Yādgār (yadgar.site), a digital archive created by high school student Justin Mokri, maps endangered cultural heritage sites across Iran and the Middle East with an interactive map, art timeline, and analysis of cultural erasure.
New digital archive launched by high school student
Bakersfield, United States – July 10, 2026 – A new digital archive, Yādgār (yadgar.site), has been launched to document and preserve endangered cultural heritage sites across Iran and the Middle East. The project was created by Justin Mokri, a high school senior from Bakersfield, California. The archive is now live and freely accessible to the public.
Interactive map and art timeline
At the center of the archive is an interactive map that plots heritage sites across the region, including locations that have been damaged, destroyed, or are at risk. A companion timeline traces the development of Iranian art across centuries, providing context for the traditions the archive seeks to preserve. A further section analyzes the political and institutional structures that shape cultural memory, explaining not only what has been lost but how and why.
Much of the existing documentation on threatened heritage is scattered across academic databases, news reports, and institutional archives that can be difficult for the public to navigate. Yādgār aims to consolidate that information into a single, approachable entry point.
Personal motivation and development
For Justin Mokri, the project is personal. Their family carries heritage connections to Iran, and their grandparents’ experiences under authoritarian rule shaped an early conviction that preserving memory is itself a form of resistance. “Cultural erasure doesn’t only happen through destruction — it happens through forgetting,” said Mokri. “Yādgār is my attempt to keep some of these histories visible and searchable, so that anyone can find them.”
Yādgār was designed, built, and is maintained independently, with guidance from professors across the United States. Working from Bakersfield, Mokri sees the project as evidence that meaningful cultural and civic work does not require a major institution or a coastal address. “The archive is a work in progress, and I’d rather publish something real and keep building it than wait for it to be perfect,” Mokri added. “If it helps even a few people remember, it’s doing its job.”
About Yādgār
Yādgār (Persian for “remembrance”) is a digital archive dedicated to preserving the cultural heritage of Iran and the wider region. Through an interactive map of heritage sites, a timeline of Iranian art, and documentation of the forces behind cultural erasure, Yādgār works to keep at-risk histories visible and accessible. The archive is built and maintained independently. More information is available at yadgar.site.
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Media Contact
Company: Yadgar
Contact Person: Justin Mokri
Email: Send email
Website: yadgar.site
