MAS & MIMLAB have joined forces in developing the architectural project for Izmir University of Economics Guzelbahce Campus based on the national competition design proposal awarded first prize by the Izmir Chamber of Commerce in 2022. The project is scoped for 130.000 m² of program area for academics, administration, sports & recreaction, social amenities and dormotories in its first phase of construction.

The ‘Guzelbahce Campus Architectural Project Design Competition’, initiated by Izmir Chamber of Commerce (IZTO) Education and Health Foundation with the aim of bringing a world-class, environmentally friendly and state-of-the-art campus to the city, has been concluded. As a result of a thorough and meticulous examination by a 19-member jury among 52 projects across Turkey, the project headed by Architect Kerim Miskavi was selected as the winner. Mahmut Özgener, President of the Board of Trustees of Izmir University of Economics (IUE), who shared the new campus design by announcing the result of the competition for the first time at the Izmir Chamber of Commerce Education and Health Foundation Board of Trustees Regular Meeting, said, “We see education as a whole, and we want our students to grow up as strong individuals both in social life and in the field of culture and sports. We are aware that this is only possible with a well-equipped campus that can meet all needs. In line with this goal; a selection was made among the projects that adopted a modern, environmentalist, sustainable and state-of-the-art architectural approach, and the work was completed as of June 20. In 3 years, we plan to complete the new campus, where technologies to generate electricity from renewable sources are used in line with our goal of de-carbonization, there are buildings that benefit from energy efficiency practices and whose energy performance is optimized, in-campus transportation is carried out with carbon emission-free vehicles and waste management is provided effectively, and which offers all kinds of opportunities to students with social and sports areas.”

IZTO Education and Health Foundation, the founder of IUE, which is among the leading higher education institutions in Turkey with its approximately 10 thousand students, 20 thousand graduates and more than 800 academics, took action last October to bring a world-class campus to the city. Aiming to offer an environmentalist, sustainable, innovative, economical and modern education base in Güzelbahçe, the Foundation decided to determine the campus design with a national, single-stage competition.

The first announcement of the competition was made on March 10, 2022, after the conditions for the competition were established and the jury was formed. Applications continued until June 7. 52 projects across Turkey were evaluated by the competition jury in 3 stages. As a result of the opinions of the experts, the team, headed by Architect Kerim Miskavi, and members Master Architect Elif Sarpaşar, Master Architect Urban Planner Sabriye Derya Yüce and Landscape Architect Cansu Güreser, was awarded the first prize. The project, prepared by a work group of 14 people, received great acclaim.

Mahmut Özgener, Chairman of Executive Board of IZTO Education and Health Foundation, shared details about the new campus at the 2022 Board of Trustees Regular Meeting held at IUE. Stating that the new campus is of great importance not only for Izmir but also for Turkey, Chairman Özgener said, “When we took office, we talked about a new vision for the University, and we stated that we needed to 'differentiate' when we took into account the point that university education has reached in our country. We see education as a whole with all its elements, and we want our students to grow up as strong individuals both in social life and in the field of culture and sports. When we examine the figures, we see that we have achieved these goals in the eyes of students and parents. The university differentiates itself with its 'dynamism and innovative stance' and this is clearly perceived by the students. We aim to open up new opportunities for our students and academics with a well-equipped campus that can meet all needs.”

The design approach focuses on the physical and social relationship of the campus with its location. At the outskirts of Izmir metropolis, the area exhibits an interfacial character between ecological protection zones neither urban nor rural. These zones typically combine the production-oriented and compact lifestyle of the countryside with the polycentric, mixed-user profile of the city, and the rural-urban character emerges. Contrary to the introverted education model of the past, the design strategy is based on interaction at the city, campus and building scales. With the infrastructure investments envisaged within the scope of the University and Izmir 2030 Transportation Master Plan, a growth pressure on Guzelbahce is inevitable. It is also important that the campus land has a natural landscape between agricultural production and ecological protection areas.

Campus includes multiple user profiles, programs and intersections with diverse flow potentials. While it is a ‘macrocosm’ by its unifying force, each of its characteristic parts define unique ‘microcosm’s. Today’s campus is a production center that feeds from theory to practice, student to citizen, access to interaction. This requires reinforcing the relationship of the campus with its natural and social environment at the urban scale, and the dialogue of the disciplines that make up the program at the architectural scale. The first of the two main strategies for the settlement defines the stream line that divides the land into two sides as a unifying main spine and lists the social and joint programs that come into contact with each other along this line. In the next step, all academic units are articulated to this social backbone.