Sabancı University Istanbul International Center for Energy and Climate (IICEC) has released the twelfth issue of IICEC Energy Market Newsletter. 

Please click to read IICEC Energy Market Newsletter 

In commemoration of our beloved instructor, Meral Güçeri, an AL102 essay competition is held every semester. The winners of the competition held in 2019-20 Spring Semester are as follows:

1st place Melis Gemalmaz

2nd place Ali Sinan Çetingöz 

3rd place Elif Çaysar

Congratulations to our winners! Meral Hoca would have been very proud.

Students who will take the online ELAE on June 3rd, 2020 are as follows:

1. Students who have studied in the School of Languages during 2019-20 academic year and who have applied by filling in the online survey which was sent to them by mail.  (A petition is not required, but filling in the survey is a must)

2. Inactive students who still hold exam rights & who have given in a petition to take ELAE exam.

The online exam will be held on June 3^rd 2020, at 10:00 am and will take around 1,5 hours. 

For the identification check to be done in time, we ask that students who will take the exam connect to their Zoom exam room at 9:45 am at the latest and they should have some official identification which includes their photograph (such as a passport, identification card, driver’s license) with them. Zoom ID numbers will be shared with students on June 2^nd, 2020.

The results of the ELAE will be announced on the external web page of Sabancı University on Friday, June 5^th 2020, at 5pm.

Exam requirements

Students must ensure the following to be able to take the online ELAE exam:

●  For this exam, students will need a laptop/computer that connects to the Internet and students will login to Sucourse Plus. Students must use only ONE device (your laptop or your computer) for the exam.

●       Students must use Mozilla, Firefox, Google Chrome, or Safari as their web browser for the exam, and they must make sure that they are using the latest version of these web browsers on their computers.

●       They must open only one window / tab to complete the exam. Any other program that can run on the background must be disabled prior to the exam.

●       Students will log into Zoom on their phones for this exam. They must make sure that their phone has Zoom installed and has a working camera and microphone.

●       Students must be seated in a quiet, well-lit, non-obtrusive environment that has good Internet connection for the duration of the exam. They may connect via mobile network on their phone if necessary.

●       During the exam, students will be asked to place their cell phones about 1.5-2 meters away from their study table /desk in a position that enables their invigilators to see their study table / desk and monitor. Therefore, students must make sure their room arrangement allows for this prior to the exam. Please see the photo below.

F.A.Q.

How many sections are there in the online ELAE exam? How much is each section worth? What do I need to get in order to pass the exam?

The exam has 3 sections: Grammar, Vocabulary, and Reading. Grammar and Vocabulary sections consist of 30 questions. The reading section consists of 5 reading texts of 600-800 words each

Grammar and Vocabulary sections are worth 30% each, and the Reading section is worth 40%. Students need to receive an overall minimum grade of 65 out of 100 to pass the exam.

Is there a make-up for the ELAE?

No.

What happens if I fail the ELAE?

Please refer to the 'SL handbook’ on the SL website as well as the Foundations Development Year Instruction Letter (Temel Geliştirme Yili Yönetmeliği) located in the main SU web-site.

What happens if I already have an internationally recognised English language certificate? 
If students can certify that they have passed one of the national and/or international foreign language examinations at a level determined by the university, they will be entitled to begin their undergraduate programs. (Read more here) https://www.sabanciuniv.edu/en/faculties-programs-exemption-exams

PLEASE NOTE: A detailed student information sheet will be shared with the students on June 2^nd, 2020 via e-mail.

We wish you every success in the exam.

School of Languages

SU Gender is organizing an international webinar series on sexual harassment, gender based violence, diversity and inclusion within and outside the university.

SU Gender is organizing an international webinar series on sexual harassment, gender based violence, diversity and inclusion within and outside the university.

In this series, experiences will be shared with experts, researchers, and activists from different universities, research centers and NGOs, and learn from their expertise.

The first of the webinar series will take place on May, 27. 

You are welcome to join our webinar by registering via the link below.

May 27, Wednesday 18.00, UTC+3

"Sexual Harassment and Violence in Academia: the German Case", Heike Pantelmann (MvBZ Gender Studies, FU Berlin) 

Please click here for registration.

We are always together even though we are away from the campus.

We miss you very much! 

A double PhD diploma program has been developed between the Electronics Engineering PhD Program in Sabancı University, and the Microelectronics and Electrical Engineering Programs in the field of Semiconductor Technology in National Chiao Tung University (NCTU), one of the top-ranked universities in Taiwan. The joint diploma program has recently been approved by the Turkish Higher Education Council (YÖK), on May 6^th, 2020.  It is the first joint and double PhD degree program at Sabancı University.

This new program will start accepting students for the 2020-2021 Fall semester and will award graduates a double PhD degree, one from each University.

The program is expected to have a significant contribution to the development of electronics engineering, specifically microelectronics, semiconductor and integrated circuit design and fabrication, by further enhancing the research and innovation skills of both institutions, and by developing highly skilled and knowledgeable graduates for academia and industry. 

As part of the dual degree program requirements, the students are expected to study at least two semesters at each University, taking relevant classes and conducting thesis research, and are supervised by a joint thesis committee, formed by faculty members from both Universities. Upon successful completion of the program, students will receive two PhD diplomas, one from each University. 

Samples for diplomas from two institutions: 

NATIONAL CHIAO TUNG UNIVERSITY (NCTU) is one of the oldest Chinese universities (est. 1896) introduced under the Western education system and is Taiwan's top research university ranked #156 in EE ranking (US News-Best Global Univ.), #69 in THE Asia Rankings, #44 in QS Asia Ranking and #227 in QS World Ranking. NCTU is located in Hsinchu Science Park, Taiwan’s “Silicon Valley”, wherein two thirds of the CEOs and managers are NCTU graduates. With its location, NCTU offers many opportunities for internship and collaboration with high-tech companies. There are 700+ teaching faculty members, 300+ research staff and 14,700+ students (of which about 5,600 are undergraduates and 9,100 are graduates). Many courses are taught in English and more than 10% of students are international.

It is composed of 12 colleges that offer UG & PG programs in Engineering, EE, Semiconductor Technology, CS, BIO, Photonics, Internet-of-Things (IoT), bio-inspired information and communication technology (BIO-ICT), biomedical technologies, AI & green energy, and intelligent hospitals. NCTU’s pioneering laboratories have fostered an entire ecosystem for the semiconductor industry in Taiwan, leading to the establishment of renowned companies such as TSMC, MediaTek and UMC.

Contacts:
Sinem Aydın (sinem.aydin@sabanciuniv.edu), Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences
Gülin Karahüseyinoğlu (g.karahuseyinoglu@sabanciuniv.edu) International Relations Office

We did a special interview with Lord Nicholas Stern.

Professor Lord Nicholas Stern, Jury Prize winner of Sakıp Sabancı International Research Awards, is a special researcher who studies the impacts of climate change on the global economy.

He was knighted for services to economics in 2004, made a cross-bench life peer as Baron Stern of Brentford in 2007, and appointed Companion of Honour for services to economics, international relations and tackling climate change in 2017. He has published more than 15 books and 100 articles and his most recent book is “Why are We Waiting? The Logic, Urgency and Promise of Tackling Climate Change”.

Professor Stern believes that countries can also write an economic success story by fighting against climate change.

Here is our special interview with Lord Nicholas Stern.

It is believed that developing countries are not so eager to commit to decreasing their carbon emissions due to their fear of limiting their economic growth. Do you agree with that? If so, how can they be convinced to commit more? How about developed economies? Do they have similar incentives?

We are increasingly finding that the drive to low- or zero-carbon can be a powerful growth story.  It is full of discovery, innovation, investment, and growth.  Further, that growth can be rich with job opportunities.  We can see that the costs of electricity and other activities through clean low-carbon technologies are already lower than for fossil fuels.  The technologies of the 19^th and 20^th century are not only dirtier than modern technologies, but they are also more expensive than modern low-carbon technologies.  Thus for both developing and developed countries there is no horserace between environmental and climate responsibilities on the one hand, and growth on the other.  And we must recognise that an attempt to stay with the old dirty technologies will lead to stranded assets, as the world moves in a much cleaner low-carbon direction.  Stranded assets mean stranded jobs. 

Turkey and four large oil exporting nations are among eight countries that have not yet ratified the 2015 Paris climate agreement. The US, which is still on the UN list of the 187 that have ratified, began the procedure to withdraw from the accord in 2019 and will leave on 4 November this year. What do you think about these developments? Is it a major obstacle to the efforts shown by countries to stop climate change?

The vast majority of countries have ratified the 2015 Paris agreement.  The US planned withdrawal would take place the day after the next Presidential election.  One way or another, I think the US would re-join under the next President, whether the changeover takes place in early 2021 or later.   Increasingly, the oil exporting countries are recognising that the future is low carbon and are preparing for it.  In fact, the commitment to the Paris agreement has been remarkably robust under the pressures of difficult times.  More and more the business world has recognised where economies and technologies have to go, and are leading the action.  Often they are ahead of governments.  Thus, I think the momentum for the Paris agreement will strengthen, even though there may be some ups and downs. 

Can you comment on your view about the economic impact of COVID-19 on the world economy? It has started to change many things in our life. In the face of this pandemic, do you now have different perspectives about climate change?

The health implications of COVID are immense.  So, too, are the economic.  The falls in output we are seeing are extraordinary in economic history.  There is a serious risk of a global depression.  Countries around the world must protect employment in the short run (the rescue period), and then invest in a strong and sustainable recovery.  We are seeing that activities and investments that are sustainable can give faster employment, be more labour-intensive, and carry stronger economic multipliers than standard traditional activities.  Thus, recovery and the transformational growth we need can be driven by and interwoven with climate action.

Are we in a position to question capitalism because of climate change and natural disasters?

I do not think that climate change and natural disasters undermine the case for capitalism.  The history of centrally-planned economies in the last century was one of deep damage to the environment.  On the other hand, capitalism and market-based economies function best when the price system reflects costs.  There are also many aspects of these systems that require strategic planning including, for example, city design and national parks and protected areas.  Thus within a capitalist system, we must have active policies on the environment, climate change and biodiversity.  And there are many important relevant market failures, for example in capital markets, R&D, and networks that require policy action. Since many of the issues are global, policy requires collaboration across nations.

How will the COVID-19 epidemic affect general capitalism’s ideal? Do you think governments would play a major role in economic mechanisms in the next decade? Or will companies take more social responsibility in pandemics or climate change? 

The epidemic does require strong government action.  In the immediate rescue phase it requires employment protection.  Active employment policy will  be necessary for several years in most countries.  It will also require government involvement in the economy in the management of the many loans that have been extended from government.  Thus we will see a stronger role for the state in most countries in the coming years than we saw earlier.  That will be true of health, employment, investment, training, finance and so on.  We are seeing companies taking greater responsibilities for the health of their employees, at least for the good companies.  I think that these are the companies that will do better in the recovery.

For the post-pandemic period, do you have any recommendations for economic recovery in developing countries like Turkey? What action plans do you think Turkey can enact?

Developing countries and emerging market countries have been hit particularly hard by the COVID pandemic.  Their health systems are weaker and so, too, are their systems for social security.  On top of this they face reduced remittances, capital flight and falling commodity prices.  For many, including Turkey, they face steep falls in tourism.  This will be a very difficult period.  They should press rich countries to expand their economies quickly and work for debt reductions and debt relief.  At the same time, they should try to put in place clear recovery plans, so that investors can see directions for the future.  In many cases there would be great potential for employing labour that would otherwise be unused in natural capital programmes, including for land and forests.  As well as the great benefits in their own right, this could increase attractions for tourism.  It is also important to think through difficulties in supply chains for their exports to richer countries, to try to build confidence in those countries for sourcing inputs.  However, there is no doubt that this will be a difficult period.  In this context, international relations will be very important and it will be crucial to work closely with the European Union and other countries.

Sabancı University IICEC cordially invites you to the webinar on ‘‘Energy and Climate Consequences of the COVID-19 Pandemic’’ Tuesday, June 2, 2020 5:00 pm - 6:30 pm (Turkey Time)

Panel

Dr. Yaşar Atacık, Founder and Board Member, Footprint and Sustainability Association

Değer Boden, Founding Partner, Boden Law

Prof. Carmine Difiglio, Director, IICEC (Moderator)

Prof. Ahmet Evin, Emeritus Professor, Sabancı University, and Senior Scholar, Istanbul Policy Center

Mithat Rende, Retired Ambassador

Please CLICK HERE to register IICEC webinar on

‘‘Energy and Climate Consequences of the COVID-19 Pandemic’’

on 2 June from 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm in Turkey Time.

 The webinar is will held in English.

Please submit any questions to funda.inal@sabanciuniv.edu / nazli.karadag@sabanciuniv.edu

Sabancı University 2020-2021 Academic Year Fall Semester Graduate Programs Quotas

Sakıp Sabancı Museum’s The Arts of The Book and Calligraphy Collection, and Painting Collection includes rare art works of the Ottoman and the Republican periods.

 Both the Arts of the Book and Calligraphy Collection and Painting Collection of Sakıp Sabancı Museum include landscapes of Istanbul and Bosphorus drawn on a variety of materials.

A wooden box that calligraphers used for carrying their tools stands out because of the pictures engraved both on and inside of its lid. The picture within the box, which covers the whole surface, is a landscape presenting a view of the sea from inside a structure with sequential arches. The architectural details reveal an attempt at perspective drawing and the canopy on the background seen afar from the structure has a distinguishable quality. The painting depicts the sailboats in the sea, island-like pieces of land afar, and birds up in the air with a sharp eye on the detail. 

These calligraphy box paintings are smaller versions of the landscape paintings spread between the baroque ornaments of the interior spaces; a practice related to the westernization period during the second half of the 18th century. It is possible to date the specific painting in question to the 19th century concerning its similarities with the wall paintings of the period.

The practice of landscape painting on the wall had been transferred to the canvas during the 19th century. Davit Çıracıyan’s painting Ships in Sarayburnu is among the most beautiful paintings depicting Istanbul. 

Çıracıyan learned the art of painting in several studios of Istanbul, which earned him a distinct position within his contemporaries as he could pursue a local style contrary to other painters of the period who studied in Paris studios. Besides, his travels to Egypt, France, Britain, Switzerland, and Austria provided the artist with the opportunity to be acquainted with the art movements and artists of the period.

The painting Ships in Sarayburnu reminds of Western painters’ Istanbul landscapes focusing on the Sarayburnu district. The artist should have seen this type of depiction of Istanbul throughout his studies in the studios of foreign artists working in Istanbul. Topkapı Palace, Sultanahmet Mosque and Haghia Sophia are the most prominent elements of Çırayan’s depiction of Sarayburnu. The painting documents the coast of Sarayburnu where Topkapı Palace’s components extend towards the sea as well as boathouses, sailboats, galleys, and steamboats, a novelty of the period. Concerning its depiction of walls surrounding the garden of the palace and other buildings in the area, the picture also presents the state of the Sarayburnu district at the end of the 19th century.

Çıracıyan’s landscape painting is a delicate and naïve depiction of Istanbul due to its colors and brushstrokes and bears a photographic quality. As the painting inside the calligraphy box, this piece represents its view at a standstill. 

Click to explore the link between these two successive collections.