Sustainable Development Goals and Climate Change Research Center

Research for Sustainability

Below are some of the research projects for sustainability AGU is involved in:

SDG 1 | SDG 2 | SDG 3 | SDG 4 | SDG 5 | SDG 6

SDG 7 | SDG 8 | SDG 9 | SDG 10 | SDG 11 | SDG 12

SDG 13 | SDG 14 | SDG 15 | SDG 16 | SDG 17

SDG SPECIFIC RESEARCH AT AGU

SDG 1 - Related Research at AGU

AGU TTO carries out its activities with the aim of transforming the scientific research outputs carried out at AGU into economic value, increasing the university-industry cooperation, making higher use of national and international support mechanisms, developing entrepreneurship, managing and commercializing intellectual property rights. AGU TTO serves researchers with its F3 (Fly For Future) Incubation Centre. F3 Incubation Centre: Entrepreneur candidates who are not at the level of realizing their ideas as a business model, and entrepreneur candidates who have reached a certain stage and stepped into the maturation phase can benefit from AGU F3 Incubation Centre services. For entrepreneur candidates at AGU F3 Incubation Centre, support is provided in the following fields:

Open office space usage
Training, consultancy and mentoring,
Prototyping,

AGU also supports the development of sustainable business via its new Model Factory Project, where participants (including AGU) help the start-up of promising sustainable SMEs, through consultancy, training, financial support, improve SMEs’ processes by training them on lean manufacturing techniques, optimization of productivity, energy efficiency and waste management and enhance SMEs’ competitiveness on the international arena by accessing Industry 4.0 technologies.

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SDG 2 - Related Research at AGU

There are academic researches and projects on agriculture and aquaculture at AGU. The list of these studies is below:

“Production of edible film from buckwheat starch and the effect of modification of starch with fatty acids on film mechanical properties, TUBITAK 1001, 2019-2022
“Fabrication of New Generation Membranes and Their Applications in Fruit Juice Industry”, supported by Higher Education Institutions
Doehler Sustainability Project: global producer, marketer and provider of natural ingredients, ingredients systems and integrated solutions for the food and beverage industry
Thesis on “Analytic Policy Making for a Sustainable Agricultural System: A Combined Methodology of Operations Research and System Dynamics”.

As part of AGU's "University- Industry Cooperation" projects, AGU has been cooperating with Kayseri Şeker, the city's sugar production company. Within the frame of this collaboration, AGU faculty members conducted a research project in order to optimize sensitive agriculture using drone imaging for Deep Learning and Transfer Learning technologies. The objective of the Project is to benefit local farmers and help them improve their processes. As part of this project, several events were organized with the local farmers/food producers to start the project and share results (kick-off and closing meetings).

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SDG 3 - Related Research at AGU

GLB 201 Food and Health Course is designed to introduce information on global issues related to health and food. This course will provide awareness of the impact of some factors such as social class, generation, economy, environment, etc. on food/health related global challenges. Students will explore global issues such as food sustainability/food security/food safety, as well as health-related global issues within the context of their political, economic, social and environmental components. Current hot topics such as genetically modified foods, epidemics (outbreaks) and their social effects will be also discussed.

Projects on health and Wellbeing:

Mrd Biochip: Monitoring Minimal Residual Disease in a Reliable and Simple Way
Development of Breast Cancer Targeted, Increased Stability, pH Sensitive from Two Regions, Drug Conjugated, Multifunctional Micellar Nano Carriers and Determination of Their In Vitro Activity
Investigation of the in vivo Efficacy of Olean-12-En-28-Ol, 3ß Pentacosanoate (Opc) Isolated from Capparis ovata for Symptomatic Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis
Development of a Kidney Targeted siRNA Carrier Nanoparticle Formulation for Chemoprotection of Cisplatin Nephrotoxicity
Functional Characterization of C.Elegans Mutant Joubert Syndrome Gene CEP41 Obtained by CRISPR
Revealing and Characterizing New Cilia Genes
Determination of the Perception of Weight Regarding the Object to be Lifted in Preparing the Bionic Hand for Activity Using Brain Signals
Multiple Targeting on Neuroinflammation for Multiple Sclerosis and Cognitive Disorders: Design, Synthesis and Determination of Bioactivity in Brain Organoids of Ciproxifan and Fingolimod Based Hybrid Derivatives
Multidimensional Representation of RNA Secondary Structures and Applications for Pre-Myrna Detection
Development of Multifunctional, Targeted, Original Nano Carriers for the Treatment of Breast Cancer, Investigation of In Vitro and In Vivo Activities

Resveratrol's Ph + Therapeutic Potential in Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and the Role of Ceramide Metabolism in Resveratrol-Triggered Apoptosis

The GEN-KÖK project is a TUBİTAK 1001 program project and which is “Determination of New Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) Targets by Investigating the B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (B-ALL) Surface Proteome” Coordinator: Servet Özcan, Researcher: Şerife Ayaz Güner.

Other Projects and Events

- AGU departments and units organize seminars, panels, symposiums and trainings on health and well being regularly. As part of the activities within the Week for Children with Leukemia, a panel entitled "Childhood Cancer and Stem Cell Transplantation" was held at AGU as part of the "GLB201 Food and Health", one of the Global Challenge courses aiming at social contribution in addition to AGU's traditional education and research missions.

- A Seminar on breast cancer was held at AGU by Society of Women Engineers and it was about the early diagnosis and treatment of “Breast Cancer”.

- AGU Career Center brought together YDA Health, ISS and Keydata executives with AGU students in Health Sector Career Talks. Turkey's first and Europe's tenth-largest hospital company managers gave highlights on digitalized system in the hospital management and talked about career opportunities.

- Growth and Population Seminar at AGU was delivered as part of the "Immigration and Population" theme which is the fourth leg of the "Global Problems - GLB" courses, which were designed at AGU to realize societal impact and contribution function of a third-generation university.

- The "Life Sciences Symposium" was organized by the AGU School of Life and Natural Sciences in the Rectorate Conference Hall on the Sümer Campus. Around 300 people working in biology, genetics, medicine, pharmacy, bioengineering, chemistry and engineering and based in various universities joined the congress held for the 4th time this year. The congress aimed to bring students and specialists from basic, clinical and engineering sciences together to create an interactive environment and covered significant themes such as cancer biology, proteomics, bioinformatics, tissue engineering, stem cells, nanobiotechnology, neuroscience, immunology and biomedical instrumentation.

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SDG 4 - Related Research at AGU

An innovative Curriculum structure called “3dC” was created. It includes 3 different paths named “Personal Development”, “Glocal Challenges” and Professionalization” as well as competency-based personalized programs units called “Capsule”. Capsules will be taken as compulsory or optional and designed in line with the learning outcomes within the framework of real-life project modules, online-offline content modules and activity modules. The main goal of the capsules is to provide students with real-life experience throughout the curriculum. The curriculum will contribute to the graduates of AGU to live not only profession-oriented but also society-oriented, so that they can use their real life experiences after graduation from the university. Personal Development Path, one of the original components of the AGU curriculum, is a program designed to increase the success of students in their personal lives at school and in business life.

AGU TALKS is a platform in which not only students but also other individuals from society, come together to benefit from speakers' contributions, regardless of their different backgrounds and experiences. The guests and topics covered in 2019 were: Entrepreneurship - Marc Haberland and Kemal Tekden.

The AGU Academy, provides trainings and certificate to the general public such as English courses, Professional and personal development, Information Technologies trainings. AGU also hosted a training session by the Public procurement authority for officials in charge of procurement at Public agencies and institutes.

AGU Youth Factory is a non-formal education resource centre for the social and personal development of youth workers, youth leaders, youth trainers and young people. Due to its regulations and structure it ensures full access to all its activities.

AGU Career Centre has organized four seminars on finance, construction, health and engineering and all of those seminars were open to public. Additionally, AGU Career Centre organized two Professional Development Trainings which were open to all. Platforms to find jobs, scholarships and internships shared with public:

Other Projects and Events

- A Social entrepreneurship training was held at AGU, Kayseri within the Social Entrepreneurship Network in Turkey project led by Vehbi Koç Foundation in collaboration with Koç University Social Impact Forum (KUSIF), Ashoka Turkey, Social Innovation Initiative Association (SIID), Innovative Solutions for Sustainable Development Association (SKYÇD), TED University, Mozaik Foundation (Bosnia and Herzegovina), and Social Enterprise UK.

- The Children's University of AGU designs learning activities for children in order to raise confidence, encourage curiosity, enhance motivation and introduce life experiences. The Children's University organized “The Training of Trainers series”. Sümer Science High School teachers joined the latest training session. The participants took the "Gifted Children and Their Education" training. The training covered status of gifted children abroad and in Turkey, their education, career chances, characteristics, and attitude of teachers towards gifted children, and increased trainees' awareness about them.

- Instrumental Techniques Training was held at AGU on the architectural documentation of cultural assets with instrumental techniques. The university staff, graduate students, and staff from public institutions and organizations concerned with conservation practices joined the training. As a project carried out by Assoc. Prof. Nilüfer Yöney from the AGU Faculty of Architecture within the scope of the Technical Support Projects of the Middle Anatolia Development Agency (ORAN), the training session on the architectural documentation of cultural assets with instrumental techniques was held at the Sümer Campus.

- The Continuing Education, Application and Research Centre (AGU Academy) and Technology Transfer Office (AGU TTO) of Abdullah Gül University (AGU) organized the "Marketing Thought" training in order to put a general perspective on modern marketing techniques. The training targets company managers and people interested in a career in marketing and branding. The audience of the latest session, held in the Rectorate Senate Room on the Sümer Campus, was managers of Erciyes Anadolu Holding.

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SDG 5 - Related Research at AGU

AGU has established committees in order to have policies on the reduction of the inequalities between disadvantaged groups. Equality and Justice Committee has been established in 2019. They will organize training sessions and seminars for students in order to raise their awareness about gender mainstreaming. The committee also aims to reach to and work with a wider audience based in Kayseri. Also, AGU Diversity and Equality Commission has reported its activities. The newly-founded Diversity and Equality Commission has shared its opinions about the university policies that had been adopted and the university activities in three related fields; the gender equality, reducing inequality and peace, justice and strong institutions, respectively. In the first subject, the commission delivered its advices on providing gender equality on several fronts; such as, encouraging the participation of female students in the activities of student clubs; promoting policies against gender-based discrimination; providing facilities, like kindergarten, for female staff. The commission, secondly, brought up the issue of detecting and reducing the inequalities in the university. Providing access of the disabled students to the university and increasing the participation of underrepresented groups in the campus life were some of the issues raised by the commission in the meeting. Lastly, the Diversity and Equality Commission has emphasized on the importance of SDG 16, peace, justice and strong institutions. In this subject, the commission members have spoken about the participation of university staff and students in the decision-making mechanism of the university and the university partnership with the local NGOs.

The AGU Women in Business Club and Society of Women Engineers were created and have been encouraging women and organizing mentoring schemes and events. These clubs' philosophy is to increase the number of applications to programs where women remain underrepresented, especially in STEM subjects. On the International Women's Day, the AGU Society of Women Engineers Club organized "Powerful Women Inspiring the Business" panel in the Sümer Campus Conference Hall. At the panel, women panellists shared statistics about women and talked about their work lives and careers.

AGU Technology Transfer Office (TTO) created Incubation Centre and promotes start-up projects on women entrepreneurship and disadvantaged groups. Additional points are given to female candidates in projects and grant programs carried out by TTO.

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SDG 6 - Related Research at AGU

AGU has been working in collaboration with institutions for research on domestic wastewater treatment using membrane processes for its reuse in agricultural irrigation. The AGU Department of Civil Engineering has been working on TÜBITAK-supported research projects on water security since 2015 (ongoing), especially on Pollution in the Yesilirmak River Basin and on "Energy, Nutrient and Water Recovery from Domestic Wastewaters". AGU developed an innovative Global Challenge Curriculum (GLB) composed of one mandatory course and several elective courses taught throughout the four Undergraduate academic years. These courses focus on global topics such as the ones tackled by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. As part of its Civil Engineering courses AGU has also been offering a course on "Water and Wastewater Treatment Engineering" (CE 475). Within the frame of this course, AGU teaches good water and waste water management systems to be applied by AGU graduates off-campus.

AGU has been involved in various projects on clean water and sanitation. These projects are listes below:

“Preparation of Photocatalytic Materials for Water Clarification via Organic Waste”, supported by Scientific Research Projects (BAP)
“Synthesis and Characterization of New Generation Magnetic Nanoparticle Conductive Polymer Materials and Their Use in Photocatalytic Removal for Different Water Pollutants”, supported by Scientific Research Projects (BAP)
“Development of an Innovative Hybrid Membrane Process for Energy, Nutrient and Water Recovery from Domestic Wastewater”, supported by TUBİTAK 1001
“Fabrication of New Generation Membranes and Their Applications in Fruit Juice Industry”, supported by Higher Education Institutions

Other Projects and Events

- AGU organizes seminars and panels on sustainability and ecology. Within the scope of AGU Faculty of Architecture Seminar Series, Medine Altıok gave a seminar titled “Mittelmeerland- Urban research project exploring the future of the Mediterranena Sea as a territory of water”

- AGU organized the Sustainability Panel and this shed light on sustainability concepts in Kayseri business, city and industry with speaker experiences. As part of the GLB301 Sustainability course, the panel hosted Koray Kök, Environmental Engineer at the Environmental Services of the Kayseri Municipality, Mustafa Nebi Doğan, Board Member of the Kayseri Chamber of Industry, and Ömer Yasin Arık, President of the Kayseri Chamber of City Planners, as speakers at the Rectorate Conference Hall. The discussions covered sustainability concepts in Kayseri business, city and industry.

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SDG 7 - Related Research at AGU

AGU opened a graduate program in Sustainable Urban Infrastructure Engineering. Some lectures and workshops/seminars organized with the frame of this program are open to the general public. Regularly, and in collaboration with its international partners, AGU educates and promotes on topics such as the use of 100% renewable energies. AGU – as a research university seeking solutions to global challenges and aiming at developing citizens who can contribute to societies and shape the future – developed an innovative Global Challenge Curriculum (GLB) composed of one mandatory course and several elective courses taught throughout the four Undergraduate academic years. These courses focus on global topics such as the ones tackled by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In addition to these courses, AGU Civil Engineering Department has courses such as Sustainable Energy Resources, Sustainable Concrete Technology, Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering, Water and Wastewater Treatment Engineering,

AGU departments have been working on projects on energy. These projects are “Study on Heat Recovery Process Within Anode for Downsizing Fuel Cell Module” which is supported by Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), “Semiconductor quantum dot-perovskite solar cells” project supported by Higher Education Institutions, “Development of an Innovative Hybrid Membrane Process for Energy, Nutrient and Water Recovery from Domestic Wastewater” supported by TUBITAK 1001 and “Design and Implementation of High Performance Switched Reluctance Motor Drive System with Buck / Boost Dc / Dc / Ac Converters” supported by TUBITAK.

Other Projects and Events

AGU is a member of “Anadolu Güneşi” supporting generation of energy in Kayseri. They organize meetings every year on the generation of energy and energy companies open their booths. “Anadolu Güneşi” is supported by the State as well.

- AGU established the Model Factory on its campus, a project that falls within the framework of the Turkish government’s 100-day action plan of the national strategic plan 2019-2023 and is implemented in Kayseri by the Kayseri Chamber of Industry. Within the frame of Model Factory, AGU helps the start-up of promising sustainable SMEs, through consultancy, training, financial support and improves SMEs’ processes by training them on lean manufacturing techniques, optimization of productivity, energy efficiency and waste management.

- AGU is a partner of the Erciyes Teknopark Sera project (Incubation Center), which provides support to spin-offs, start-ups working in the field of Smart Life, Smart Urbanism, Mobile Applications, Robotics, Wireless Communication, Wearable Technologies, Mobile Health, Intelligent Education, Renewable and Intelligent Energy Systems, Information Technologies and Software, Food Technologies are carried out in the fields.

- Moreover, AGU also signed a protocol with the public city transportation company named "Kayseri Ulaşım". Within the frame of this project, AGU continues giving consulting on:

Analyzing and evaluating the problems of urban transportation sector and producing innovative solutions,
Developing products for the establishment of a transportation structure with domestic, innovative, green and smart systems,
Ensuring the formation of a safe and sustainable transportation structure with a high level of efficiency,
Reducing fuel consumption and carbon emissions from urban transportation,
Supporting the digital transformation for smart cities and infrastructures within the framework of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0).

- AGU also signed an internship protocol with ASPILSAN Energy providing solutions to lower the dependency on imports of portable energy storage systems. The protocol lays down one-term internship program for students who study at an AGU undergraduate program and are sent by the university to internship. With the protocol, it is aimed that intern students may learn about the production process, and new energy technologies, see problems and solutions relevant to their majors as part of teams, gain experience in written and oral presentation of outcomes for social benefit with due regard for professional ethics.

- The 16th International Symposium on Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC-XVI) was held in Kyoto, Japan on 8-13 September 2019 at Kyoto Terrsa. This international symposium brought together scientists, engineers, and researchers from academia, industry, and government laboratories to share results and discuss issues related to solid oxide fuel cells and electrolyzers. AGU presented the paper entitled “Indirect Internal Reforming SOFC Accommodating Graded-catalytic Domain Fabricated by Paper-structured Catalyst” in this symposium.

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SDG 8 - Related Research at AGU

Coming Soon

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SDG 9 - Related Research at AGU

AGU TTO carries out its activities with the aim of transforming the scientific research outputs carried out at AGU into economic value, increasing the university-industry cooperation, making higher use of national and international support mechanisms, developing entrepreneurship, managing and commercializing intellectual property rights. AGU TTO serves researchers with its F3 (Fly For Future) Incubation Center. Entrepreneur candidates who are not at the level of realizing their ideas as a business model, and entrepreneur candidates who have reached a certain stage and stepped into the maturation phase can benefit from AGU F3 Incubation Center services.

For entrepreneur candidates at AGU F3 Incubation Center;

Open office space usage
Training, consultancy and mentoring,
Protatyping,

support is provided.

AGU is collaborating with UNDP, the Ministry of Science, Industry, and Technology, Kayseri Chamber of Industry, Kayseri Chamber of Commerce in the context of Model Factory Project. AGU supports the development of sustainable business via its Model Factory Project, where participants (including AGU) help the start-up of promising sustainable SMEs, through consultancy, training, financial support, improve SMEs’ processes by training them on lean manufacturing techniques, optimization of productivity, energy efficiency and waste management and enhance SMEs’ competitiveness on the international arena by accessing Industry 4.0 technologies.

Other Projects and Events

- On the International Women's Day, the AGU Society of Women Engineers Club organized "Powerful Women Inspiring the Business" panel in the Sümer Campus Conference Hall. At the panel, women panelists shared statistics about women and talked about their work lives and careers.

- Tekden Group Chairman and Surgeon Kemal Tekden delivered a speech on "Entrepreneurial Spirit" at AGU. Surgeon Kemal Tekden was the latest guest speaker of the "AGU Talks" seminar series, organized by the AGU Youth Factory to bring together prominent figures of culture, arts, sports, education and business with students. Prof. İhsan Sabuncuoğlu, students of AGU and other Kayseri universities, academic and administrative staff joined the seminar at the Rectorate Conference Hall.

- The Continuing Education, Application and Research Center (AGU Academy) and Technology Transfer Office (AGU TTO) of Abdullah Gül University (AGU) organized the "Marketing Thought" training in order to put a general perspective on modern marketing techniques. The training targets company managers and people interested in a career in marketing and branding. The audience of the latest session, held in the Rectorate Senate Room on the Sümer Campus, was managers of Erciyes Anadolu Holding.

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SDG 10 - Related Research at AGU

Coming Soon

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SDG 11 - Related Research at AGU

AGU collaborates with the Kayseri Municipality to help the city develop more sustainable, eco- friendly, cost-efficient, affordable facilities, including housing for local residents. The Search Conference was organized jointly by AGU and Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality on the "Kayseri in 2050" theme and started to create shared wisdom and participatory planning.

Within the framework of University-Industry R & D Cooperation, Abdullah Gül University and Kayseri Transportation Inc. have partnership on several projects in order to make transportation services more efficient. These projects are:

“Artificial Intelligence and Graphic Theory Based Smart Intersection Management System Development Project for Kayseri”

With the project, it is aimed to minimize the traffic problems by performing modelling activities of the intersection points of Kayseri Province.

“Kayseri Public Transportation System Optimization (Preparatory Phase)” project

The long-term objectives of the project are as follows are: Analysing and evaluating the problems of urban transportation sector and producing innovative solutions, To develop products for the establishment of a transportation structure with domestic, innovative, green and smart systems, Ensuring the formation of a safe and sustainable transportation structure with a high level of efficiency, To reduce fuel consumption and carbon emissions from urban transportation, Digital transformation for smart cities and infrastructures within the framework of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) and support sustainability.

Other Projects and Events

In addition, AGU organized several events on sustainability in 2019. The Sustainability Panel organized at AGU shed light on sustainability concepts in Kayseri business, city and industry with speaker experiences. As part of the GLB301 Sustainability course, the panel hosted Koray Kök, Environmental Engineer at the Environmental Services of the Kayseri Municipality, Mustafa Nebi Doğan, Board Member of the Kayseri Chamber of Industry, and Ömer Yasin Arık, President of the Kayseri Chamber of City Planners, as speakers at the Rectorate Conference Hall.

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SDG 12 - Related Research at AGU

Coming Soon

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SDG 13 - Related Research at AGU

AGU has a set of mandatory academic courses called "Global Courses" educating students about the SDGs and current Global Challenges such as Climate change, Health/Food, Sustainability, etc. Moreover, AGU organizes and hosts events meant to educate the general public about sustainability, including climate change risks and impact. AGU opened a graduate program in Sustainable Urban Infrastructure Engineering. Some lectures and workshops/seminars organized with the frame of this program are open to the general public. Regularly, and in collaboration with its international partners, AGU educates and promotes on topics such as the use of 100% renewable energies. In addition to these courses, AGU Civil Engineering Department has courses such as Sustainable Energy Resources, Sustainable Concrete Technology, Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering, Water and Wastewater Treatment Engineering. AGU has been involved in various sustainability projects, including the "AGU Bostan" (AGU Garden) project. The main target of the project, to be realized on an 800-square-meter area on the Sümer Campus, is designing an ecological, sustainable and public campus experience.

Other Projects and Events

- One of the University's student clubs is affiliated with the Turkish Foundation for Combating Erosion, Reforestation and the Protection of Natural Habitats (TEMA) and jointly organized events tackling climate change and ways to decrease its impact. AGU is also an official knowledge partner of GSI (a global collaborative enterprise to propose policy responses to major global problems, addressed by the G20, the G7 and other global governance fora) and therefore tackles and supports the solution finding process for SDG 13 (policy brief for the G20), guiding governments with their related policies and supporting NGOs with their related activities.

- AGU has been, since 2015, a leading member of in the Municipality’s "Kayseri 2050" project. This project aims at determining the city’s strategic roadmap and, among other topics, addressing urban planning issues, transportation systems, planning for climate change disasters, insuring that citizens can continue to reside in affordable housing, etc. AGU plays a key role in its municipality's plan to develop the city by 2050. AGU participated in the Kayseri 2050 Conference and suggested the implementation of sustainable measures, Smart City systems, Eco-friendly city transportation systems, etc., which have a direct impact on climate change. Regularly, and in collaboration with its international partners and local governments, AGU educates and promotes on topics such as the planning for Climate Change disasters and the use of 100% renewable energies. AGU is also the member of “Anadolu Güneşi” supporting generation of energy in Kayseri. They organize meetings every year on the generation of energy and energy companies open their booths. “Anadolu Güneşi” is supported by the state as well.

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SDG 14 - Related Research at AGU

AGU opened a graduate program in Sustainable Urban Infrastructure Engineering. Within this program there is a course named “Clean Water Access Infrastructure in Developing Countries” In this course, students focus on clean water access infrastructure planning in developing countries. The clean water problem will be examined from a multidisciplinary perspective. AGU, as a research university seeking solutions to global challenges and aiming at developing citizens who can contribute to societies and shape the future developed an innovative Global Challenge Curriculum (GLB) composed of one mandatory course and several elective courses taught throughout the four Undergraduate academic years. These courses focus on global topics such as the ones tackled by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In addition to these courses, AGU Civil Engineering Department has courses such as Sustainable Concrete Technology, Hydrology and Water Resources Engineering, Water and Wastewater Treatment Engineering. Within the frame of this course, AGU teaches good water and waste water management systems to be applied by AGU graduates off-campus.

AGU has been involved in various projects on clean water and sanitation. These projects are listed below:
1- “Preparation of Photocatalytic Materials for Water Clarification via Organic Waste”, supported by Scientific Research Projects (BAP) (İlker ERDEM)

2- “Synthesis and Characterization of New Generation Magnetic Nanoparticle Conductive Polymer Materials and Their Use in Photocatalytic Removal for Different Water Pollutants”, supported by Scientific Research Projects (BAP) (Ali DURAN)

3- “Development of an Innovative Hybrid Membrane Process for Energy, Nutrient and Water Recovery from Domestic Wastewater”, supported by TUBİTAK 1001 (Niğmet UZAL)

4- “Fabrication of New Generation Membranes and Their Applications in Fruit Juice Industry”, supported by Higher Education Institutions, (Niğmet UZAL)

5- "Optical detection of microplastics in water", Article in Environmental Scienceand Pollution Researcj Journal, Talha Erdem

6- "Electrical Double Layer at TiO2/Water Interface: Zeta Potential and Surface Charge", Conference Paper, (Dilek Şenol Arslan)

7- "Arsenic removal by the micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration using response surface methodology" Article in Water Science and Technology Journal, (Niğmet UZAL)

8- "Investigation of elastic structures under water", Conference Paper, (Abdullah Demir)

9- "Investigation of the Sloshing Behavior Due to Seismic Excitations Considering Two-Way Coupling of the Fluid and the Structure", Artcile in Water Journal, (Evren Dinçer)

10- "Surface coating of polyamide reverse osmosis membranes with zwitterionic 3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-l-alanine (l-DOPA) for forward osmosis", Article in Water and Environment Journal, (Niğmet UZAL)

Other Projects and Events

AGU organizes seminars and panels on sustainability and ecology. Within the scope of AGU Faculty of Architecture Seminar Series, Medine Altıok gave a seminar titled “Mittelmeerland- Urban research project exploring the future of the Mediterranena Sea as a territory of water”

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SDG 15 - Related Research at AGU

AGU has been involved in various sustainability projects, including the "AGU Bostan" (AGU Garden) project. The main target of the project, to be realized on an 800-square-meter area on the Sümer Campus, is designing an ecological, sustainable and public campus experience. The originality of the project lies in the desire to continue the tradition of production at the AGU Sümer Campus. In order to protect and expand the existing ecosystems and biodiversity of threatened ecosystems, activities are carried out by planting ancestral seeds as part of the AGU Garden Project. Alos clustered around the principles of green campus and neighborhood, the project is to be realized in collaboration with the Kayseri Kocasinan District Municipality and aims to include local residents, students, civil society organizations and AGU members for a participatory designing experience. During the implementation of this project, AGU disseminates knowledge on sustainable and ecological design via trainings and workshops to the local community. In addition, AGU Architecture Department has an environment-oriented and alternative architectural experiences platform as “Arch | for | Earth”.

Other Projects and Events

- AGU and the Kayseri Branch of the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects (TMMOB) jointly organized a "Rammed Earth Workshop". The workshop provided information on details of rammed earth practices and effective material designs and offered on-site construction of the prepared designs. The installation created at the end of the workshop is being exhibited at the Warehouse Building.

-AGU Architectural Department has an ongoing Higher Education Institutions supported project "Rural Architectural Heritage Sites and Cultural Landscape of Kayseri: Neighborhoods of Karahüyük, Mancusun, and Ispidin” running since 2019. (Prof. Dr. Nilüfer Yöney, Bahar Elagöz Timur, Özlem Durmuş Kevseroğlu, Gülsüm Oygur).

- In 2019, The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ankara and the Architecture Faculty of the Abdullah Gül University (AGU) organized an exhibition. The exhibition featured works of Dutch artists created through recycling domestic, animal and other waste materials. The exhibition was curated by Jan Boelen, curator of the 4th Istanbul Design Biennial, and hosted at the Sumer Campus Rectorate Exhibition Hall which is open to public.

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SDG 16 - Related Research at AGU

AGU was created as an R&D research project called "Socio-Technical University Model for Higher Education", an on-going initiative started by the Turkish Ministry of Development and supported by the Turkish Higher Education Council. The project was defined with the help of about 20 Search Conferences and 40 Workshops, and has aimed at pioneering the New Generation University model in Turkey, with unique and innovative curricula and educational processes, in the objective of disseminating the project’s findings across all higher education institutions in the country and beyond in order to inspire and trigger the implementation of new Educational and administrative systems/processes /policies. Within the frame of our Bachelor program in Business Administration, AGU students complete courses in "Law for managers" and "Tax law". The "AGU Academy" is dedicated to designing and providing upskilling, continuing education and capacity building programs (Project Management, Language courses, Information Technology and In-Service trainings, etc.) to the general public. These programs have been frequently attended by local policy and lawmakers in 2019.

AGU established the "Model Factory" on its campus, a project which falls within the framework of the Turkish government’s 100-day action plan of the national strategic plan 2019-2023 and is implemented in a few Turkish cities in order to generate new models/systems /policies to be disseminated across the country and beyond by the government.

Some of related projects jointly realized with different institutions and organizations are listed below:

Mustafa Ayten: 12/06/2018 AGU, BAP project: Assoc. Prof. Mustafa Ayten was the principal investigator of the one-year project “Internationalization in Turkish Higher Education: The Case of AGU and ITRU”; the project was completed in December 2019.
AGU BAP Project, 2019/124: “Rural Architecture Heritage Areas and Cultural Landscape of Kayseri: Karahüyük, Mancusun and Ispıdın Neighborhoods-Districts”, Nilüfer Baturayoğlu Yöney (the principal investigator), Bahar Elagöz Timur (the researcher), Özlem Kevseroğlu (the researcher).
Project No. 107: The Examination of the Architectural Properties of the Immigrant Settlements Established in Rumelia in the Late Ottoman Empire (1878-1914). (Supported by AGU BAP Coordinatorship.) Nehir Gümüşlü Akgün

Other Projects and Events

The Abdullah Gül University has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Global Solutions Initiative (GSI), which will be in force for an initial period of two years. “The Global Solutions Initiative (GSI) is a global collaborative enterprise to propose policy responses to major global problems, addressed by the G20, the G7 and other global governance fora. The policy recommendations and strategic visions are generated through a disciplined research program by leading research organizations, elaborated in policy dialogues between researchers, policymakers, business leaders and civil society representatives.”

AGU and GSI partnered formally in the following fields:

AGU Faculty members’ participation in GSI group research, discussions, networks, workshops, research and exchange programs.
AGU members’ active participation in the GSI Annual Summit.
AGU students’ involvement in the Young Global Changers program.
AGU members’ involvement in the co-creation of training courses or camps for participants in the Young Global Changers program.
Joint commitment and efforts towards aligning the business sector with societal needs in order to enable a symbiotic economic and social progress. Recoupling economic and social prosperity. AGU Rector published a vision statement entitled “4+4 Step-Plan towards Impactful and Equitable Education” on GSI The World Policy forum.

AGU has been, since 2015, a leading member of the Municipality’s "Kayseri 2050" project. This project aims at determining the city’s strategic roadmap and, among other topics, addressing urban planning issues, transportation systems, planning for climate change disasters, insuring that citizens can continue to reside in affordable housing, etc. AGU participated in the Kayseri 2050 Conference and suggested the implementation of local policies and sustainable measures related to Smart City systems, Eco-friendly city transportation systems, etc., which have a direct impact on climate change.

Asst. Prof. Ahmet Önen, faculty member of the Electrical and Electronics Engineering at AGU, was elected to the academic advisory board of the Turkish Electricity Transmission Company (TEİAŞ). Asst. Prof. Önen was elected to the Academic Advisory Board among many highly qualified scientists and said he will continue to work so that electricity is transmitted to the far points of our country in a quality and safe manner. TEİAŞ actively works to develop electricity transmission infrastructure parallel to changes in population and infrastructure, to build new electricity transmission facilities and upgrade its own communication infrastructure, to run Turkish Power System at international standards in a quality, economical and safe manner.

AGU members gives consultancy for the national and international projects:

Consultancy for Kültepe/Kanesh Project, restoration, structural reinforcement, anastylosis projects, and the design of a new visitor center and an excavation house complex (Assoc. Prof. Nilüfer (Baturayoğlu) Yöney and Assoc. Prof. Burak Asiliskender)
Kerkenes Excavation House New Dormitory Building; the new garage building allocated for the Kerkenes Mountain Excavation and Survey Project in Şahmuratlı Village, Sorgun Town in Yozgat Province by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism; the building, which was designed in 2018-2019 and will be built in 2020. Project authors are Burak Asiliskender, Nilüfer Baturayoğlu Yöney as members of the Kerkenes Mountain Excavation Team.

Prof. Rasim Özgür Dönmez who is the Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences at AGU published article entitled “How can Artificial Intelligence Affect International Politics?”. In the article, Prof. Dönmez explains the meaning of artificial intelligence, its importance in science and its impacts on international political order and balances.

AGU has established an Experimental Economics Laboratory which is one of the few of its kind in Turkey. Thanks to the lab, human behaviors will be evaluated as the main component of the economy and decision makers will be helped with effective policy recommendations and to make more effective decisions. Students joined the "Public Goods" experiment at the AGU Experimental Economics Laboratory, one of the few such labs in Turkey.

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SDG 17 - Related Research at AGU

AGU is an official partner of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) Global. This partnership also contributed to the AGU GLB course . AGU developed an innovative Global Challenge Curriculum (GLB) composed of one mandatory course and several elective courses taught throughout the four Undergraduate academic years. These courses focus on global topics such as the ones tackled by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In addition, student graduation thesis must be linked to at least one SDG.

AGU is one of the 3 universities in Turkey which collaborate with the NGO MADAD and run the HOPES project (European Commission funded), which focuses on SDG1 2.8 and therefore increases vulnerable youth's (such as refugees) access to basic services, higher education, employability, cultural integration. This project also contributed to the creation of documentation (guide books, trainer's manual, etc.) as well as the development of the AGU Global Course (GLB 202) called "Immigration & Population".

The project “Fikir Fabrikası” is undertaken by AGU, Kayseri Chamber of Commerce, Kayseri Chamber of Industry, and the Ministry of Science, Industry, and Technology in cooperation with UNDP and it is an initiative to help Syrian refugees to find jobs has been started.

Moreover, the AGU department called "Youth Factory" (a learner-focused youth centre, recognized by the Turkish Higher Education Council, whose mission is to help youth: Receive training, Gain life experience, Expand its vision, Acknowledge international cultures, Be creative and enterprising, Become active members of society, Share the joy of learning together as well as creating together) collaborates with numerous international NGOs and therefore enables the university to create or join Erasmus+ funded projects dedicated to youth employability, social inclusion, innovation/entrepreneurship, cross-sectorial cooperation, etc. (see Hopes project, Ygen project, Connect for Creativity, etc.). These projects include research activities and the creation of best practices.

AGU Youth Factory is nominated as one of the Youth Bank project initiated by a national wide NGO - TOG (Society Volunteers Association). There had been various projects run by the students and in the end our students initiated a Volunteer Bank gathering national wide NGO’s and also clubs dedicated to global issues. We have AGU Young TEMA (Turkish Forestry Foundation) Club. Tema is a national wide NGO and this student club was launched in 2016 at AGU.

AGU Talks was created as a platform for inspiring professionals, academicians and scientists to come before AGU youth as well as non-AGU members and share their experience, milestones and advice to contribute to attendees' personal and professional development. AGU TALKS is a platform in which not only students but also other individuals from society, come together to benefit from speakers' contributions, regardless of their different backgrounds and experiences. The guests and topics covered in 2019 were: Entrepreneurship - Marc Haberland and Kemal Tekden