Özyeğin University Wins First Place for the 5th Consecutive Time

Özyeğin Üniversitesi has achieved first place among Turkey's private universities for the fifth consecutive year under the '2023 UI GreenMetric World University Rankings.'

According to a statement from Özyeğin Üniversitesi, the results of the international '2023 UI GreenMetric World University Rankings' have been announced, which evaluates sustainability initiatives and green space ratios on university campuses.

In the annual ranking evaluating 1,050 universities worldwide, Özyeğin Üniversitesi achieved first place among Turkey's private universities for the fifth consecutive year since 2019, and was awarded the title of 'world's 89th most sustainable campus.'

Since 2010, the UI GreenMetric World University Rankings have annually assessed leading universities worldwide across 39 indicators and 6 criteria (infrastructure, energy and climate change, waste management, water resources, transportation, education and research), scoring higher education institutions in each evaluation area and ranking them on the international stage.

The 2023 evaluation of the ranking, which is open to all higher education institutions worldwide, included a total of 1,050 universities from 85 countries, with 98 from Turkey. Özyeğin Üniversitesi was ranked 89th in the world rankings and became the youngest private university from Turkey to enter the top 100.

Özyeğin Üniversitesi achieved the highest score in the energy and climate change category in Turkey and was the only private university to achieve full marks in the education and research category, while ranking in the top 100 in the other four categories.

In the statement, Özyeğin Üniversitesi Rector Prof. Dr. Esra Gençtür, noting this significant achievement for five consecutive years, remarked:

'As Özyeğin Üniversitesi, we are proud to crown the results of our years of work on sustainability and environmental issues with such successes, being conscious of our responsibility to our planet and humanity.

As a higher education institution that has placed sustainability at the center of our activities since 2015, we act in harmony and with awareness with our academic and administrative staff and students in matters of infrastructure, energy and climate change, waste management, and water resources.

Since the establishment of our campus, we have used innovative systems to ensure that our buildings are maximally energy-efficient and recycling-oriented, so much so that three buildings on our campus received LEED Gold Certification according to the measurements of the American Green Building Council.

Our School of Foreign Languages building (SCoLa) stands as one of the most energy-efficient academic buildings in Turkey and makes us proud. In 2017, in collaboration with TÜSİAD, we established the Sustainable Development Forum, and in 2018, our Sustainability Platform as a unique umbrella structure. We have an academic and administrative structure working in coordination with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Therefore, our being the only university from Turkey to rank in the top 100 among all universities in the world in both GreenMetric and Times Higher Education (THE) Impact rankings is certainly no coincidence.'

Gençtür stated that they would continue to collaborate on a science-based approach with civil society organizations, private sector and public entities from Turkey and abroad, and remain pioneering in sustainability efforts.

Turkey's first university to receive 'Zero Waste Certificate'

As part of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change's 'Zero Waste Project,' universities are awarded a 'Zero Waste Certificate' based on their waste management efforts.

By decision announced on 14 February 2020 by the Istanbul Governorship's Provincial Directorate of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, Özyeğin Üniversitesi was selected as Turkey's first university to receive the 'Zero Waste Certificate.'

Özyeğin Üniversitesi received this certificate as a result of its efforts to use resources in a healthy and efficient manner on its Çekmeköy campus and dormitory areas, manage waste at source, collect it separately, and ensure its recovery.