Armenian genocide featured topic of 'Berg lecture series

Heidelberg University presents the 11th annual Lichtman-Behm Genocide Lecture Series at 11 a.m., Tuesday, to take place online. The series will feature Diana Yayloyan, an expert on Armenian-Turkish civil society relations and the granddaughter of Armenian genocide survivors. Yayloyan is to discuss the history and legacy of the Armenian genocide and her activism to foster memory, justice and peace. The free program is for students, educators and is also open to the community. Educators will have access to a recording of the program as well as learning tools that are meant to complement the virtual experience. Yayloyan is a Ph.D. candidate at Middle East Technical University in the Department of International Relations. Her interdisciplinary research covers trauma and reconciliation, nationalism, foreign policy, politics of emotion and memory studies. Since 2014, Yayloyan has been working on the Armenian-Turkish civil society dialogue. She and a team of political experts and economists have worked on many projects studying the cross-border engagement and economic, social and psychological effects of the sealed border and the absence of direct communication between Turkey and Armenia, according to information provided by the university. Yayloyan is an alumna of the Genocide and Human Rights Graduate Program of the Zoryan Institute along with the History Department of the University of Toronto. She has also presented her research at national and international academic conferences, seminars and workshops. In 2020, Yayloyan became a co-founder along with a group of other researchers and activists of the CaucasusTalks — a platform that gives voice to the young researchers, practitioners and activists from the South Caucasus to allow them to conduct alternative and informed discussions about issues related to the South Caucasus and surrounding regions. The Lichtman-Behm Genocide Lecture series recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary. The program is part of the Ohio Remembers initiative, along with Together We Remember. To register for this virtual event, visit www.heidelberg.edu/LBGLS2021.