- Ahead of COP31, which will be hosted by Türkiye, universities are stepping up efforts focused on sustainability, green transformation, science diplomacy and science communication

- ITU Rector Prof. Mandal: “We want to be one of the universities preparing for COP31, not waiting for it”

- ATAUNI Rector Prof. Hacımüftüoğlu: “Alongside the environment, our priorities include energy efficiency, zero-carbon practices and pharmaceutical raw material production”

- Düzce University Rector Prof. Sözbir: “We will contribute to COP31 through green campus practices and digital agriculture projects”

Ahead of the 31st session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31), which will be held in Antalya, Türkiye, from November 9 to 20, universities have accelerated their preparations.

The Council of Higher Education (CoHE) is coordinating universities’ academic contributions and project submissions, bringing the scientific expertise, research capacity and innovative work of Türkiye’s higher education sector to the COP31 agenda.

University rectors emphasized that COP31 is not merely a climate summit, but also an important opportunity to strengthen science diplomacy and bring universities’ capacity to develop solutions to an international platform.

August 14, 2026

Istanbul Technical University (ITU) Rector Prof. Hasan Mandal stated that COP31 represents the beginning of a new era in the fight against climate change, saying that the work carried out to date must now translate into more tangible results.

Drawing attention to the fact that the climate crisis is advancing faster than expected, Mandal said, “Until now, we have talked about raising awareness. But we are now at a point where this is no longer a choice; it is a necessity. We have reached the critical threshold envisioned by the 1.5-degree target much earlier than expected. We have no time left to lose. From now on, we must go beyond setting targets and implement the actions needed to achieve them much more effectively and efficiently.”

Emphasizing that science diplomacy will be one of the most important areas of focus at COP31, Mandal said universities need to act collectively and added, “We need more science. But we do not need to produce science in isolation; we need to produce it together. We should use knowledge not merely to produce academic publications, but to develop solutions through joint research, joint centers and shared infrastructure.”

Mandal said they had placed students at the center of their COP31 preparations, noting that students were helping shape the process through the CORAL (Collective Resilience Alliance) initiative established at the university. “We want to be one of the universities preparing for COP31, not waiting for it. With the contribution of our students, we will organize a model climate summit that we call ‘COP30.5.’ Young people will be at the heart of the process,” he said.

- ATAUNI Rector Hacımüftüoğlu: “Our Science Café Meetings Align with COP31’s Priorities”

Atatürk University Rector Prof. Ahmet Hacımüftüoğlu said COP31 would further strengthen the relationship between universities and society, adding that CoHE’s vision for science diplomacy and science communication was providing important direction for higher education.

Hacımüftüoğlu said, “It is an important vision for CoHE President to introduce the concept of science diplomacy in the context of COP31 and assign universities responsibilities in line with this vision. We will also strive to fulfill our responsibilities accordingly.” He added, “We are working to produce science for society. We are developing projects that will provide solutions to the challenges facing Erzurum, Eastern Anatolia and Türkiye. We have held 106 meetings as part of our Science Café events. We listened to the region’s problems on the ground and launched initiatives to address them. All of these efforts are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals and COP31’s priorities.”

Hacımüftüoğlu stated that sustainability initiatives carried out by universities are not limited to environmental issues, noting that pharmaceutical raw material production, energy efficiency, zero-carbon practices and university-industry cooperation could also make significant contributions to the COP31 process.

Hacımüftüoğlu said, “We have to develop solutions to our problems through an environmentally conscious, zero-carbon approach. I believe that inter-university cooperation and the joint work we carry out with industry will produce much stronger results throughout the COP31 process.”

- Düzce University Rector Prof. Sözbir: “We Will Contribute to COP31 Through Green Campus Practices and Digital Agriculture Projects”

Düzce University Rector Prof. Nedim Sözbir said the university had been carrying out sustainability-focused initiatives for a long time and would contribute to COP31 through green campus practices and digital agriculture projects.

Sözbir said they had undertaken significant initiatives in line with their goal of creating a green campus, including recycling agricultural waste, producing natural paper, harvesting rainwater, saving energy and investing in solar energy. He added that they continue their work with the goal of ranking among the top 100 universities in the GreenMetric rankings.

Referring to their projects in digital agriculture, Sözbir said, “Through the Gezgin-1 project, which we are carrying out in cooperation with TÜBİTAK UZAY, ROKETSAN and the private sector, we are developing an AI-powered agricultural satellite. Our aim is to use image-processing technologies to detect plant diseases at an early stage, conduct soil analysis from space and accelerate digital transformation in agricultural production.”

Sözbir also highlighted the importance of new programs focused on artificial intelligence and software, saying, “I encourage young people to pursue fields such as artificial intelligence, software and robotics. The human resources trained in these fields will make significant contributions both to Türkiye’s digital transformation and to its green transformation goals.”