See You in Iran (SYI): Community Platform for Sustainable Tourism Service

A significant research collaboration under SYI was a project with the Kurdistan Tourism Board aimed at promoting sustainable development in western Iran. I led a policy-focused market study to identify which towns and villages had high potential for eco-cultural tourism without inviting harmful side effects. Using participatory research workshops with local stakeholders, we identified risks associated with tourism-driven gentrification and displacement, such as outside investors driving up property prices or jobs being taken by outsiders. To counter this, we co-developed strategies that the Tourism Board adopted as guiding principles: prioritising local employment in any new tourism initiative, designing eco-friendly infrastructure that respected cultural and environmental limits, and ensuring community ownership stakes in tourism enterprises. These three pillars (local jobs, green development, and community ownership) became part of the region’s sustainable tourism action plan, helping to guard against the typical pitfalls of growth in the travel sector.

Running SYI taught me how to balance grassroots community needs with broader market trends. On one hand, I was conducting rapid UX research on our digital platforms (like Telegram channels and our website) to improve accessibility and user engagement for tens of thousands of users. On the other hand, I was in policy meetings, using evidence to argue for tourism models that benefit local communities. Over four years, SYI evolved not just into a business but a social impact initiative, creating local jobs, facilitating numerous cross-cultural exchanges, and demonstrating that tourism in Iran could be conducted differently – ethically, sustainably, and inclusively. The playbook I developed at SYI – combining community co-design, continuous feedback loops, and strategic policy alignment – is one I’ve carried into every project since.