100 LIVES initiative for those who saved Armenian lives during Genocide (video)

 March 10, 2015 - 13:46 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - The 100 LIVES initiative is launching Tuesday, March 10, expressing gratitude to the individuals and institutions whose heroic actions saved Armenian lives during the Genocide 100 years ago.

The purpose of the 100 LIVES initiative is to address the issues of genocide, human rights violations and the power of positive action through three key elements:

-Learning from the past by issuing a global call to unearth the untold stories of survivors and saviors from the Armenian Genocide that will be brought to life on 100LIVES.com;

-Delivering for the present by introducing the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity, a new global humanitarian award that will be given to people who put themselves at risk to enable others to survive and thrive; and

-Shaping a better future by administering Gratitude Projects to organizations and in communities that played a prominent role in saving Armenian lives a century ago.

The 100 LIVES initiative was founded by international businessmen and philanthropists Ruben Vardanyan and Noubar Afeyan and humanitarian Vartan Gregorian to demonstrate the impact of the Armenian Genocide and how many of the survivors and their families went on to lead successful lives making significant contributions to global culture, the arts, sports, science and business.

An estimated 1.5 million died during the Armenian Genocide between 1915 and 1923. Around 500,000 survived, many through the intervention of individuals and institutions and there are now Armenian Diaspora communities around the world from Argentina to Australia.

"The humanity, generosity, strength and sacrifice shown by those who saved so many Armenians compels us to tell these stories," said Ruben Vardanyan, co-founder of 100 LIVES. "Now is the time to shine a light on those most extraordinary lives, to build on the lessons they teach us, and to express our gratitude for what they did."

Along with honoring past survivors and saviors, the program will establish the Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity as a means to empower modern-day saviors. The annual grant of $1 million will be awarded to a recipient who will, in turn, present it to the organization identified as the inspiration for their action.

The Aurora Prize brings together leading human rights luminaries from around the world including Academy Award winner George Clooney, Nobel Peace Prize winners Elie Wiesel and Oscar Arias, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, UN Secretary-General Advisor on Genocide, Gareth Evans, globally respected human rights activist Hina Jilani and President of the Carnegie Corporation of New York, Vartan Gregorian, to serve on its Selection Committee.

Clooney will award the inaugural Prize at a ceremony to be held in Yerevan, Armenia on April 24, 2016.

"I am honored to be associated with 100 LIVES as it shares a common mission with my foundation, Not On Our Watch, to focus global attention on the impact of genocide as well as putting resources towards ending mass atrocities around the world," said George Clooney. "It should weigh heavily on all of us that genocide still takes place today," he added. "We have to tackle this head on—as individuals, as communities and as governments."

Clooney will join renowned human rights advocate and chairman of the American Holocaust Memorial, Elie Wiesel, as co-chairman of the Prize's Selection Committee. Additional members will be named over the next few months to complete the committee and provide human rights expertise from every geographic region in the world.

"I have personally witnessed the devastation that genocide wreaks, which sadly continues today," said Elie Wiesel. "But I also recognize the resilience of the human spirit," he continued. "We must remember and honor the remarkable efforts of those saviors who intervened a century ago to prevent such atrocities from ever happening again."

The Aurora Prize was named after Aurora Mardiganian who, as a child, was forced to witness the atrocities of the Armenian Genocide, including losing her father and brothers. Against the odds she survived and went on to devote her life to providing humanitarian relief and raising awareness of the Armenian Genocide, including starring in a famous film called Ravished Armenia in 1919.

The Prize is also inspired by the thousands of untold stories of courage and survival during these events a century ago.

"Resilience, strength, survival and gratitude are characteristics exhibited by Armenians, though not by us exclusively. They are found in all people," commented Noubar Afeyan. "We developed the concept of #BeArmenian #BeAlive to encapsulate the strength of the human spirit—not just for Armenians, but for everyone."

As part of its efforts, 100 LIVES also hopes to digitize the written record of the Armenian Genocide, a substantial undertaking, yet one which the founders believe can help safeguard the historical archive in perpetuity and ensure it can be accessed by anyone.

"There are a small number of survivors of the Armenian Genocide left with us. It is crucial that we ensure that, as we approach the centennial, we take this opportunity to leave a lasting imprint of what happened a century ago onto the world's collective conscience," remarked Vartan Gregorian.