Adapted from a Persian field report originally published by Mehr News Agency in June 2011. The original report was among the outlet’s widely read environmental reports at the time. In the forests of Arasbaran in northwestern Iran, the conflict was once visible in the simplest way: wildlife retreating as bulldozers advanced. Arasbaran, recognized for its biodiversity and home to rare species including roe deer, bears, and the endangered Caucasian black grouse, was, even in 20