Stanford Iranian Studies Program

This is a recording of a webinar held by the Stanford Iranian Studies Program on April 15, 2026. This discussion evaluates the conventional wisdom surrounding U.S. sanctions on Iran. The paper in discussion from the Stanford Iran 2040 Project is available: https://iranian-studies.stanford.edu/publications/irans-exports-under-sanctions-myth-maximum-pressure Data from this paper shows that Iran's oi...

October 5, 2023 Speaker: Bahram Grami A book talk about the acclaimed Iranian poet, Ahmad Shamlou, with Dr. Bahram Grami. Event is in Persian and was organized on Oct. 5, 2023. “The book 'Ahmad Shamlou, Behind the Mirror' is not a literary criticism, it is a step toward better knowing Ahmad Shamlou based on reliable sources. It is not a documentary for promoting or defaming him. While Shamlou shou...

In 2014, Maestro Mohammad Reza Shajarian visited Stanford University. In collaboration with Stanford’s Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics (CCRMA), he recorded a few test sessions using virtual acoustics of the Hagia Sophia. Recording and production of audio and video were made possible by the CCRMA team and the Icons of Sound Project. To watch the video recording of these test ses...

June 1, 2023 Speaker: Tomoyo Chisaka The second Zahedi Family Fellow lecture by the Spring 2023 Zahedi Fellow, Dr. Tomoyo Chisaka. Influential literature on Iran-US relations has assessed economic and security issues as having profound impacts on the rise and fall of Mohammad Reza Shah. However, relatively little attention has been paid to the ways that Iran's domestic institutions, particularly p...

May 11, 2023 Speakers: Pamela Karimi Discussion with Dr. Pamela Karimi about the work of several prominent contemporary women artists and their courageous acts of political activism in the streets of Iran. Following the tragic murder of Mahsa Amini, Iranian women took to the streets in large numbers to protest. Their bodies were the focus of these demonstrations, with women dancing and spinning th...

May 2, 2023 Speakers: Ladan Lari, Leila Pourhashemi, Abbas Milani, Kioumars Ghereghlou A discussion about "Never Invisible: An Iranian Woman’s Life Across the Twentieth Century" (Mage Publishers, 2023). Houri Mostofi Moghadam was born in Tehran, Iran, in 1919, descended on her mother’s side from Iranian royalty and on her father’s from a “God-fearing” family of scholars and government administrato...

April 21, 2023 A conversation with prominent Iranian-American business leaders Faraj Aalaei, Siavash Alamouti, Fay Arjomandi, Afsaneh Beschloss, Hamid Moghadam, and Shane Tedjarati about the role of dynamic entrepreneurship, the role of women in the future economy, and the impact of the Iranian diaspora on the transition to a future democratic Iran. The conference was moderated by Dr. Abbas Milani...

March 25, 2023 Speakers: Mahnaz Afkhami, Homa Sarshar, and Marjane Satrapi A discussion with Ms. Mahnaz Afkhami, Ms. Homa Sarshar, and Ms. Marjane Satrapi, moderated by Dr. Mandana Zandian as a part of the conference "Dialogues on Iran's Transition to Secular Democracy" co-hosted by Stanford Iranian Studies, Gozar.org, and KAI on March 25-26, 2023 at Stanford University. Mahnaz Afkhami is a women'...

March 17, 2023 Speakers: Hicham Alaoui A discussion with Dr. Hicham Alaoui (Hicham Alaoui Foundation) and Dr. Abbas Milani (Stanford Iranian Studies) in March of 2023. Part of the conference "Dialogues on Iran's Transition to Secular Democracy" co-hosted by Stanford Iranian Studies, Gozar.org, and KAI on March 25-26, 2023 at Stanford University. Dr. Alaoui is the Director of the Hicham Alaoui Foun...

March 16, 2023 Speakers: Larry Diamond, Michael McFaul, Abbas Milani A discussion with Professor Larry Diamond (Political Science, Stanford) and Professor Michael McFaul (FSI, Stanford), moderated by Dr. Abbas Milani (Stanford Iranian Studies) in March of 2023. Part of the conference "Dialogues on Iran's Transition to Secular Democracy" co-hosted by Stanford Iranian Studies, Gozar.org, and KAI on...

March 15, 2023 Speakers: Allen Weiner, Bailey Ulbricht A discussion with Professor Allen Weiner (Stanford Law School) and Bailey Ulbricht (Stanford Humanitarian Program), moderated by Dr. Abbas Milani (Stanford Iranian Studies) in March of 2023. Part of the conference "Dialogues on Iran's Transition to Secular Democracy" co-hosted by Stanford Iranian Studies, Gozar.org, and KAI on March 25-26, 202...

March 14, 2023 Speakers: Mojdeh Shamsaie, Shervin Emami, Abbas Milani, Donya Nasser Panel discussion of Norooz/Persian New Year, hosted by the Stanford Iranian Studies Program and the Knight-Hennessy Scholars Program at Stanford in March 2023. Ms. Mojdeh Shamsaie, Professor Shervin Emami, and Professor Abbas Milani discuss the history and importance of Norooz, how it is celebrated in Iran and arou...

March 9, 2023 Speaker: Iran Davar Ardalan Iran Davar Ardalan discusses the innovative and new Voice AI experience “Freedom Speaks.” This project honors Iranian women using powerful art such as poems, music and more from the past & present—all accessible through Alexa's voice command “Alexa, open Freedom Speaks." Ms. Ardalan also explains how others can be part of an exciting conversation about...

March 2, 2023 Speakers: Kian Tajbakhsh Author Kian Tajbakhsh discussed his most recent book, "Creating Local Democracy in Iran: State Building and the Politics of Decentralization." With a combination of historical, political, and financial field research, it explores the multifaceted dimensions of local power and how various ideologically opposed actors shaped local government as an integral comp...

February 17, 2023 Speakers: Mohsen Yalfani, Shabnam Tolouei A discussion with Mohsen Yalfani about his life, work, and the recent reading of his play “Diaspora,” directed by Shabnam Tolouei at Stanford University. Ms. Tolouei joined the conversation as well. Discussion is in Persian. Mohsen Yalfani was born in 1943 in Hamadan, Iran. He wrote his first plays in his last year in high school and subm...

February 8, 2023 Speaker: Houchang Chehabi Dr. Houchang Chehabi discusses his new research work on Reza Shah and his family's exile in Mauritius. In 1941 Reza Shah and most of his family were exiled by the British to the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius. They remained there for six months. This talk discusses the circumstances of the royal family's long trip from Bandar Abbas via India to Mauritiu...

February 2, 2023 Speaker: Mona Khademi Mona Khademi will examine the extraordinary life of Laura Barney and her deep and enduring connections with Iranians and Iran, and their impact on her life. Laura Barney learned Persian, traveled to Iran in 1906, visited several cities there, and met many Iranian dignitaries and government officials. She also met Iranian officials and scholars outside of Iran...

December 1, 2022 Speaker: Homa Sarshar Homa Sarshar discusses her new book "A Narrative of Endurance." She also touched on the Iranian women’s movement and demonstrations organized by the Iranian diaspora in support of protests in Iran over the past four decades. This talk is in Persian. About the book: “One can find and obtain knowledge, albeit incomplete, of the footprints of nations and people...

November 30, 2022 Speaker: Shirin Ebadi The Iranian Studies Program screened a new documentary “Shirin Ebadi: Until We Are Free” about the Nobel Peace laureate’s mission to bring justice to the people of Iran. Dr. Ebadi held a post screening discussion live-translated to English and moderated by Dr. Abbas Milani. The event was introduced by Dr. Abbas Milani. Hamid Moghadam welcomed guests and spok...

October 29, 2021 Speaker: Mohammad Rasoulof The film screening of There Is No Evil was followed by a discussion with the film's director, Mohammad Rasoulof. The talk is in Persian with live English translation. About the film: Filmed in secret and banned in its home country, Mohammad Rasoulof’s Golden Bear-winning film is an anthology of four short stories, each focused on a person affected b...

October 28, 2022 Speaker: Hamed Esmaeilion Dr. Hamed Esmaeilion discusses his award-winning novels written in Persian, as well as his moving memoir about the loss of his wife and daughter in the downing of flight PS752 by the Islamic Republic of Iran on January 8, 2020. Introduction by Dr. Abbas Milani. Dr. Hamed Esmaeilion was born in Kermanshah, Iran and grew up during the Iran-Iraq war that rav...

October 13, 2022 Speakers: Dr. Hamed Esmaeilion and Babak Payami The Hamid and Christina Moghadam Program in Iranian Studies held a special screening of award-winning director Babak Payami’s new documentary "752 Is Not a Number" about the unprecedented downing of a passenger flight leaving Tehran airport by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps. The film follows Dr. Hamed Esmaeilion’s struggles with gr...

September 29, 2022 Speaker: Dr. Hamid Najafi Dr. Hamid Najafi discusses his new book "The Battles of a Judge." The book was written by Dr. Najafi and his late father, Dr. Hossein Najafi. From 1946 to 1979, Hossein Najafi served at the Justice Ministry of Iran. He started in an entry level judicial position after law school and rose to lead the Justice Department as a minister during the most tumul...

May 31, 2022 Speaker: Arash Azizi "Pahlavi Iran, alongside Turkey, was a rare case of a Muslim-majority state to have consistent relations with Israel. Much of existing literature often discusses this as an aspect of Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion’s Policy of Periphery. But the Shah’s relations with Israel were in line with his foreign policy conception of “National Independent Policy” an...

May 19, 2022 Speaker: Saeid Golkar Ayatollah Khamenei is replacing the Islamic Republic's old cohort of specialists with newly indoctrinated technocrats, preparing the regime for a swift succession. In addition, reconfiguration of political elites is shifting the power equilibrium in the Islamic Republic, facilitating greater coordination between deep and visible states. Saeid Golkar is an assista...