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Impact - Civic Engagement

Impact - Civic Engagement

Civic engagement refers to the many ways in which PCIA promotes dialog regarding Iran and between Americans and Iranian-Americans.  The Peace Corps experience has given Iran RPCVs an appreciation of the people and culture of Iran that has been denied an entire generation of Americans.  With the rise of the Islamic Republic the US severed diplomatic relations with Iran in 1980, with the effect of bringing in-country contact between Iranians and Americans to a trickle.  Unfortunately, this estrangement has been accompanied by extreme vilification of “Iran” without consideration of its people and without a more balanced picture of conditions within the country. PCIA encourages our RPCV members to reach out and share their experiences and information about Iran. 

For anyone interested in learning about Iran, you will find resources HERE.

Our Man in Tehran is a documentary by Thomas Erdbrink, a reporter for the NY Times based in Tehran.  He explores Persian culture in this interesting film  produced for  PBS.  Links to the videos and related PCIA projects. are to the right.

The thread of civic engagement also runs through several other PCIA activities, notably the conferences and newsletters (described elsewhere on this website). We also have a social media presence with a Facebook group and a Facebook page. Our Facebook group posts articles, photos, questions, and comments about Peace Corps in Iran or Iran issues. The Facebook page is open to the public and features news about Iran and PCIA. For those interested in literature about Iran PCIA hosts a monthly online book discussion, when possible with the author in attendance.Impact: Civic Engagement