Our daily lives are surrounded by many diverse developmental issues involving growth, sprawl, economic stagnation and stratification, a dearth of open space, congested transport, environmental degradation and loss of habitat,
socio-cultural isolation, and wasteful use of energy and materials. In our continuing search for “sustainable” design and planning solutions, we must consider an array of inter-related urban issues. Pedagogically, this project offered us an excellent opportunity to expose students to complex, multifaceted, real-world professional experiences. Many urban mobility, infrastructural and open space deficiencies throughout the region were identified and discussed. Studio teams collaboratively generated, explored and synthesized alternative master planning and site specific architectural concepts that addressed the creation of a sustainable and livable urban fabric. This development is intended to offer Ankara a sustainable urban prototype and provide a consortium of Bilkent, Hacettepe and METU Universities, research facilities in all fields of study related to sustainability. Its design and infrastructure highlights advances in sustainability i.e. net zero architecture, urban fabric that embraces the principles of smart growth, alternative sources of energy, urban agriculture, water conservation and purification strategies, wildlife and watershed basin conservation and remediation, etc. The site’s importance as a potential catalyst in the development of a collaborative research center as well as a sustainable urban prototype in the re imaging of Ankara’s urban fabric, its economic potential, scale, and proximity to potential interconnected green-ways suggest immense potential, both in terms of the scale of and variety of design and planning interventions possible. The studio exposed students to urban sustainability and community revitalization theory and application as well as the design and development of complex architectural interventions.