Sakarya University provides a neutral, inclusive and academically safe platform that enables diverse stakeholders to openly discuss social, political, cultural, and community issues. This aligns with the commitment of SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) to promoting peaceful, inclusive, and participatory dialogue processes in public life.
During the 2025 calendar year, the University hosted academic panels, public discussion forums, community engagement workshops, and roundtable meetings bringing together local government representatives, civil society organizations, professional associations, academic experts, and student groups. These activities were designed to facilitate respectful exchange, mutual understanding, and evidence-based dialogue, without promoting or endorsing any political position.
The Turgut Özal Culture and Congress Center, campus seminar halls, and faculty-level event spaces served as neutral and publicly accessible venues, ensuring that discussions occurred in an open environment free from political influence. Student organizations and university research centers also organized themed dialogue programs addressing sustainable development, youth civic participation, social equity, cultural dialogue, and community well-being, providing safe and constructive spaces for shared problem-solving.
Academic Neutrality and Inclusive Dialogue
Institutional Policies on Academic Neutrality and Openness: These policies emphasize academic independence, transparency, inclusiveness, and the provision of unbiased discussion environments where differing viewpoints can be expressed without ideological pressure.
University Event & Public Engagement News Portal: The University’s publicly available news archive and event listings provide verifiable documentation of open dialogue events, forums, and multi-stakeholder discussion platforms conducted in 2025.
Annual Administrative Activity Reports: These reports document all forums, public panels, civic engagement meetings, and multi-stakeholder dialogue activities, confirming that the University consistently implemented neutral platforms for public discourse throughout 2025.
Neutral Public Dialogue Spaces: The University provides politically neutral and publicly accessible venues, ensuring open and unbiased discussion environments
Multi-Stakeholder Participation: Events include government bodies, NGOs, students, academics, and community actors, demonstrating inclusive and participatory dialogue.
Academic Neutrality Framework: Institutional policies protect academic freedom, freedom of expression and transparency, ensuring discussions remain balanced.
Verifiable Implementation During 2025: Activities are documented and publicly accessible via event archives and official activity reports.
Together, these elements demonstrate that Sakarya University actively provides a safe, neutral, and inclusive platform for open public dialogue, in line with SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions.
1. 2nd Symposium on Current Problems of Turkish Civil Law: “2025 Year of the Family – The Family in Law”
A session of the 2nd Symposium on Current Problems of Turkish Civil Law (6 May 2025).
Organized by the Faculty of Law, the symposium examined legal problems concerning the family and developed proposals for their resolution. Its two sessions were chaired by the Sakarya Chief Public Prosecutor and the President of the Sakarya Regional Court of Appeal, bringing judges, prosecutors, members of the Bar and academics together on the same platform. Participants openly discussed alimony practice, the role of Law No. 6284 and of the Bar in protecting the family and combating violence against women, maternity-related leave in working life, uncontested divorce, the recognition of foreign divorce decisions and the best interests of the child (06.05.2025).
2. A Comparative View of Turkish and American Procedural Law
Panel on Turkish and American procedural law, with a US-based lawyer joining online (30 December 2025).
This event examined how judicial processes work in the Turkish and American legal systems, with the participation of the Rector. Moderated by the Dean of the Faculty of Law, it brought together the Chief Public Prosecutor of the Sakarya Regional Court of Appeal, a member of the Sakarya Bar, a faculty member of the Faculty of Political Sciences and, online, a lawyer admitted to the California and New York Bars. Practitioners and academics discussed the structure of appellate review, investigation and prosecution procedures, equality of arms, the right of defense and the principle of an impartial judiciary (30.12.2025).
3. Panel “Violence against Women: Awareness and Combat”
Panel “Violence against Women: Awareness and Combat” at Sakarya University (25 November 2025).
This panel was co-organized by the University’s Women’s Studies Application and Research Center (SAÜKAM), State Conservatory and Legal Clinics Center, together with the KADEM Foundation Sakarya Representation and the Sakarya Provincial Directorate of Family and Social Services. It brought academia, civil society and public institutions together on a common platform. Moderated by the Dean of the Faculty of Law, with contributions from the Director of SAÜKAM and the Director of the Legal Clinics Center, with the Chair of the Committee on Equality of Opportunity for Women and Men of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye and the Director of the Sakarya Violence Prevention and Monitoring Center (ŞÖNİM) among the speakers, and attended by the Rector, the Mayor of Serdivan and the Provincial Director of Family and Social Services, it addressed prevention, awareness campaigns, legal and psychosocial support mechanisms and inter-agency coordination (reported by the Ministry of Family and Social Services, Sakarya Provincial Directorate, 25.11.2025).
4. 5th International Communication Sciences Symposium (ICOMS): “Political Communication and Peace Diplomacy”
Opening of the 5th International Communication Sciences Symposium (ICOMS), 30–31 October 2025.
The University organized the fifth ICOMS together with Adapazarı Municipality and the Film Studies Association on 30–31 October 2025, bringing together academics and researchers from different countries. Under the main theme “Political Communication: Türkiye’s Political Communication Strategies and Peace Diplomacy”, the symposium opened to discussion Türkiye’s role in international crises. Topics included the Black Sea grain corridor during the Russia–Ukraine war, the Istanbul peace talks, and Türkiye’s positions on Syria and Palestine (announcement: 20.08.2025)
5. Panel on the Presidential Government System and the Need for a New Constitution
The Faculty of Law hosted a panel titled “The Conceptual Framework of Legislation in the Presidential Government System and the Need for a New Constitution”, with a Member of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye as speaker. Opening the panel, the Dean of the Faculty of Law emphasized the importance of a sound legislative framework for the rule of law. The structural transformation of the executive and the legislative process, from the submission of a bill to the Grand National Assembly to its publication in the Official Gazette, were discussed openly with students (26.05.2025).
6. Panel: The Social and Political Anatomy of the 15 July Coup Attempt
Panel on the social and political anatomy of the 15 July coup attempt, held within the YÖK “Science Café” program (18 July 2025).
Held within the Council of Higher Education’s “Science Café” program and organized by the University’s Science Communication Office, this panel examined the historical, social and political dimensions of the 15 July coup attempt. Civil–military relations and the principle that, in a democracy, each institution should act within its own constitutional boundaries were discussed. The Rector underlined that strong and autonomous universities contribute to the country’s development, stability and democracy (18.07.2025).
These examples show that Sakarya University consistently provided a neutral, inclusive and publicly accessible platform for open dialogue among diverse stakeholders throughout 2025.
