Persian studies blooms at UCI
Advertise Here
Persian studies blooms at UCI
UCI School of Humanity -March 18th 2022
By Lilibeth Garcia
Entrepreneur Anoosheh Oskouian is one of the most successful women in business in Southern California, but even amid the stream of her busy days, she makes time to pay homage to her cultural roots. On March 20, you will find her setting the table in celebration of Nowruz (“new day” in Farsi). Also known as Persian New Year, Nowruz takes place on the first day of spring.
As president and CEO of Ship and Shore Environmental, a multi-million dollar clean-air technology business based in Signal Hill, Calif., Oskouian is one of the few Iranian American female CEOs in the engineering and manufacturing of environmental technology. Her journey to this point began at a young age, with a dream of being educated in America.
With the support of her family, she moved from Iran to the U.S. alone at the age of 14. Yet, despite being oceans away from home in the state of Colorado, she never forgot to celebrate Nowruz.
To partake in the holiday, Iranians follow a set of traditions imbued with symbolism, one of them being the gathering of hyacinths and tulip bouquets, which embody the burst of color and life that comes after a long, dark winter. When the frozen early spring of Denver did not produce the traditional Nowruz flowers, Oskouian made sure to find any single bloom to remind her of the newness and rebirth that the spring equinox represents.
“I’m happy to say I have never, ever missed celebrating Nowruz all these years that I’ve been in America,” she says, “whether it was by myself or with family, in any way I could.”
Now, Oskouian connects to her Persian roots not only by celebrating the springtime event, but also by ensuring newer generations have a space to learn about their ancestral home. She recently donated $25,000 to UCI’s Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture, the largest center for the study of Iran in the U.S. by number of endowed faculty chairs.
Clean tech may be her professional passion but keeping Persian culture alive in the U.S. is her personal joy.
Read more on the Original:
Israel and Iran Seemed on the Brink of a Bigger War. What’s Holding Them Back? 
Iran says woman detained after undressing released without charge 
Iran offers to cap sensitive uranium stock to avoid IAEA resolution 
Families of American Victims of Oct. 7 Attack Sue Iran 
Iran hawks will hold less sway in Trump’s new government 
Even Iran is attempting to play nice with Donald Trump