The first webinar series of “Istanbul Urban Studies” held online between April- July 2021 organized by Istanbul Medeniyet University, Department of Urban and Regional Planning was accomplished successfully.
17 researchers from five different professions and eleven different institutions shared the results of their studies which they have conducted for the past three years in Istanbul. In seminars, 90 different projects/areas planned for Istanbul had been discussed in terms of their different dimensions via 15 presentations. Research areas and topics in seminars have revealed the important subjects for Istanbul´s agenda.
One of the most outstanding topic brought by studies is how Istanbul´s multi-layered structure directs urban planning and the results of city-wide planning practices. In this context, one of the much-debated issue was cultural heritage and world heritage sites in Istanbul and their needs for preservation and transformation policies. Asst.Prof.Dr. Buğrayhan Biçkici Arıkan discussed the Istanbul´s heritage of water structures which remained since Ottoman Empire and still usable while Kutlu Neydim revealed the effects of Istanbul´s urban identity shaped after 1980´s on historical city center. The effects of urban renewal projects and new development projects in historical peninsula on cultural heritage and the sufficiency of cultural heritage impact assessment practices was discussed comprehensively by different disciplines. Lecturer Aysegul Can, PhD. pointed that new practices under the influence of globalization caused an intense gentrification process in historical core and it creates tension for urban space by decreasing the sense of belonging of inhabitants. Another researcher Burcu Sarı,MSc. said that periodic changes in urban policies transform not only the concept of common space but also urban texture while Res. Asst. Can Baldan mentioned the change of user groups in a city can also affect producing urban space and the identity of minorities. It was stressed that all those region- based changes may destroy tangible and intangible heritage cause loss of identity for such a multi-layered city. Herein, three vital subjects –identity, common space and public space– formed the backbone of webinar. Pelin Albayrak,MBa. drew attention that even the squares in historical city centers stay as public space, their importance and surrounding functions had changed because of urban policies and texture. On the other hand, Res. Asst. Özge Gürsoy and Res. Asst. Selda Cansu Temel made and quality assessment study for urban squares and common spaces in Istanbul in terms of design principles and features via examples.
Another most mentioned topic in webinar was transformation processes that Istanbul has gone through in conformity with its global identity. Şeyma Öztaş, MSc. referred to the role of rental housing and transformation of housing areas in Istanbul which formed after rapid population increase. Öztaş analyzed the transformation of rental housing stock in parallel with urban policies. Assoc.Prof.Dr. Akansel Yalçınkaya taking the example of Ataturk Airport said that big scale urban projects had made some effects on Istanbul´s identity and texture. However those projects are under the threat of losing their importance due to changing policies. Another presenter Res. Asst. Ayça Çelikbilek threw a light on that mega projects in Istanbul are pilot projects to attract more investment instead of renewing old areas. Çelikbilek also said that top-down projects without public participation come across with urban dissident because of timeout and cost excess. Res. Asst. Araf Öyku Türken evaluated e-participation based projects in Istanbul and their policies in terms of their effects on participation. Another presenter Res. Asst. Emre Söylemez taking the example of Kadıköy area claimed that neglecting the tree concepts -time, space and society- can ruin the functionality of multi disciplinary urban planning by creating problems
In addition to the urban management and governance, risk management was discussed as a main theme. Gökhan Sapmaz mentioned the vitality of using geological data and microzoning studies to plan a resilient city and claimed that most projects and post disaster assembly areas have been developed on risky areas providing a secondary disaster risk. Lecturer Ece Özmen and Tolga Kayacan,PhD. pointed out that unplanned and dense structuring puts Istanbul to the top of the most stressful cities list due to lack of common spaces and efficient transportation
The General Chair of the organizing committee Res. Asst. Ayça ÇELİKBİLEK and the committee members Ayşegül CAN,PhD. and Res. Asst. H. Aysun ÖZKAN YAZAR have already started their preparations for a second seminar series of Istanbul Urban Research.
The second series will start in September, 2021. Anyone interested in presenting in this series on “Istanbul Urban Studies” can access the application form via this link and follow the website of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning.
