Nearly 2,000 houses of environment have been established so far across the country, Nourollah Moradi, an official with the Department of Environment, has said.

According to the Constitution, people should participate in environmental protection.

For this reason, the houses of environment were launched as a platform for interaction and understanding, as well as boosting effective cooperation between volunteers, environmentalists, and NGOs.

Under the plan, a house in each province is considered a gathering place for environmental activists in different age groups, to be trained by related organizations.

Students are prioritized and are the most important age group in education.

President Ebrahim Raisi has highlighted the importance of environmental protection, emphasizing that the preservation of the environment is prior to every development.

Environmental protection will lead to power, security, investment, and production growth in the country, he said.

Both people and NGOs have an effective role to play in the protection of the environment, and they should be given a chance to play their role, he added.

The need to use new technologies and the ability of knowledge-based companies in the field of environment, solving issues and problems related to legal proceedings, attention to domestic and international diplomacy in the field of environment, attention to water transfer in the country from one region to another, attention to the dangers of trawling, attention to environmental water rights and also attention to land management were among the topics that were discussed in this specialized meeting.

On November 17, 2015, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, announced the general policies on the environment, emphasizing the need for comprehensive, harmonious, and organized management of vital resources based on ecological capability and sustainability, particularly by increasing capacities and appropriate legal and structural capabilities accompanied by public participation.

However, it seems that implementing the policies has not met its stated goals.

Ali Salajeqeh, the chief of the Department of Environment, has said after passing seven years, implementing the policies is not satisfactory.

The policies call for establishing a cohesive and national system on the issue of the environment.

Improving environmental conditions with the purpose of helping society enjoy a healthy environment, administering justice and observing intra-generational rights, preventing and prohibiting the circulation of all kinds of unlawful pollutants, recording crimes related to the environment, administering efficient and preventive punishment of polluters and destroyers of the environment and forcing them to compensate for their actions, were also among the policies.

Continuous refinement and control of air, water, soil, and noise pollutants, destructive waves and rays, and unfavorable climatic changes, and making compulsory the observation of environmental standards and criteria in implementing rules and regulations, development plans, and spatial planning, were other issues that the Leader urged officials to do.

In December 2022, Rouhollah Naqdipour, the secretary of the strategic council of the Department of Environment, announced that a roadmap for environmental protection has been developed.

The document presents 13 national macro strategies and 46 cross-sectoral measures for five main environmental challenges, he said, IRNA reported.

The 7-chapter book also suggests reforms for systematic purposeful solutions and policies to solve environmental issues including the water crisis, he explained. /T.T/

Iran House of Innovation and Technology (iHiT) in the city of Tashkent, Uzbekistan, was inaugurated on Sunday. The center aims at introducing knowledge-based, technological, and creative products of Iran to Uzbekistan, and facilitating scientific interactions and cooperation between the two countries, IRNA reported.

Vice President for Science, Technology and Knowledge-based Economy, Rouhollah Dehqani Firouzabadi, and Uzbekistan’s Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Innovation, Ibrokhim Abdurakhmonov, officially inaugurated the center in an online ceremony.

The private sector has invested about $4 million to establish the iHiT Tashkent.

The two sides signed a technological cooperation agreement worth $10 million in the field of energy under the support of the house of innovation and technology.

Exporting technological products of Iranian knowledge-based companies is one of the important and key programs of the vice presidency for science and technology, and in this regard over the past years, with the support of the Vice Presidency for Science and Technology, the Iranian houses of innovation have been set up in several countries to develop the global market for knowledge-based products.

These centers have already been set up in countries such as Russia, Turkey, China, Syria, Kenya, Armenia, and Iraq.

By supporting innovative ideas, and holding technological and innovative events, the centers will be a platform for the development and promotion of Iranian knowledge-based companies, startups, and creative industries.

The centers are mainly formed with the investment and support of the private sector to provide the necessary infrastructure for their exports through innovation houses.

In February, President Ebrahim Raisi said science and technology are the cornerstones of national development.

The chain of knowledge, research, innovation, and technology ensures sustainable development in the country, he added.

“Our interaction with all nations and governments in the world should be for the transfer of knowledge and technology, and our interaction with all neighboring countries, in the region and globally, should be based on this criterion,” Raisi highlighted.

The Vice Presidency for Science and Technology was formed in 2006 with the aim of creating an environment for supporting knowledge-based companies and providing the ground for the development of technological industries.

The country’s progressing process of development has accelerated with the emphasis on the formation of the technology and innovation ecosystem and the approval of laws for supporting knowledge-based companies and boosting Iran-made products.

Today, we are witnessing the positive effects of adopting the approach in the economy, culture, and daily life of people.

The national budget bill for the current Iranian calendar year 1402, which started on March 21, has earmarked about 37 trillion rials ($74 million) for science and technology.

The bill increased the budget by 35 percent compared to the previous year’s budget, ISNA reported.

Improving the scientific level of society, achieving high global rankings in the number of scientific articles, references, and patenting, reducing the illiteracy rate, and increasing the number of university courses and students are only a part of the achievements after the victory of the Islamic Revolution.

According to the latest statistics, more than 8,000 knowledge-based companies are operating in the country. /T.T/

Iran defeated Hong Kong 3-2 (22-25, 25-20, 25-17, 19-25, 15-8) in the 2023 AVC Challenge Cup opening match on Monday. Opposite Ashofteh Mona led all scorers on the board with 27 points in the victory, with Soudabeh Bagherpour (15 points) and Mahsa Kadkhoda (14 points) supporting with double-digit markers. The Iran side imposed their height advantage, gaining much in their middle attacks and block

Meanwhile, opposite hitter To Wing Man charted a total of 19 points in defeat. Team Melli will meet Chinese Taipei on Tuesday in Pool B. The tournament has brought 11 Asian teams together in Gresik, Indonesia.

The 2023 Asian Women’s Volleyball Challenge Cup is the fourth edition of the Asian Women’s Volleyball Challenge Cup, an annual international volleyball tournament organized by the Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC) with Indonesian Volleyball Federation (PBVSI).

The tournament is being held in Tridharma Sports Hall, Gresik, East Java, Indonesia from June 18 to 25. / T.T/

Iran was the largest net exporter of dairy in Asia in 2022, according to figures reported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

The reports published on Saturday said that the FAO had put Iran’s dairy exports last year at 1.583 million metric tons (mt) while estimating that the country had imported only 86,000 mt of such products over the same period.

The figures, cited from FAO’s Food Outlook, a biannual report on global food markets, showed that Iran’s dairy exports accounted for 17% of the total milk and dairy exports by Asian countries in 2022.

Dairy exports from Iran accounted for 13% of the country’s total milk and dairy production last year which reached 7.840 million mt, showed FAO figures which indicated that the output may drop slightly in 2023 to 7.820 million mt.

The official IRNA news agency, which covered more items from FAO’s recent Food Outlook, said that Iran was the 13th largest rice producer and the 11th largest meat producer in Asia in 2022.

It also said that Iran was the world’s 13th largest wheat supplier in 2022 with a total output of nearly 13 million mt.

Iran has introduced extensive measures to ensure food security in the country since 2018 when its oil exports came under American sanctions.

The country has encouraged increased production and exports of agrifood as part of its plans to reduce reliance on oil exports and to create jobs for its population.

MNA/

Two Iranian films namely “Cause of Death: Unknown” and “1.5 Horsepower” were awarded at the 25th Shanghai International Film Festival.

Sorour Peyrovani won the Best Actress award for “1.5 Horsepower” and Davood Malek Hosseini won the Best Cinematographer prize for the “Cause of Death: Unknown” at Shanghai International Film Festival.

“When I was a child, I used to put my head on my mother’s shoulders, her shoulders were very warm, I miss my mother’s smell, I miss her,” a brief synopsis for ‘1.5 Horsepower’ reads.

Sorour Peyrovani, Ebrahim Azizi, Mohammad Ashkanfar, and Amir Babashahabi form the cast list of the flick.

The synopsis for ‘Cause of Death: Unknown’ reads, “Eight travelers leave Shahdad for Kerman before sunrise. An accidental midway stops them from going…”

Banipal Shoumoun, Alireza Sanifar, Neda Jebraeili, Ali Mohammad Radmanesh, Zakieh Behbahani, Reza Amouzad, Soheil Bavi, and Saeed Rezaeikia are among the cast members of the film.

Founded in 1993, Shanghai International Film Festival is the largest film festival in China which runs from June 9 to 18 in Shanghai.

Also, “Sunday,” by Uzbekistan-based director Shokir Kholikov, was named the best film in the Asian New Talent section of the festival. /MNA/

Iranian scientists have discovered a new way to repair fractured bones using bone scaffolds made of stem cells for the first time in the world.

The head of the Research Department of the Semnan University of Medical Sciences said, “Healing of bone injuries with stem cells and bone scaffolding was done for the first time in the world in Semnan province.”

Majid Mir Mohammad Khani told reporters on Tuesday that they conducted the research on rats first due to the similarity between their bodies with the human body.

He continued that the bones in some rats were repaired in 8 weeks while that period for some other rats was 12 weeks.

The researcher said that they will move forward with their idea to test it on humans in the next clinical trial phase.

Mir Mohammad Khani noted that depending on different age groups, the time of bone repair could vary.

“The bone scaffold is made of polylactic acid, which was made with a 3D printer and contains bone marrow stem cells. One of the branches of tissue engineering is the creation of artificial skin, which is used in burns, and in this research, it was used in bone repair,” he further explained.

“To carry out the research, a bone injury was created in a rat, and then with the help of a 3D printer bone marrow was taken from the animal, and its stem cells were placed on the scaffold and placed on the fractured skull of the rat. The results showed that bone was created on the fractured site of the bone with the vessel also being formed,” the researcher further elaborated. /MNA/

Seven Iranian shorts will be screened in the 16th edition of the Bajo la Luna International Film Festival – Islantilla Cinefórum in Spain.

The festival will take place from July 1 to August 26 in Islantilla.

A highlight of the Iranian film lineup is “Katvoman” by Hadi Sheibami.

The award-winning drama shows a mom and son playing dressed up as Batman and Catwoman before dad returns for dinner. Through the play, the child discovers a difficult truth about his parents.

The film won the award for best fiction at the Festival International du Film Amateur de Kelibia – FIFAK in Tunisia and the audience award for best short fiction at the 10th Amnesty International France’s Cinema for Human Rights Festival.

“Adam, the Ballad of Endless Suffering”, co-directed by Ali Kheiri and Kurdman Puyesh, is also among the films.

Adam has three grenades. He discovers that the first one is a dud. The second is too. Will he face the truth of the third?

Directed by Parsa Dehqanian, “Global Snow” will also be screened. It tells the story of a night driver who inadvertently gets involved in an adventure.

The lineup also features “Justifiable Murder” by Ebrahim Rahnama.

The drama follows a woman who leaves the house with confusion and intense internal conflict and goes to the information office to complain about what happened to her and ask for immediate help.

“Narenji” has also been selected to be screened in the festival. In this drama, director Ermia Rabbani shows the life of a child who is surrounded by loneliness and has a speech disorder.

Director Mohammad Kamal Alavi’s drama “The Single Horn” will be showcased.

The film tells the story of a girl who goes to the park to play with her friends without her family’s permission. Everything has changed when she returns home.

The festival will also screen “Coup de Grace” by Reza Gudazi. It is about a soldier left among the dead and wounded on the battlefield. /T.T/

Soodabeh Davaran, an Iranian female researcher and university professor, won a gold medal at the Teknofest 2023 festival held by the International Federation of Inventors’ Associations (IFIA) from April 27 to May 1 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Her research titled “Nanofibers containing antibiotic drugs and antimicrobial plant extracts for the treatment of antibiotic-resistant infectious wounds.” IFIA is a global organization that represents and supports inventors and invention associations from around the world. / T.T/

The Iranian Vice Presidency for Science and Technology is planning to launch cell therapy centers in neighboring countries and boost exports of related products as well.

The Vice Presidency is cooperating with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to establish links with the neighboring countries in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine, IRNA reported.

In this line, a meeting was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with a number of ambassadors of the country in several countries and a group of CEOs of companies active in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine in attendance.

The meeting aimed to support the development and transfer of technologies in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine and interaction with the target countries.

It was also aimed to create opportunities for the development of educational and research cooperation between Iran and other countries.

In November 2022, the first phase of a national project aiming to take advantage of gene therapy for the treatment of children with cancer, known as “CAR T-cell therapy”, came on stream.

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy is a way to get immune cells called T cells (a type of white blood cell) to fight cancer by changing them in the lab so they can find and destroy cancer cells.

CAR T-cell therapy has been successful on a five-year-old boy suffering from chemotherapy-resistant leukemia.

The project took nearly seven years to be implemented, Amir Ali Hamidiyeh, head of the gene, cell, and tissue research institute of Tehran University of Medical Sciences said.

After passing cell studies and preclinical studies on animals and obtaining a license and code of ethics from Tehran University of Medical Sciences, a gene therapy product was used for a patient for the first time in the country, he added.

The method is currently in the clinical trial stage and was used on a child with leukemia who was resistant to all treatment methods, he highlighted.

The Vice Presidency for Science and Technology has implemented four important projects in order to strengthen the country’s scientific citation in the field of stem cells.

One of the keys to the development is to provide strategic infrastructure in important fields. Smart knowledge-based platforms promote the scientific citation of the country and accelerate the formation of the scientific ecosystem.

The support of university technology development projects took place in a purposeful interaction between the Vice Presidency and the large universities.

Another measure taken in this area was supporting the development of the National Network of Animal Modeling and In-Vivo Research. This support has brought significant achievements including technologies for reproducing, keeping, and breeding of laboratory animals, the development of research and translation of knowledge and technology, and the development of technologies and laboratory services for in-vivo studies.

Another important step of the Council for Development of Stem Cell Sciences and Technologies last year was the establishment of a gene production center for the Royan Research Institute. During this process, two gene therapy projects became operational.

The launch of autophagy and regenerative medicine is also one of the plans supported by the Council last year. In this program, the management of the autophagy process in order to prevent tissue damage is recognized as a functional indicator of this plan.

Iran is one of the countries that has made great efforts in the field of medicine to free itself from the struggle to supply medicine and bypass sanctions and be able to respond to its local needs by relying on knowledge-based companies. One of these areas is the production of biopharmaceuticals, which has grown to 28 items.

Iran is also ranked 12th in the world and first in West Asia in terms of biotechnology, as 9.5 percent of the income of knowledge-based companies and more than 60 percent of their exports are related to biotechnology.

Stem cells are the “parent” cells from which all other blood cells develop. These are mainly red blood cells, platelets, and white blood cells. Bone marrow, the factory that produces stem cells, is the soft tissue inside bones like the breastbone or hip bone.

Stem cells are found in the brain, blood vessels, skeletal muscles, skin, liver, bone marrow, peripheral (circulating) blood, and the umbilical cord blood of newborn babies.

The 24th International Congress on Reproductive Biomedicine and the 19th Congress on Stem Cell Biology and Technology will be held on August 30-September 1 in Tehran.

In July 2021, Iran inaugurated an advanced ion therapy center for the first time in West Asia, with the aim of providing definitive treatment for all types of cancer.

Ion therapy is a unique and innovative form of radiation therapy in the world for the treatment of cancer, as the radiation can be focused exactly on the area of the tumor, ensuring that radiation-sensitive organs are best protected. /T.T/