Our university took part at an institutional level in the Global Sustainable Development Congress for the first time, held in Istanbul on June 16–19, 2025, and jointly organized by the international higher education ranking body Times Higher Education (THE) and the Council of Higher Education (YÖK). The event brought together universities from all around the world.

Representing our university, a delegation consisting of staff from the Office of Internationalization, Research Coordination’s Sustainability and Ranking Units, and the Corporate Communication Office shared our university’s vision and recent achievements in sustainability with the international academic community.

During the congress, our team held discussions with several institutions, particularly universities from Europe and Asia, and signed 12 new international cooperation agreements—including first-time cooperations with universities in Indonesia, Ecuador, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, and Bangladesh.

The major event was attended by our university’s Internationalization Coordinator Lecturer PhD. UlaÅŸ Kutsi Çezik, Assistant Coordinator Asst. Pro. Dr. Yücel Bulut, Associate Prof. Dr. Hasan Ölmez from the Sustainability Unit, and Emre Koç from the Corporate Communication Office. The university’s booth also received visits from YÖK President Prof. Dr. Erol Özvar, YÖK’s Head of International Relations Mustafa Efe, and rectors and academics from leading Turkish universities, who were briefed on our internationalization efforts.

Alongside recent advances in global rankings and sustainability, our university stood out for its active participation and institutional hospitality, leaving a strong impression on international stakeholders. The congress marked a significant step in increasing our university’s global academic visibility.

Due to the ongoing attacks and genocide in Palestine since October 7, 2023, universities from Palestine were absent from the event. Although An-Najah University from Nablus, West Bank, had a booth at the congress, no representative could attend. On the final day, our delegation visited the unattended booth in a symbolic act of support for Palestine, laying our university’s flag there to express solidarity and unity. Our representatives departed the emotionally charged site with the hope of cooperating with free Palestinian universities in future gatherings.

 

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