Green Lab 2023: Environment and Colonialism | Heinrich Böll Stiftung

From July 13 to July 16, 2023, the Heinrich Boell Foundation Yerevan Office – South Caucasus Region organized its biennial summer school Green Lab, this time focused on environmental colonialism.

The goal of the Green Lab is to raise awareness and facilitate discussion on current cross-cutting issues of politics, social life, the economy and environment in Armenia within the framework of Green political values and ideas. The main objectives of the Green Lab are to provide young activists, researchers, journalists and policy makers with a common platform to discuss, develop and promote the principles of sustainable and green policies; to provide young people with relevant theoretical knowledge and practical skills for green solutions to local environmental problems; to stimulate dialogue between different stakeholders; and to identify the most problematic environmental areas to work on in the future.

The first Green Academies in Armenia were held in 2017 and 2018. In 2019, the Green Academy in Armenia was renamed as Green Laboratorium (Green Lab) and was held in cooperation with the Acopian Centre at American University of Armenia under the title “Youth Leading the Green Agenda” with a strong emphasis on the participation of youth from the regions of Armenia.

This year’s Lab focused on environmental colonialism in Armenia and the South Caucasus during the Russian Empire, Soviet Union, and since the restoration of independence. While trying to establish their own political and economic identities, the former Soviet republics sought to attract foreign investment and develop their own industries. Although foreign investment can bring economic benefits to a country, such as job creation and increased access to capital, it can also have many negative consequences for local populations: labor exploitation, environmental degradation, and unequal distribution of benefits. Thus, Green Lab 2023 discussed different types of past and present colonial experiences and their consequences.

“Environmental colonialism refers to the practice of exploiting natural resources and polluting the environment in less developed countries (the so called Global South) or territories by more wealthy and powerful countries (the so called Global North) or major financial corporations. Historically, this practice has been tied to colonialism, capitalism and imperialism, where powerful countries would exploit the natural resources of their colonies for economic benefits. Today, the term is often used to describe how multinational corporations and industrialized countries continue to exploit and damage the environment and local communities in developing countries. …. Efforts to combat environmental colonialism include promoting environmental justice and local participation in advocating for sustainable and equitable resource management practices. This can involve empowering local communities to have a say in resource management decisions, as well as holding corporations and governments accountable for their environmental impact.” (Arpine Galfayan, Sona Baldryan, Eviza Hovhannisyan)

The Green Lab 2023 gathered around 13 participants both from Yerevan and the Armenian regions, as well as from Turkey and Georgia. The agenda of the Lab included multiple activities: lectures, group discussions, an excursion, and a film screening.

Introductory lecture on colonialism, globalisation (and its critics), global governance and state transformation: Life and thought beyond colonial deception - Nelli Sargsyan, Anthropologist, Marlboro Institute for Liberal Arts & Interdisciplinary Studies

Lecture - Objects of Struggle: Gender, Environment, and Colonialism - Tamar Shirinian, Cultural Anthropologist, Assistant Professor, The University of Tennessee

Lecture - Anti(neo)colonial Manifestations in Environmental Initiatives and Civil Collectives of Armenia - Anna Shahnazaryan, Researcher, Armenian Environmental Front

Panel discussion - How does state power shape national infrastructures and reshape ecosystems - Beril Ocaklı, Researcher, Centre for East European and International Studies (ZOiS) / Tigran Amiryan, Researcher, Cultural and Social Narratives Lab (CSN Lab) / Arevik Papassian, PhD Candidate in Anthropology at the Central European University in Vienna

Panel discussion - Karabakh Conflict (in and around NK) - Ethnic Conflict vs. Conflict over Resources - Heydar Isayev, Journalist, Eurasianet (online) / Mariam Yeghiazaryan, Documental Filmmaker, CSN Lab / Sergey Rumyantsev, Researcher, CISR e.V. Berlin (online) / Eviya Hovhannisyan, Project Coordinator, Hbs Yerevan, South Caucasus Region

Film screening - The participants watched the movie “Amulsar Strong Mountain” and discussed it with the director?, Tehmine Yenokyan, journalist and the founder of Green Armenia NGO. They also visited the Amulsar defender's posts and the Arpa-Sevan canal and met with the deputy mayor of the town of Jermuk.

In December 2024, alumni of our Green Labs/Academies met for a reunion and workshop in Dilijan.

We are looking forward to the next Green Lab, to take place in summer 2025, and will share the call for applications in due time. Join us in making Armenia greener!