Our Rector Prof. Barış Tan Shared His Insights on “The Impact of Universities on Cities” at THE World Academic Summit 2025

Hosted by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, the Times Higher Education (THE) World Academic Summit 2025 was held from October 7–9 under the overarching theme “Universities as Drivers of Progress.” The summit serves as a key global platform for exploring strategic issues shaping the future of higher education, bringing together university leaders, think tanks, and policymakers from around the world.

This year’s summit featured academic leaders from some of the world’s leading universities, including King’s College London, the University of Manchester, KAUST, and the Illinois Institute of Technology. During the event, our President Prof. Barış Tan attended the panel “Designing Healthy and Sustainable Cities” as a speaker, where he discussed the pivotal role of universities in the sustainable transformation of cities, drawing on examples from Istanbul and across Türkiye. Highlighting our University’s pioneering contributions in this field, Prof. Tan further emphasized Özyeğin University’s vision of becoming “an applied urban innovation partner” by merging its academic expertise with real-world collaboration for inclusive, sustainable, and resilient urban development.