Hrach Gregorian (born 1949 in

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

, Iran) is an American political consultant, educator, and writer. His work in both the private and public sectors has been mainly focused in the field of international conflict management and post-conflict peacebuilding. Gregorian holds academic appointments in universities in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, and writes extensively on such subjects as

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

conflict management Conflict management is the process of limiting the negative aspects of conflict while increasing the positive aspects of conflict in the workplace. The aim of conflict management is to enhance learning and group outcomes, including effectivene ...

, peacebuilding,

national security National security, or national defence (national defense in American English), is the security and Defence (military), defence of a sovereign state, including its Citizenship, citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of ...

, and conflict hot spots throughout the world. His work as a consultant, conflict management specialist, and trainer has taken him to

Angola Angola, officially the Republic of Angola, is a country on the west-Central Africa, central coast of Southern Africa. It is the second-largest Portuguese-speaking world, Portuguese-speaking (Lusophone) country in both total area and List of c ...

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

Bosnia-Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to the north a ...

Cambodia Cambodia, officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. It is bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the north, and Vietnam to the east, and has a coastline ...

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

Guatemala Guatemala, officially the Republic of Guatemala, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico, to the northeast by Belize, to the east by Honduras, and to the southeast by El Salvador. It is hydrologically b ...

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

, and

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

. Gregorian regularly provides professional skills training, seminars, and workshops for

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

agency and mission staff, United States and

Latin American Latin Americans (; ) are the citizenship, citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their Latin American diaspora, diasporas are Metroethnicity, ...

military personnel, senior civilian officials, and academic and corporate leaders in the U.S. and throughout the world.

Early life and education

Gregorian was born to

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

parents in Tehran, Iran in 1949 and immigrated to the United States in 1958. He spent his formative years in

Watertown, Massachusetts Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, part of Greater Boston. The population was 35,329 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Its neighborhoods include Bemis, Coolidge Square, East Watertown, Watertown Sq ...

, graduating from high school in 1968. He received his BA in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

from

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

in 1972 where he studied under

Howard Zinn Howard Zinn (August 24, 1922January 27, 2010) was an American historian and a veteran of World War II. He was chair of the history and social sciences department at Spelman College, and a political science professor at Boston University. Zinn ...

. Although primarily focused on academics, he was an outdoor enthusiast and co-founded the Snake Hill Mountain Club with Ken Ryan in 1971. Gregorian received his MA (1974) and PhD (1980) degrees from

Brandeis University Brandeis University () is a Private university, private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located within the Greater Boston area. Founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian, non-sectarian, coeducational university, Bra ...

International Relations International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

. He held academic posts at

Kenyon College Kenyon College ( ) is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1824 by Episcopal Bishop Philander Chase. It is the oldest private instituti ...

and

Simmons College Institutions of learning called Simmons College or Simmons University include: * Simmons University Simmons University (previously Simmons College) is a private university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1899 by ...

before beginning a career in government service.

Government service

In 1985, Gregorian was asked to join the

National Endowment for the Humanities The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...

where he served as Humanist Administrator and Coordinator for the Foundations of American Society Initiative until 1988. He then moved to the

United States Institute of Peace The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) is an American independent, nonprofit, national institute funded by the U.S. Congress and tasked with promoting conflict resolution and prevention worldwide. See alsPDF on USIP website. It provides rese ...

(USIP), where he served as the director of various grant, training, and education programs until 1994. It was at the USIP that Gregorian established his career focus on conflict resolution and post-conflict peace building: He designed and directed conflict resolution skills training programs for foreign affairs professionals; provided training for government and party officials in Cambodia, Foreign Service officers at the Thai Foreign Ministry, and military officers from Latin America at the Inter-American Defense College; and designed and managed an

environmental conflict Environmental conflicts, socio-environmental conflict or ecological distribution conflicts (EDCs) are social conflicts caused by environmental degradation or by Environmental justice, unequal distribution of environmental resources. The Environm ...

resolution training seminar in

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

for senior officials from nine states of the

Danube River The Danube ( ; see also other names) is the second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest south into the Black Sea. A large and historically important riv ...

basin.

Peace work

Gregorian has undertaken numerous projects across the globe to promote peace and reconciliation. He collaborated with Dr. Yiannis Laouris in Cyprus to found the Technology for peace foundation which in the late 90s supported peace builders communicate across the Green Line. The project was partly funded by USAID and USIP. A virtual negotiation element was supported by the University of Maryland. He also supported as an advisor an EC large-scale peace and reconciliation project in the Middle East known as Act Beyond Borders.

Private sector

Gregorian is a founder and principle of a number of private institutes focused on teaching conflict resolution and training professionals in peace building. He is a board member of multiple international institutes that focus on conflict resolution, and has consulted over the world on issues of peace building. Private institutions 1. Institute of World Affairs,

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

- President 2. de novo group, Washington, D.C. - President and CEO 3. Gettysburg Integrated Solutions, Gettysburg, PA - Founding Partner 4. Peacebuilding, Development and Security Program (PDSP), Centre for Military and Strategic Studies,

University of Calgary {{Infobox university , name = University of Calgary , image = University of Calgary coat of arms without motto scroll.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms , former ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

- Co-director 5. IAQ Inc.,

Oakton, Virginia Oakton is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 36,732 at the 2020 census. Located in Northern Virginia, its center is west of Washington, D.C. Geography Oakton is located in central Fa ...

(2003 – 06) - Vice President, Consulting Services 6. Hammer-Gregorian, LLC, Washington, D.C. (2000 – 03) - Founder and Co-director 7. IDR Associates, Washington, D.C.(1994 – 96) - Founding Director Board member 1. Institute of World Affairs (ex officio) 2. Alliance for Peacebuilding (cofounder and board member) 3. National Peace Foundation; Strategic Trade Advisory Group, Ltd. (advisor) 4. The Cypress Fund (advisory board) 5. Psychology Without Borders (International Advisory Board) Consultancies 1. Center for Civic Education 2. Iowa Peace Institute 3. Mc Knight Foundation 4. National Peace Institute Foundation 5.

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a United States federal executive departments, federal executive department of the U.S. government that oversees the domestic enforcement of Law of the Unite ...

Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is an international broadcasting network funded by the federal government of the United States that by law has editorial independence from the government. It is the largest and oldest of the American internation ...

7. The Strategic Trade Advisory Group, Ltd. 8. Arcadia Group Worldwide, Inc. 9. The Inter-American Defense College 10. JPS Solutions; Anchor Consulting 11. United States Army Foreign Military Studies Office 12.

United States Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the Interior minister, interior, Home Secretary ...

13. United States Army Training and Doctrine Command 14.

United States Army Intelligence and Security Command The United States Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM) is a direct reporting unit that conducts intelligence, security, and information operations for United States Army commanders, partners in the Intelligence Community, and natio ...

15.

Naval Postgraduate School Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) is a Naval command with a graduate university mission, operated by the United States Navy and located in Monterey, California. The NPS mission is to provide "defense-focused graduate education, including clas ...

16.

United States Joint Forces Command The United States Joint Forces Command (USJFCOM) was a Unified Combatant Command of the United States Department of Defense. USJFCOM was a functional command that provided specific services to the military. The last commander was Army Gen. ...

17.

Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute The Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI) is an independent, non-partisan research institute based in Calgary with an office in Ottawa. Incorporated as a charitable organization in 2001, CGAI seeks to focus the national debate and understandin ...

Academia

Gregorian is keenly interested in public service and training others to work in conflict resolution and peacebuilding. He firmly believes that, in local, national, and international spheres, capable trained professionals make a profound difference in resolving conflict, building peace, and dealing with post conflict situations. In furtherance of these goals, he holds academic positions at the following universities: 1. The American University,

Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...

- Adjunct Professor, School of International Service 2.

Royal Roads University Royal Roads University (also referred to as RRU or Royal Roads) is a public university with its main campus in Colwood, British Columbia, Canada. The university is located at Hatley Park National Historic Site on Vancouver Island and is the succ ...

, Victoria, BC, Canada - Associate Faculty Member, Conflict Management Programs 3.

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

, Canada - Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Social Sciences, Centre for Military and Strategic Studies

Family

Gregorian and his younger sister Victoria (Vicky) immigrated from Tehran, Iran in 1956 with his parents Asik and Juliet, both formerly of the

Soviet Republic A soviet republic (from ), also called council republic, is a republic in which the government is formed of soviets (workers' councils) and politics are based on soviet democracy. During the Revolutions of 1917–1923, various revolutionary ...

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

. His sister Janet was born after their arrival to the United States. Both of his parents have since died. His sister Vicky Gregorian, mother of 2, is an executive in the television industry, and his sister Janet Gregorian-Michaelsen, married with 3 children, is a social worker, and advocate in the field of

autism Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by differences or difficulties in social communication and interaction, a preference for predictability and routine, sensory processing d ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. In 1974 Gregorian married Judith Kramer of Bethpage,

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. She is a program specialist with the

United States Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a cabinet-level department of the United States government, originating in 1980. The department began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and ...

. They remain happily married and have three children: Jamie, a lawyer and lobbyist in

; Nicolas, a sports marketer in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

; and Alexis, a federal prosecutor in Los Angeles.

Articles available on the internet

Jihadi Threats in the Sahara and SahelThe Empty Core in Al Qaeda’s Vision for IraqPolitical Islam in West Africa and the SahelOil: the West’s soft underbellyRewriting Canada’s security laws

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gregorian, Hrach 1950 births People from Tehran Iranian emigrants to the United States Boston University College of Arts and Sciences alumni Brandeis University alumni Kenyon College faculty Simmons University faculty American political consultants American people of Armenian descent Iranian people of Armenian descent Living people Watertown High School (Massachusetts) alumni