Lately in school, we've been reading Reading Lolita in Tehran- a memoir of Azar Nafisi's career, battles, and struggle to educate students in the years following the Iranian Revolution. It's been a great read so far, and in order to better understand its' context, we've been reading up on Iran, Shia Islam, and a variety of related topics.Looking at Iran from 1979 to present, few countries seem to have generated as much fear and contempt in the international community. For many years, the Islamic Republic was defined by a stern-looking man whose beard and black turban is (and forever will be) associated with theocracy, brutal executions, human rights violations, and anti-western sentiment. In more recent times (Khomeini died in 1989), Iran has been seen as a country that ignores UN rulings, promotes terrorism against Israel, continues to repress dissenting voices, and on top of it all, has a lunatic president whose name I can't even spell correctly.
Despite this, I've always wondered what Iran actually looks like from within- and I don't just mean peoplewise. I'm talking nature here. For a large country like Iran, its geography is just as diverse its people. Snow-capped mountains, desert plains, and lush green forests along the Caspian are just a few of the many habitats that shape Iran's natural ecosystem. Mountains- which are a major part of Iran's geography, are home to some of the earth's rarest creatures- namely, the Iranian Cheetah, Persian Leopard, and ibex. Wetlands, which are scattered throughout the arid country, provide major stopovers for migratory birds. Most surprisingly, I've found that Iran has a number of protected areas, wildlife sanctuaries, and environmental agency of its own.This video is something that I just recently found on Iran's environment. From what I watched of it, it seems as though Iran suffers from the same environmental issues that we do: water pollution, wetland destruction, climate change, and invasive species. Interesting!
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