Our Rector Prof. Dr. Esra Gençtürk Delivers the Closing Address for the Local and Rural Development Certificate Program Held From August 23 Through August 27, 2021

The 9th edition of the Local and Rural Development Certificate Program took place under the leadership of Özyeğin University's Sustainability Platform to provide opportunities for gaining a new vision, accessing functional information, and building networks in the field of rural and local development. The program was held online from August 23 through August 27, 2021 with 60 PhD students working in public institutions, development agencies, non-governmental organizations, private sectors, universities, and in the field of food-agriculture-development. Bringing together knowledge created at universities with field experience, the program aims to transfer knowledge to all fields of life to provide social benefits. To date, the program has played host to over 500 participants, and welcomed many academicians working on agriculture, ecology, and development, as well as NGO executives, mayors, and cooperative representatives. In her closing address, our Rector Prof. Dr. Esra Gençtürk remarked: “We are all aware of the importance of the local and the rural in the globalizing world. We are experiencing the consequences of the ecological crisis in a painful way. We need innovative and holistic approaches for the solution of complex problems. As you already show sensitivity to these issues, we, as a university, are here to contribute to your efforts. It is important to us that the sharing of knowledge and experience and acquaintances that sparked here through this certificate program can go beyond acquaintance, and propel joint studies conducted with the cooperation of the public sector, civil society, private sector, and universities.”