Dr. Fredun Hojabri, the former professor and former vice president of SUT, was in Toronto on Friday September 20th to present his new book, “Upon Water and Fire”. Dr. Hojabri has been the founder and the first president of SUTA and currently serves as the Senior Adviser of the Board of Directors of SUTA. During his short visit, the Toronto Chapter hosted an event that was held at the Council Chamber at North York Civic Center starting at 7:00 pm. The event which was aimed at the Iranian community received a great turnout and attracted more than 60 members, affiliates, and friends.

The session was started by Ms. Firoozeh Abassian, and then Dr. Hojabri was introduced by Ms. Mahshid Agir, and was thereafter invited to give his presentation which lasted for one hour, followed by a 45 minute period of Q&A by the audience. He began his speech by thanking his editor Dr. Goel Cohen and his wife, Hedy, for her support and encouragement throughout. He then talked in more detail about excerpts from his book. The speech mainly revolved around Dr. Hojabri’s life in Abadan during the nationalization of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, the student life in Munich, and the start of an academic career in Iran.

“Upon Water and Fire” is an autobiography that spans a personal and professional life, taking a deep and personal look at Dr. Hojabri’s life throughout historic, academic and social events. Although the book is first and foremost a memoire focusing mostly on personal experiences and observations, it also provides a historic analysis of some of the events leading up to the nationalization of Iran’s oil industry, along with a brief history of the Sharif University of Technology and the transformation of the student movement in the span of 3 decades.

At the end of the presentation, Dr. Hojabri was presented with a gift as a token of appreciation, and many SUTA members - who had indicated a strong interest in spending more time with Dr. Hojabri - had the opportunity to attend a group dinner at one of the restaurants on Yonge Street.