“The most creative ideas” will be discussed in Izmir

The GençYaratıcı Festival, organized as part of the ‘Create in Izmir’ project led by Izmir University of Economics (IUE) with the aim of turning the Aegean Region into a center of creativity, will host an international conference on April 16. The conference titled, ‘Creative Bridges: Italy&Türkiye’, which will be held in collaboration with the Italian Consulate in Izmir, will focus on innovative ideas shaping the future of creative industries, sustainable design practices, and cross-cultural collaborations. Open to the public and free of charge, the conference will take place at Izmir Architecture Center at 12.30 – 18.00.

Bringing together academics, designers, and business representatives from Italy and Turkey, the conference will offer a multidisciplinary platform for discussions in fields such as design, fashion, architecture, entrepreneurship, and technology. Participants can register via createinizmir.com, and English-Turkish simultaneous translation will be provided.

The opening speeches of the ‘Creative Bridges: Italy & Türkiye’ conference, which will host well-known and respected names in their fields, will be delivered by Daniele Bianchi, Italian Consul in Izmir; Selami Özpoyraz, Chairman of the Izmir Chamber of Commerce (IZTO) Assembly, and Prof. Dr. Yusuf Hakan Abacıoğlu, Rector of IUE. Following the opening speeches, Prof. Dr. Lorenzo Imbesi, President of the Italian Design Society (SID) and Cumulus Association, will speak on “Technology and Design,” evaluating the relationship between design and digital transformation, and how creative processes evolve with technology.

4 THEMATIC PANELS

Throughout the conference, four thematic panel sessions will explore current issues in the creative industries in depth. In the first panel titled ‘Creative Ecosystems and Social Impact’, moderated by IUE Vice Rector Prof. Dr. Aslı Ceylan Öner, co-founders of the Milan-based Isola Design Group Elif Reşitoğlu and Gabriele Cavallaro, along with Prof. Laura Barile and Prof. Valentina De Carolis from the Matera Design Institute, will discuss the social impact of creative communities and their role in cultural transformation.

In the ‘Sustainable Fashion’ panel, which will be moderated by Prof. Dr. Ender Yazgan Bulgun, Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Design at IUE, fashion designer Biagio Galotti will share his insights on sustainability and its reflections in the private sector.

EXPERIENCED GUESTS

In the third session, titled ‘University and Innovation’, Prof. Dr. Levent Eren, IUE Vice Rector, will moderate a discussion in which Prof. Domenico Accardo and Prof. Flora Amato from the Innovation Center at the University of Naples Federico II, and Prof. Dr. Burak Doğu, Dean of the Faculty of Communication at IUE will explore innovation models developed through university-industry collaboration.

The final panel of the day, “Collaborative Networks and Innovation”, will be moderated by Prof. Dr. Mustafa Tanyeri, Secretary General of the Izmir Chamber of Commerce (IZTO). Speakers will include Pietro Alba, Chairman of the Board of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in Izmir; Emre Kızılgüneşler, Vice Chairman of the IZTO Board; and Andrea Accomazzo, CTO of Argotech, who will share their experiences on the impact of international collaborations on the creative industries.

REVEALING IZMIR’S POTENTIAL

IUE Rector, Prof. Dr. Yusuf Hakan Abacıoğlu highlighted that the Create in Izmir project is funded by the European Union and the Republic of Turkey, and emphasized the University’s commitment to the initiative. Prof. Dr. Abacıoğlu said, “In all the activities held so far within the scope of Create in Izmir, we’ve acted with the goal of making Izmir a hub for creativity and technology. Issues shaping the city’s future were discussed by merging creative industries with technology. Numerous conferences, festivals, and talks have been organized to date. These events, which clearly reveal Izmir’s vision and potential, are extremely valuable for the city’s development. The international conference on April 16 will be part of the Italian Creativity Festival and Made in Italy Day, held for the first time in Turkey this year. I believe this conference will provide a great meeting point for professionals, academics, entrepreneurs, and students working in the creative industries.”