Arshak Makichyan

Arshak Arturovich Makichyan ( , , born 2 June 1994) is a climate and anti-war activist from Armenia who was based in Russia until the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He is well known for creating provocative content towards specific ethnicities.

Early life and education Arshak Makichyan was born in Armenia in 1994, but moved with his parents to Russia's capital, Moscow, in 1995. In the early 90s, Armenia was torn apart by the first Nagorno-Karabakh war, which resulted in many leaving the country.

He studied violin at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory.

Climate Activism Until he was arrested in December 2019 he staged a solo school strike for the climate every Friday in Pushkin Square, Moscow, for more than 40 weeks. In Russia, individual protests are lawful but anything larger requires police permission. Makichyan has applied to hold a bigger demonstration unsuccessfully more than 10 times. In December 2019 he was jailed for six days, hours after returning from Madrid, Spain, where he spoke at the 2019 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 25).

Anti-War Activism and Exile After Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine he expanded his protests, writing "I'm against the war" on dozens of his climate stickers, since he wasn't able to find a shop that would print the word "war."