Einanlou; A Voice That Attracted Thousands of Iranians to the Beauty of Iran's Nature

The voice that could attract thousands of Iranians to the beauty of nature in Iran around wetlands, forests, mountains, plains, and wildlife, and travel with the concept of ecotourism, was silenced on Saturday morning at the age of 68. Mohammad Ali Einanlou, a television presenter, nature documentarian, and ecotourism advocate who became a beloved public figure through these travels, had for years been part of one of the best television teams alongside Ismail Mirfakhraei, transforming television with a fresh color and scent in the popular program "With Nature" during years of dullness and lack of programming. Mr. Einanlou is recognized as one of the travel and ecotourism enthusiasts in the country. He is considered the founder of ecotourism in Iran and is named as one of the renowned television and radio personalities who knew how to encourage people to preserve the environment and nature of the country. He often compared his travels in Iran to the size of the Earth, including in an interview last year on the popular show "Khandvaneh," where he mentioned that he had traveled 4 million kilometers on land within Iran. Mr. Einanlou also claimed to have over 40 years of experience in journalism. His media activities included editing the magazine "Gardesh," the Iranology magazine "Silk Road," as well as editing the magazines "Hunting and Nature," "World Travelers," and "Nature." Nader Barzegar, the editor-in-chief and owner of the quarterly "Ecotourism," stated about his collaboration with Mr. Einanlou: "Mr. Einanlou was someone who was both an ecotourist and conducted scientific work in ecotourism, and he worked hard to promote ecotourism. He portrayed an appropriate image of the potential of ecotourism and wildlife in Iran." However, this beloved presenter and environmental advocate sparked a wave of protests from some environmentalists in recent years. The last time was when news about his involvement in hunting in a protected area in Shahroud was published. The news and a photo that surfaced on social media and some environmental websites related to the arrest of three hunters along with the carcass of a wild ram in a hunting-prohibited area in Shahroud, where it was said that the responsibility for the hunting lay with Shakrollah Einanlou, his brother, and that he himself had a role in the hunting. Although Mr. Einanlou always denied this news and claimed that some ill-wishers had spread it in the form of rumors, even the official website of the Environmental Protection Organization reacted by publishing a news article titled "Arrest of Relatives of a Television Personality in a Hunting-Prohibited Area." Mr. Einanlou's positions on hunting have somewhat increased these criticisms. He never opposed hunting in his interviews and had different opinions about it. Although in a television interview, he once called being a hunter in the past a wrong act and stated that he had given up hunting 15 years ago and now understood the pleasure of hunting with a camera. Mohammad Ali Einanlou also criticized the management of the environment, stating that the environment is the only area that should be managed by men, as he said the environment, due to its "harsh nature," is not a place for "sissiness." His remarks were in response to the Environmental Protection Organization's decisions to impose a five-year hunting ban, addressing Masoumeh Ebtekar, the head of this organization, who had suggested releasing doves as a substitute for killing sheep in a ceremony. Einanlou reacted to these new behaviors by saying: "The environment is not a place for the pink color of Walt Disney cartoons." Despite all these criticisms, 68-year-old Mohammad Ali Einanlou remained vibrant and lively in the mountains, plains, and deserts of Iran with his young filming teams, producing and presenting the documentary "Iran, a World in a Border," which somewhat reminded viewers of the program "With Nature" from 20 years ago. Although this program did not become as popular, it made the voice and presence of Mohammad Ali Einanlou more enduring. In this regard, what was Einanlou's greatest legacy for ecotourism in Iran?