PAAIA Launches Civic Engagement Initiative

PAAIA is pleased to announce its Civic Engagement Initiative, a new program committed to encouraging Iranian Americans to get involved as concerned members of their communities – nationally and locally. PAAIA’s ultimate goal is to increase the number of Iranian Americans contributing to and promoting the quality of life in their communities, through both political and non-political processes.

Objectives of this initiative include:

host an annual Civic Engagement Forum, including 2-4 regional events per year;
organize a network of elected officials, Iranian Americans that work in politics or public service, are civically engaged, or have a demonstrated interest in pursuing such a career path;
inspire and empower Iranian Americans to run for or be appointed to public office;
encourage Iranian Americans to actively engage and volunteer in their local communities;
boost Iranian American participation in elections (local, state, and national); and
build a database of Iranian Americans interested in running for office and connect them with mentors, training programs, and support.

PAAIA’s inaugural Civic Engagement Forum, to begin on June 8th in Washington, DC, will bring together Iranian Americans from across the United States for the first-ever conference of its kind. In recognition of the historic election of four Iranian American women, this year’s conference will highlight female leaders in public service. We will celebrate the achievements of Iranian American women and empower aspiring leaders to get involved in public service, public advocacy, or elected and appointed office.

In doing so, we will have a range of civically engaged Iranian Americans as panelists and speakers, including Founder and President of Women’s Learning Partnership Mahnaz Afkhami, Florida State House Representative Anna Eskamani, Georgia State Senator Zahra Karinshak, Councilwoman Shireen Ghorbani, and many more. Stay tuned as we add more speakers, panelists, and programming to the schedule.

If you would like to learn more about PAAIA’s new initiative or become a sponsor, please check out the Civic Engagement Forum’s website.

We look forward to seeing you there!

You are donating to : PAAIA, Inc.