UANIs Initiatives

UANI directs the sole concerted effort dedicated to raising awareness of the dangers of a nuclear-armed Iran and to highlighting the need for sanctions and private economic pressure to increase the economic and diplomatic isolation of Iranian regime. Since its founding in September 2008, UANI has developed a variety of dynamic and successful corporate campaigns, federal and state legislative initiatives, and grassroots advocacy efforts to effectively harness the energy of the American public to pressure corporations, firms and other entities to sever business ties with Iran in order to increase the costs of the regime’s continued pursuit of nuclear weapons, its support for terrorism and gross human rights violations.

UANI’s efforts have generated significant earned media coverage, including in such major news outlets as The New York Times, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune, Reuters, Associated Press and many others.

Corporate Campaigns

UANI’s strategy of ‘private sanctions’ campaigns works to economically isolate the Iranian regime—denying it the economic and industrial means to continue its nuclear weapons program, support of terrorism and extremism as well as human rights abuses. UANI’s work has alerted the business community, government leaders and the general public to the serious financial and reputational risks of being associated with the Iranian regime. UANI programs and projects have driven corporations world-wide to sever their business ties to Iran, including such corporate heavyweights as General Electric, Huntsman, Caterpillar, Ingersoll Rand, KPMG, Komatsu and others.

UANI success has helped foster an environment in which the logic of “business as usual” with Iran no longer applies. The financial and reputational risks of trading with Iran now outweigh any benefits. UANI continues to develop specific monthly corporate campaigns in addition to larger thematic campaigns including the Cranes, GAO and Tech & Telecom Campaigns.

Click here to view UANI’s corporate campaign successes.
Click here to view UANI’s ongoing corporate campaigns.
Click here to view UANI’s Iran Business Registry (IBR), a public listing of companies doing

Legislative Campaigns

UANI model certification, debarment and disclosure legislation gives activists and lawmakers innovative tools to harness the energy of concerned citizens at the federal and local levels to address the threat of Iran’s nuclear program.

The specter of debarment is one of the most effective means of pressuring companies to cease their Iran business and support of the corrupt and criminal Iranian regime. No responsible and profit-minded corporation would jeopardize the millions, if not billions of dollars in revenue from federal and states contracts by doing business with Iran.

UANI translated this concept to apply to federal, state and local governments across the U.S. via its Iran Business Certification Act (IBC Act), which was incorporated into the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (CISADA). The unprecedented measures of the IBC Act require companies that do business with the U.S. Government to certify they do not conduct sanctionable business with Iran in order to receive American taxpayer dollars.

UANI correspondingly pursued the adoption of unprecedented Iran contracting model legislation for the U.S. states. UANI model legislation has subsequently been adopted by California, Florida and New York. This legislation debars corporations that have business in Iran from contracting with public entities in these states.

UANI has also proposed unprecedented regulations and legislation for adoption by the SEC and U.S. Congress, respectively, which would require companies to fully disclose their Iran business to investors and the public. Such action enables investors to make informed decisions about the companies in which they are investing, and the U.S. Government to make informed decisions about the companies with which it is contracting. In 2010, UANI’s model regulations were introduced as the Iran Transparency and Accountability Act (ITAA) in the U.S. Congress and subsequently included in the Iran Threat Reduction Act of 2011, which was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in December 2011.

Click here to view UANI’s Model Legislation page.
Click here to learn about UANI’s Iran Business Certification Act.
Click here to learn about UANI’s State Certification Legislation.
Click here to learn about UANI’s SEC Disclosure Measures.

Grassroots Campaigns

Local communities around the U.S. turn to UANI for leadership on the Iranian nuclear issue as well as for resources such as news, research, speakers and UANI programs and projects. As part of its grassroots activities UANI organizes onsite protests at corporate offices and headquarters nationwide. UANI has protested in front of the offices of Honeywell, Maersk, Siemens, Sinopec, Eni, Nokia and other leading corporations with Iran business operations.

Beginning in 2009, UANI has organized and led efforts to compel New York area hotels and venues to not host Ahmadinejad and the Iranian delegation during the UN General Assembly’s (UNGA) annual September meeting in New York City. When the Iranian regime visits New York, it is essential that it faces diplomatic isolation for its egregious violation of international law and norms. As part of this annual UN General Assembly Campaign, UANI and its supporters have successfully urged a number of venues to decline accommodations for Ahmadinejad. Ultimately, UANI believes no venue should be providing accommodation for such a leader without incurring severe reputational and financial consequences.

Click here to view UANI’s Grassroots Advocacy page.
Click here to view UANI’s UN General Assembly Campaign page.