COAF hosts first TEDx event in Lori's Debed village

By AI, Created 5:23 PM UTC, May 18, 2026, /AGP/ – Children of Armenia Fund hosted the first TEDx event in Armenia’s Lori region at its SMART Center in Debed, spotlighting rural Armenia as a place for innovation and global exchange. The event underscores COAF’s long-term investment in Lori and its push to connect local voices to wider conversations.

Why it matters: - TEDxDebet puts rural Armenia on a global ideas stage for the first time in Lori. - The event highlights Debed as a place where innovation, dialogue and community development can intersect. - COAF’s hosting role reinforces its strategy of building rural infrastructure that supports education, healthcare, economic development and psychosocial services.

What happened: - Children of Armenia Fund hosted the first TEDx event in Armenia’s Lori region at the COAF SMART Center in the village of Debed. - The event took place on May 13, 2026. - TEDxDebet brought together speakers from multiple disciplines under the theme “Big ideas in the silence of nature.” - The program featured talks on topics including AI, architecture, healthcare, community development and the meaning of place.

The details: - COAF has invested over $20 million in Debed and across Lori since 2015. - Liana Ghaltaghchyan, COAF’s executive director, said the event creates a platform for ideas to be shared in rural contexts and connects local voices to a broader global conversation. - The event was organized by a local entrepreneur based in Debed whose experience living and working in the community helped shape the vision for TEDxDebet. - One talk focused on choosing a “small city, big life.” - Another talk reimagined the Araks River as a bridge rather than a border. - COAF has focused since 2003 on building the underlying infrastructure for a thriving rural future.

Between the lines: - TEDxDebet is also a signal that rural communities can be framed as centers of modern thinking, not just recipients of aid. - The theme suggests a deliberate effort to link nature, place and public discourse. - The event expands COAF’s visibility beyond service delivery and into cultural and intellectual convening.

What’s next: - Debed’s first TEDx audience could help position the village as a recurring venue for ideas and collaboration. - COAF is likely to continue using the SMART Center and its broader Lori investments to support rural development. - The event may encourage more local and international attention on rural Armenia’s role in innovation and exchange.

The bottom line: - COAF used TEDxDebet to make a broader point: rural Armenia can be part of the global conversation, not outside it.