Hello and welcome to this "web log," documenting some of my experiences in Iran. My name is Marcia Franklin and I am a producer with Idaho Public Television . I went to Iran in October and November 2003 to learn more about the environmental movement there, as part of a Pew Fellowship in International Journalism.

I believe that the health of a country can be judged in part by the health of its environment, but in addition, I wanted to learn more about the civil society movement in Iran, of which the environmental movement is part. This civil society movement is a relatively new aspect of life under an Islamic government.

I have always been fascinated with Iran--its people, culture and politics. It is a country with which we have had long ties. Although they were severed 25 years ago after the Iranian Revolution and the taking of American hostages, it is still a vital country for us, and its people have great affection for Americans. Incidentally, the landscape of Iran, with forests in the north, deserts in the south and a mountain range in the middle, is very similar to Idaho.

The results of my research are in an hour-long documentary called "From Idaho to Iran," which has been shown on Idaho Public Television and which will be able to be seen on other public television stations (check your local station to see if they have it on their schedule.)

To order a copy of the DVD, see the entry below!

The entries go from the most recent to the earliest, so if you'd like to experience my trip the way I did, you will need to start from the bottom and scroll up. Or you can click on the archives on the right hand side for the week that interests you.

One disclaimer: this is a personal site, a sort of travelogue. As such, it reflects my emotions and general perceptions as I went through my journey. I am not an expert in Iranian culture or politics.

Thanks for visiting!

If you'd like to use a credit card, scroll down to the PayPal "Add to Cart" button at the bottom of this message and follow the instructions.Or you can send a check for $24.95 per DVD (includes shipping and careful handling) to:

Marcia Franklin
1455 North Orchard Street
Boise, ID 83706

Make sure your shipping address is on the check or in the envelope.

Please send any comments about the program or this blog to me at: idahowriter@aol.com

Thank you/kheyli mamnoon for your interest!

I saw Omid in Iran in 2005. At that time, he was still traumatized by what had happened, but he was upbeat and amazingly, still speaking out against those factions of the government who are trying to restrict journalists. Here is a photo from that visit:

Later that year that optimism paid off. He took a bus into Turkey and waited there for 75 days. With help from UC Berkeley, Human Rights Watch and several American congresspeople, he was taken off the "no fly list" and was able to enter the country. He went immediately to Berkeley, where he is a visiting fellow in Journalism.

In November, he received Human Rights Watch's highest award and has since been doing a lot of traveling and speaking. He has also written an op-ed piece for the San Francisco Chronicle. and another for the New York Times.

I was able to visit Omid at UC Berkeley in January, 2006 and here is a picture of him with his award and also of us together:

The Bush Administration has called for an additional $5 million to foster Iranian student exchanges. This could be a good idea. If more people like Omid had a chance to come here, not only would a more positive view of Iranians be disseminated, BUT ALSO Iranians visiting our country will be able to take back to their country a more true image of Americans and America. I know that Omid has already experienced great kindness in our country and has also seen firsthand some of the rich contradictions that exist here, as they do in his society. And I know he's also having a great time!

I wish him all the best and hope that he will travel to this part of the country to talk to folks here!

Recently I had the opportunity to see two of the Iranians who were in my documentary, "From Idaho to Iran." Dr. Hamid Taravati and Dr. Farzaneh Bahar are environmentalists from the city of Masshad, in northeastern Iran. They are experts in family planning issues, and also have a non-governmental organization which encourages people to plant trees.

Both were in Washington, DC, to attend a meeting of the Environmental Policy Institute, on whose board Hamid sits. He and his wife then went to Arcata, California to visit an old friend of theirs, Frederica Aalto, who represents Six Rivers Planned Parenthood in various international capacities. She and Farzaneh had met at the Beijing Women's conference.

Frederica organized a gathering at which Farzaneh and Hamid spoke, and a portion of my documentary was shown. It was truly moving to be able to see my friends again and hear them speak to an American audience about the problems that overpopulation has caused in Iran, and the resulting innovations in family planning that have occurred in that country. We all learned from listening to them. I also got to meet several of the members of the small Iranian community on California's north coast.

Here is an article about the event.

It never ceases to amaze me how the world has been connected through the internet. Although we continue to have political and military conflicts with other countries, with perseverance, people around the world can continue to connect

My documentary,"From Idaho to Iran," is now complete! It is an hour long. I shot it and edited it myself--quite the experience. It has aired twice on Idaho Public Television and I have been gratified by the response. The intent was to show a view of Iran that concentrated on the people trying to better their country, not terrorists. That purpose seems to have been recognized by the people who have called and written, both Iranians and non-Iranians. Thank you to everyone in Iran who helped me.

If you would like to buy a copy, please click on the entry called "DVDs for sale" for purchase information, or email me at idahowriter@aol.com. The documentary has been accepted by NETA, the organization that distributes local PBS programs to other PBS stations. If you have ideas about other outlets that might be interested in the documentary, please let me know!

When you get to the NPR site, scroll down to the story entitled "Americans Abroad: Teaching in Tehran."

When I was in Iran, Bam was on the top of my list of places to visit. I had heard it was a city where you could really feel the intimacy and spirituality of Islam. But with the amount of work I had to do, and the length of time it would have taken me to get there, I could not get down there.

Because I hoped to go there, I didn't even look at picture books of Bam, so that I could be surprised when I eventually did see it. Then the earthquake happened. So now I will never see it the way it was before. Of course, more importantly the people living there have had an incredible loss.

Although I never made it to Bam, I felt a strong connection to the people there, because once you've been to Iran, you just feel close to Iranians. I followed all the news reports of the event. (The best site to go to, by the way, for all the reports, is www.payvand.com.)

I was devastated, as we all were, by the loss of life. I was encouraged, though, that it prompted such a quick and appropriate response from our president, and that perhaps channels for conversation have been reopened. Of course, there has always been back channel conversation, but this is out in the open. I know that the aid workers there will receive the same courtesies I did.

It also could be that once they start reconstructing the old city, they will decide to excavate some parts of it, because there is an even older settlement below. That could be interesting.

I still remain worried about the immense danger in Tehran, which has an estimated 12 million people, many living in housing that does not meet code. I was stunned to read today that the authorities there are actually thinking of moving the capital of Iran from Tehran, so that in the event of an earthquake, they could respond more effectively. This shows that perhaps they are taking this threat seriously indeed.

I do hope one day to get to Bam, and Yazd, and many other places in Iran I didn't have time for on this trip. In the meantime, I know all of our thoughts are with the survivors of the earthquake...

On the occasion of Shirin Ebadi's acceptance of the Nobel Prize for Peace, I thought I would share with you part of the text of the interview I conducted with her. Mrs. Ebadi, a lawyer and human rights activist, is the first Iranian and first woman from a Muslim country to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Please see links below my interview for more information on Mrs. Ebadi, as well as two other entries-- "Waiting for Shirin" and "No Longer Waiting for Shirin" for my experience meeting her and being at the airport in Tehran when thousands welcomed her home.

Interview with Shirin Ebadi, conducted on Wednesday, November 19, 2003, Tehran, Iran.

Are you able to continue with your regular work, or have things completely changed for you?

Since it was announced that I was the winner of the Nobel Prize, until today, which is over one month, most of my time has been used for interviews and discussions about events that led to this prize. Unfortunately, my life hasn?t regained its normalcy, so that I can return to my profession, which is law.

What has been the biggest surprise since you came home?

In fact, many interesting things happened for me which were surprising. Perhaps one of the things that was especially interesting for me was that my young daughter, who is a law student, turned to me and said, ?I will certainly win this prize too; you can be sure you won?t be the only one.?

Where were you when you heard about the prize and what was your reaction?

I was in Paris to participate in a conference. It was a Friday and at 2:30 in the afternoon I had a flight scheduled back to Tehran.

It was around 11 o?clock when they called me and they told me, ?You are the winner of the Nobel Prize.? I wasn?t even aware of having been nominated for the prize. For this reason, it was a real surprise for me.

I first doubted a little, but they told me to turn the radio on, that right now French radio is going to broadcast the announcement. When I heard French radio announcing it, I was very happy. The truth is that in my dreams I saw myself winning the prize someday, but I thought it would happen when I was 80, and so I was taken aback that I had won the prize 25 years early!

Are you tired of all the questions about hejab? (the head covering and coat that all Iranian women must wear)

People like to have their own questions and I have no problem with that. But as an Iranian woman, I think we have far more important issues to talk about. For instance, in Iran a man can get married to four women and he can divorce his wife without any justification. The custody of children after divorce is with the man. The compensation to a woman is one half that of a man. To discuss these matters is much more important than talking about hejab. Unfortunately we have much bigger problems.

What now will you concentrate your attention on?

The granting of this prize proved one thing, and that is the path I have been following so far was not the wrong way. And this gives my heart more strength so that I can pursue this path with greater confidence. I will continue all my past activities. I have been active in many different fields. One was the defense of political-ideological prisoners. I?ve been supporting the rights of children in Iran, defending women?s rights in Iran, defending the freedom of expression. These were the main focus of my activities in Iran.

Were you disappointed that President Khatami called the Nobel Prize just a political prize?

Mr. Khatami has expressed his opinion about the Nobel Prize and everybody can have his or her own opinion.

Do you feel a lot of pressure right now?

What happened after the granting of the prize is that I feel a greater responsibility now. At least I should prove to myself that I deserved this prize. Therefore I will definitely work harder now.

Many Iranians I?ve met say they won?t vote in the next election. What do you think about this?

There is a bill before the Parliament. If it is approved, people will have the right to vote for anyone they want. This law is very important for the people. I hope it will be approved so that Iranian people can freely vote for anyone they want.

(Note: Iranians can only vote for people that have been "vetted" by the Council of Guardians.)

The Council of Guardians is against this bill; therefore it was returned to the Parliament. This is a point of contention between the parliament and the Council of Guardians and the people of Iran want the freedom to vote for anyone they like.

But if this bill is approved, then people will go and vote. But if it is not approved and people are not able to vote for anyone they want, naturally they won?t have any interest in participating, and they will not be willing to vote for someone who has been imposed on them.

UPDATE: Ebadi has said she will not vote in the election on February 20, 2004, because of the mass disqualifications of reform candidates.

When you talk to people, what do you tell them about the best way to promote peace?

Peace and the belief in peace is not something to be created overnight. It needs a building of the culture. The most important thing is that we raise our children from an early age far from violence. We can see, even the toys for children are violent toys. Guns are considered the best gift for a boy. This is wrong.

In 5 years, or even in 10 years, what changes would you like to see in Iran?

If I?m to express my dreams, my dream is an Iran free of violence, an Iran where everyone can live as he wants, think as he wants and work as he wants. My dream is an Iran where the natural wealth is distributed equitably. My dream is an Iran run by trusted representatives of the people. My dream is a free and proud Iran.

I?ve talked to some Iranian women who would like to see change, but they say they are not as brave as you are. Some women are scared to speak up like you have.What would you say to them?

Look, freedom has a price to be paid for it. We can?t expect democracy and human rights and freedom in our country if we are afraid of risks. It?s a duty of the people to struggle for the advancement of democracy in their country.

Are you afraid?

For many years, I have been threatened. If you want the truth?yes, I?m afraid. Fear is an instinct like hunger. It comes to you whether you want it or not. You get hungry without wanting to. And you are afraid without wanting it. Therefore I am afraid, but I have learned to dominate my fear and not to permit that fear to hinder my work.

What is the greatest misimpression that people have about Iran?

I hope we can introduce the people of the world, particularly the people of the United States, to the authentic Iranian culture.

Some 2,500 years ago, Iran was one of the greatest empires of the world. Cyrus the Great was ruling Iran. In the same era, Cyrus the Great inscribed these words on a tablet:

?I pledge not to rule over people who don?t want me. I pledge not to force people to change their religious conviction. I pledge to give people freedom.?

Iran enjoys such a cultural background. Look at us and judge us with our 7,000 year-old culture, not only on the basis of a few years.

Has the Islamic Revolution been good for Iran?

When the Islamic Revolution occurred, it had certain very lofty goals. But unfortunately for reasons that are very elaborate--and this is not the place to talk about them--it failed to reach all its goals. If the revolution had attained all its goals, it would be much better for sure.

Who are the people you look up to?

One of my interests is to read about great individuals. I learn something from everybody. I don?t have a role model. I try to learn from every great person.

Do you expect to come to America?

Yes, I think I may come in May.

Other stories to get more information about Shirin Ebadi and the Nobel:

CNN.com article

Reuters article on washingtonpost.com

Text of Nobel introduction and Ebadi's acceptance speech

Nobel Prize main web site

Cartoon by young Iranian dissident Marjane Satrapi, author of the bestseller "Persepolis:"