Iran Prosperity Project

Our vision is to see the revitalization of Iran—the birthplace of a glorious civilization—after nearly five decades of the Islamist regime’s incompetence and brutality, which have brought the country to the brink of collapse. The regime has deprived tens of millions of Iranians of the opportunity to achieve prosperity and deprived the world of all that Iran and Iranians can offer. Since this regime took power, the Iranian people have fought for freedom and the chance to flourish like their regional neighbors and global peers.

When the regime falls—as it inevitably will—the Iranian nation will embark on rebuilding its country. This Project provides a guiding framework rooted in the aspirations and priorities of the Iranian people. Within a democratic political system, Iranians can restore lost prosperity and growth through hard work, foreign investment, and international commerce while also contributing to the global rules-based order. For the world, a free and democratic Iran represents one of the last large, untapped markets. With its strategic location, abundant natural resources, a well-educated and skilled workforce, and significant existing infrastructure, the country is poised to finally unleash its economic potential.

A future Iran can establish long-term economic relationships with its neighbors based on mutual respect, fostering stability and cooperation across the region—rather than the extremism and terrorism exported by the current regime. Domestically, the resulting expansion of international trade will serve as a powerful engine for the Iranian economy, helping to revive what was once a regional powerhouse.

This Project is structured into three phases, each with its own implementation timeline. The first phase is the Emergency Phase, which covers the first six months of the Transitional Period and focuses on addressing immediate challenges while preparing the country for a democratic and economically prosperous future. This phase is addressed in detail in this Booklet. A draft of the Booklet was published in July 2025 to solicit public feedback. The authors subsequently analyzed the feedback and revised the Booklet accordingly.

The second phase is the Stabilization Phase (running from month seven through the end of the Transitional Period), and the third phase is the Post-Transition Long-Term Reforms Phase (beginning with the formation of the first elected government). The booklets covering these two phases focus on policy and strategic planning for the Transitional Period and recommendations for long-term reforms. Some parts of these booklets have already been completed, and they will be released to the public as they are finalized.

In addition to the phased booklets, the Project includes a subject-matter-specific track of policy papers organized into two categories: Foundational Stabilization and Industrial Revitalization. These papers establish national policy frameworks to support long-term economic stability, labor market resilience, and sustainable growth. They also outline sector-specific visions and investment requirements. A draft of the economic part of the Foundational Stabilization papers was released to the public for comment in May 2025, and the full booklet is expected to be published in the coming months. Work on the Industrial Revitalization papers has already commenced, and the initial draft will be released in the near future.

Iran is a great country, and Iranians are a great nation. They deserve freedom, prosperity, and respect. The Iran Prosperity Project has developed a comprehensive plan to restore Iran’s greatness.

In January 2026, the world watched in horror as the Islamic Republic massacred, according to credible reports, tens of thousands of peaceful protesters across Iran in just a few days. This atrocity marks a turning point: the regime has completely lost the remaining domestic legitimacy it claimed to have. These acts of mass violence have further solidified the Islamic Republic’s position as an international pariah. The Islamic Republic stands as a failed and deeply unpopular political system, clinging to power through sheer brutality and against the will of the people. After nearly five decades of gross incompetence, domestic repression, regional aggression, and systemic corruption, the downfall of the Islamic Republic appears increasingly plausible and is indeed perceived by many as inevitable.

To reclaim and rebuild Iran, Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has outlined a five-pronged campaign strategy: 1) exerting maximum pressure on the Islamic Republic; 2) providing maximum support to the Iranian people; 3) encouraging maximum defections from the regime; 4) maximizing mobilization of Iranians inside and outside Iran; and 5) planning for the reconstruction of Iran following the regime’s fall. It is the fifth prong—the reconstruction of Iran—that gave rise to the Iran Prosperity Project (the "Project"), which provides a comprehensive strategic roadmap to address the systemic challenges of a post-theocratic transition in Iran. The Project is structured into three phases, each with its own implementation timeline. The first phase, covering the first six months following the fall of the regime, is called the Emergency Phase and is the subject of this Booklet.

The primary objective of this Booklet is to mitigate the volatility of the Emergency Phase through coordinated efforts in economic, legal, and political reconstruction. By engaging with key international and domestic stakeholders, the Project seeks to establish a resilient framework for democratic governance and a renewed social contract, ensuring both immediate stabilization and long-term institutional viability. Even if the regime’s fall is delayed, partial, or uneven, the Emergency Phase logic set out in this Booklet still applies.

The Project team released a draft of this Booklet in July 2025 for public comment to engage in a democratic process and collect feedback, views, and concerns from Iranians. The authors have subsequently analyzed the feedback received and revised the Booklet accordingly. While this Booklet primarily focuses on the Emergency Phase, it also contains elements that affect the medium- and long-term viability of a free and democratic Iran.

The brutal response to the January 2026 uprising—known as the "Lion and Sun Revolution"—has solidified a domestic and international consensus regarding the Islamic Republic’s lack of viability and legitimacy. Defined by endemic economic stagnation and pervasive social and political repression, the regime’s stability is further undermined by strategic failures, military defeats, and the concentration of power in the hands of Ali Khamenei, the aging and increasingly paranoid Supreme Leader. Attempts to reform the regime have been systematically blocked from within since the 1990s. As a result, the Iranian public—and even regime insiders—have largely abandoned any hope for meaningful reforms capable of producing tangible political, social, or economic change.

A fundamental question that Iranians and the international community are asking is what political and economic system will replace the Islamic Republic. Without careful planning and serious engagement with potential transition scenarios, the risk of chaos and instability increases dramatically. The strategy detailed in this Booklet, aimed at achieving tangible socioeconomic progress (including expanding freedoms and resuming economic growth), has been developed to ensure the sustainability of a democratic Iran in the medium and long term.

This Booklet comprises fourteen white papers addressing fourteen key topics related to the transitional period. The first two white papers focus on the legal and political frameworks of the transitional governance system. The remaining white papers cover key areas such as foreign policy, military and security structure, cybersecurity, and more.