Bahçeşehir University Hosted the "2nd Advanced Technologies Workshop"

At the workshop organized by Bahçeşehir University and led by METGEM (Bahçeşehir University Vocational and Technical Education Development Center), the latest technological developments in the world and in our country were discussed. President Prof. Dr. Şenay Yalçın said, "Investing in high technology is a priority for us."

The Advanced Technologies Workshop presented its 2011 program through a series of panels. Speaking at the opening of the workshop, which was attended by presidents, academics, scientists and students from various universities, Bahçeşehir University Workshop Chair Prof. Dr. Oktay Alnıak and Bahçeşehir University Vocational School Director Azize Gökmenexpressed their pleasure in hosting the workshop. Azize Gökmen stated that they carry out pioneering work in integrating education and the business world, and said, "We hope the outcomes of this workshop will contribute to the whole world."

The presidents of the participating universities also talked about new technological trends and their effects in the panels, stating that as research-oriented higher education institutions, their common preference has always been sustainable, efficient and environmentally friendly energy.

Speaking at the panel, Bahçeşehir University President Prof. Dr. Şenay Yalçın said, "We have committed ourselves to this; what we have done as a university is the guarantee of what we will do."

Yalçın continued:
"Technology and the flow of information are advancing at a tremendous pace worldwide. This makes the efficient use of technology increasingly important. The most important point here is to recognize that technology is a means, not an end. In the past, the power of countries was assessed by their area, population, natural resources or the strength of their armies; now the power of countries is measured by the creative minds they raise and the high value-added technologies they produce. There are rising values. We insist on one of these values: technology-supported entrepreneurship. We believe our young people should be guided in this direction. We need well-educated, creative human resources capable of R&D. We are pursuing original projects and patented products. I have a proposal for my fellow guest presidents: let us join forces, produce joint projects, share our resources and pass on our experiences to one another."

Stating that Bahçeşehir University has created every kind of structure for a high-quality teaching and learning environment, Yalçın said, "Investing in high technology is a priority for us. As of this year, we have made a strategic decision. Our field is GenOm technologies. We are working jointly with Harvard, MIT, Stanford and Cambridge Universities. Within the next 5 years, we will establish laboratories worthy of Türkiye."

Selçuk Özyurt, an official of BUTECH (Bahçeşehir University Technology Development Center), also talked about the technical projects carried out at Bahçeşehir University. These products, developed entirely by Turkish engineers and highly respected on international platforms, attracted great interest from the participants.