MEET THE GEORGIAN YOUNG AMBASSADOR TO THE KINGDOM OF SPAIN, TAMARA ARVELADZE!
The Young Ambassador of Georgia to Spain Tamara Arveladze, left, with the Georgian Minister of
Foreign Affairs Davit Zalkaliani during his working visit to Spain, center,
and Georgia’s Ambassador to Spain Ika Giorgadze
The Young Ambassador
Winsome, energetic, candid, idealist, an “activist patriot” with both feet planted firmly on the ground
Interview with Ms. Arveladze by Rose Maramba
ROSE: You’re smart. You had high grades from one of the best high schools in Georgia. And now you’re studying in the IE University in Madrid which is one of the best in Europe. You’re obviously privileged. Your being Georgia’s Young Ambassador to Spain will further buttress your already impressive CV. You’re all but guaranteed a well-paid job after your studies.
TAMARA: My top priority is to be at a place where I can serve my country in the best way, regardless of remuneration. I want to help Georgia realize its potential to the maximum and effect positive changes. My “impressive CV”, as you so kindly call it, is a means to that end. And the list of activities I’m engaged in, and which I enjoy immensely, is geared toward that same end!
RM: Bravo! How do you feel when people mistake your country for Georgia in the United States?
TA: No offence. It just strengthens my determination to let the world know the many things worth knowing about my country! Someday everyone will know who, what and where Georgia is.
RM: You come across as patriotic.
Ms. Arbeladze, left, with other Young Ambassadors against Russian occupation. They declare, “Twenty percent of my country is occupied by #Russia!”
TA: Could be I’m an activist patriot. My fondest dream, toward whose realization I want to dedicate my best efforts, is for my country to regain its territorial integrity and be counted among the world’s most modern democracies where the rights of all citizens are ensured and the standard of living is adequate for everyone.
RM: You might want to tell GUIDEPOST readers what you’ve been doing with your life, what in a sense got you where you are now.
TA: Well, I attended high school at the GZAAT American Academy in Tbilisi to whom I’m eternally grateful. I did aspire to gain the most from my share of studying but life doesn’t begin and end in the classroom. I have always been very actively engaged in extracurricular activities and community service. Until I graduated in 2016, I was coordinator and teacher of the Saturday School, an educational project for over 100 refugee children in my school. I was elected school prefect in my senior year and, later on, I became the class representative in my university. Currently, I’m studying at IE University for a bachelor’s degree in International Relations and I love it! I’m co-founder of the youth-focused online educational platform Eduspace, I am an activist of “Russia is an Occupier”, an independence movement which engages in amazing local activities of which I am really proud. Recently, I was chosen as a Young Ambassador, a great honor and responsibility at the same time! I am trying to encourage international interest in and about Georgia and reinforce the bridge between international youth and the Georgian community. Off the cuff this is about all I can tell you.
Masterclass in Georgian cuisine at the Khachapuri Restaurant in Madrid
RM: Tick off for us some of the things you’re in on as Young Ambassador.
TA: Some of the latest: I hosted the “Ambassador’s Talk” where the Georgian Ambassador to Spain, HE Ilia Giorgadze, spoke of our country’s aspirations in regard to the EU and NATO. I’ve created the IE Georgia Club which has participated in the Global Village, uniting 40 countries to celebrate cultural diversity and, earlier, organized the “Discover Georgia” event which mounted several exhibitions about Georgia, its history, culture, cuisine, the language, alphabet and unique peculiarities. On March 9th, to join the global feminist movement for empowering women all over the world, I hosted an event about “50 Women of Georgia” whose bravery and fight for rights brought changes to, and fomented innovations in, the social life and culture of Georgia. In collaboration with Georgian Restaurant Khachapuri, we’ve hosted several cooking masterclasses of popular national dishes and Georgian wine. It so happened that I got to know GUIDEPOST from the article published in your magazine about the said Georgian restaurant. And now here I am, doing an interview with you. One never knows where a single event will lead; life is full of surprises that alter a perfectly well-laid agenda, mostly for the better! ☺ I am planning various kinds of future activities.
RM: How many Young Ambassadors are working for Georgia right now, and where?
TA: Currently, Georgian Young Ambassadors have been elected for 15 countries: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom and the United States.
Young Ambassador Tamara Arveladze with Executive Editor Rose Maramba, left, and Dan Lowell, Publisher, right, in Guidepost
RM: You’re the first Young Ambassador to Spain, right?
TA: Right. I’m blazing the trail! ☺
RM: All the best!
TA: Thanks! To Guidepost too.
More Photos of Some of the Young Ambassador’s Events
“Write Your Name in Georgian” contest
“Masterclass” at the Khachapuri Restaurant
“Ambassador’s Talk”
“Experience Georgia @ the Global Village”
“Experience Georgia @ the Global Village”
“Discover Georgia”
“Contemporary Georgia”
“50 Women of Georgia”
“Contemporary Georgia”
–
———
Photos: The Young Ambassador to Spain’s social media
