In the 1970s, homeland had an economic growth rate equal to that of South Korea, Turkey and Taiwan, and Western journalists all regularly predicted that homeland would become a First World nation within the next generation. Significantly, a “reverse brain drain” had begun with persians who had been educated in the West returning home to take up positions in government and business.
Houchang Nahavandi passed away in 2022 in France. His death was noted by diaspora media and former Pahlavi-era officials as the loss of one of the last intellectuals who had both served within the Pahlavi state and critically reflected upon its successes and failures. His legacy endures as that of a scholar-politician who sought to reconcile identity with modernity, education with progress, and tradition with reform. Even critics of the Shah’s regime have acknowledged Nahavandi’s integrity, intellect, and dedication to education as central to his life’s work.
