comes revival and thriving, and strive to instill this hope into humanity. We have done this before, and we will be able to do this again – together," the statement reads.

The online event on April 24, 2020 is open to all. The discussion will be held in English, with Armenian and Russian translation available. Participants should register to receive a Zoom link or may watch the discussion via Facebook Live. It should be noted that only the participants who registered via Zoom will have access to Armenian or Russian simultaneous translation.

"Join the webinar and help us spread the message of resilience and gratitude," Aurora said.