Sapling, Juniper & Cypress
Every ARC membership is named after a tree that grows in Iran. Each is a small marker of where you are in your journey with us — and a quiet nod to how deeply trees are rooted in Persian culture.
Sapling
نهال — nahâl
Where you begin. Free to explore, finding your footing, and putting down your first roots with the community — no commitment, just the start of something.
In Persian cultureTo plant a nahâl is one of the most hopeful acts there is. Families plant a young tree for a newborn or a fresh start, and Nowruz — the Persian New Year — celebrates exactly this: spring, renewal, and new growth. A sapling is small today, but it's the beginning of something that lasts.
Juniper
اورس / سرو کوهی — ors
Rooted and growing. The full weekly experience — cooking, community, resources. You're steady, present, and part of the circle.
In Persian cultureThe juniper is a hardy evergreen of Iran's mountains — the Alborz and the Zagros — that endures cold, wind, and thin soil and can live for centuries. Slow-growing and quietly unbreakable, it stands for steadiness: growth that holds through hard seasons.
Cypress
سرو — sarv
Fully grown, giving back. Everything ARC offers, plus career and personal growth. You stand tall — for yourself and for the community.
In Persian cultureNo tree is more Persian than the cypress. It's carved into the walls of Persepolis, echoed in the boteh (paisley) of Persian carpets, and praised in countless poems as a symbol of resilience, freedom, and an upright spirit — evergreen and unbending. The Sarv-e Abarkuh in Yazd province is believed to be around 4,000 years old, one of the most ancient living things on earth. To be a cypress is to be steadfast and enduring.
Wherever you are — just rooting, growing, or standing tall — there's a place for you in the circle.