Ara Barsam
Ara Barsam 
| |
|---|---|
| Birthplace | Boston |
| Lived in | Boston, Yerevan, Bangkok, Phoenix, Oxford |
| Resides in | Yerevan |
| Education | Oxford |
| Profession | Development |
| Languages | Armenian, English |
| Ethnicities | Armenian |
| Dialects | Eastern Armenian, Western Armenian |
Ara Barsam, PhD. was the Public Information Officer at the United States Agency for International Development in Yerevan. Born and raised in Boston.
Parents are Drs. Paul and Joyce Barsam. Married to Arousiak in 2005 at S. Gayane Church in Vagharshapat, Armenia.
Armenian Tree Project
The decision to bring Armenia Tree Project's Executive Director position to Armenia was the result of discussions which took place during the pandemic. Tom Garabedian, ATP board chair and former Managing Director, reflected on the aftermath of the successful 2019 Global Forest Summit in Armenia which ATP co-sponsored with the American University of Armenia. “It was clear that ATP’s future would be very different from its past. Jeanmarie suggested that it was time for leadership of this organization to be in Armenia where the majority of our work is done and where our experts are located. We agreed to begin working on a transition of resources from the US to Armenia, which included building up our team of specialists in forestry and related areas. This transition continues with the appointment of Ara Barsam as Executive Director. US staff will continue its work of outreach and fundraising with the Boston area office serving as the center of US operations.”
A native of Massachusetts, Ara Barsam is a leader in sustainable development, with over 20 years of experience designing and managing high impact programs across more than 25 countries. He comes to ATP motivated by its mission and its importance to Armenia’s future—as a cornerstone of climate resilience, community well-being, and protection of Armenia’s unique heritage to be preserved for future generations.
Previously, Ara served as Global Executive Director of the Children of Armenia Fund, where he led rural economic and youth development efforts across Armenia. He was also Assistant Dean at Arizona State University and Founding Director of its Center for Advanced Studies in Global Education. As a leader at the Kenan Foundation Asia, Ara directed the $30 million Thailand Partnership Initiative, a major public-private partnership to accelerate the country’s development. Earlier in his career, Ara worked with the U.S. Agency for International Development in Armenia from 2004-2008, where he was honored with two Meritorious Honor Awards and a Benjamin Franklin Award.
A Marshall Scholar and Fulbright Fellow, Ara holds a BA summa cum laude from Tufts University and both an M. St. (Honors) and Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Oxford. He is based in Yerevan with his wife, three children, and a dog who is living her best life in Armenia.