In Season II of West of Middle East, we hear from people from the Middle East diaspora who are changemakers working in and around the field of education- be it through traditional academia, technology, the arts, advocacy or movement-building.

Culturistan is a space to connect with other creators and thinkers whose work is making an impact on the world around us. It is a place to step beyond our normal routines to explore new ways of thinking and to reflect on the essential questions of our time, leading to a richer engagement with the world around us and transforming what we bring to it.

Tree People works to unite with communities to grow a greener, shadier and more water-secure city at homes, neighborhoods, schools and in the local mountains. The Smarter Green Schools initiative increases environmental literacy in underserved schools throughout Los Angeles.

San Francisco International Film Festival Premiere

Radio Dreams follows an eccentric Iranian writer through his travails as he pursues his ambitious goal of bringing together Metallica and Kabul Dreams, Afghanistan’s first rock band, at a satellite radio station in San Francisco.

Winner of the 2016 Hivos Tiger Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam.

The Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies at San Francisco State University fosters innovative and collaborative scholarship between faculty and students and engages with complex and pressing subjects such as nationalism, immigration, xenophobia, gender, sexuality and identity.

SIMA Classroom is an online global citizenship education and film platform that reaches 1,850 educators and 44,000 high-school and college students in 30 countries. It combines a carefully curated collection of over 140 award-winning short documentaries and virtual reality films with learning resources and participatory skill-building lessons that bring global social justice issues, the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and social entrepreneurial innovations to life.

Neda Nobari Foundation moves to the San Francisco Bay Area, with a newfound mission to support social and environmental justice through the arts and education across five interconnected focus areas: Innovative Arts, Transparent Media, Holistic Education, Earth Advocacy, and Social Impact Cinema.

Shining a light on gross human rights violations in over 90 countries around the world, the Human Rights Watch Los Angeles Film Series celebrates both new and established international filmmakers committed to impact and awareness of some of the greatest global struggles of our time.

Sundance Film Festival Premiere 

The Invisible War is a groundbreaking investigative documentary about one of America’s most shameful and best kept secrets: the epidemic of rape within the U.S. military. The film was a nominee for the 2013 Academy Awards, and resulted in the Congressional establishment of the Special Victims Unit.

Homeboy Industries’ Learning Works program aims to provide a personalized, rigorous academic program and relevant life skills to disengaged youth who have dropped out of school due to gang-related activity or incarceration.