International Economic Sanctions, University Life, and Global Citizenship Education: The Case of Iran

U.S. economic sanctions against Iran have been the main feature of U.S. - Iran relations since Iran’s 1979 Islamic revolution (Katzman, 2013). From 2006, United Nations and European Union followed such policy against Iran, as a response to Iran’s progress in its nuclear program. While the purpose of these imposed sanctions is to stop the progress of the nuclear program, there is a concern regarding the destructive effects of the sanctions on Iranian citizens’ lives. The economy of a country is integral to citizens’ well-being and influences people’s lives in different ways. Higher education is one of the sectors that can be affected by the economic state of the country.  Narrating the socio-historical background of the sanctions, this paper will argue about the role of the economic sanctions on Iranian citizens’ lives, focusing specifically on students. Since economic sanctions are arguably a means of violating basic human right, i.e., education, I will propose global citizenship education as a way to counter such a violation.