The "Design Workshop for Advanced Recycling," initiated in March of this year by DHL Express Türkiye in collaboration with the Industrial Design Department of Yeditepe University's Faculty of Architecture, concluded with awarding university students' project designs. Within the workshop themed "DHL and Sustainability," students transformed waste into new designs through advanced recycling at the university's "Design and Advanced Recycling Laboratory." A total of 19 projects were evaluated in the workshop, and the top 3 students, as voted by DHL Express Türkiye's senior management, received their awards in a ceremony attended by Yeditepe University Rector Prof. Dr. Canan Aykut Bingöl and DHL Express Türkiye CEO Mustafa Tonguç.
Doga Çarıkçoğlu, a student from Yeditepe University's Department of Industrial Design, won first place with her lighting design project "Welice," inspired by DHL's electric aircraft, Alice, using waste bolts and metals. Baran Çulban, who transformed an old street lamp into a paper waste collection box as a DHL plane with his project "Pan Pan," was selected as the second winner. Dilara Damla Üst, who came in third with her project "Alister," designed a skateboard for children inspired by the DHL cargo plane, using waste fabric, wood, and metal.
"We Try to Leave a Livable World to Our Youth"
Prof. Dr. Canan Aykut Bingöl, Rector of Yeditepe University, emphasized the importance of sustainability for the whole world, saying, "We are in a period where we need to use all our resources most efficiently. Our youth are questioning whether they will inherit a livable world. While we try to implement sustainability on our campus and national and international efforts, leaving a livable world for our youth, our students also guide us with their projects. The Design and Advanced
Recycling Laboratory is a project we have matured over the past three years, and it is gratifying to see this project crowned with such a collaboration and award ceremony."
"We Contribute to Demonstrating that a Green World is Possible"
Mustafa Tonguç, CEO of DHL Express Türkiye, mentioned their leadership in sustainability and eco- friendly logistics, stating, "We define our job not just as moving shipments, but as 'connecting people and improving lives.' With this in mind, we keep sustainability at the heart of our business, implementing sustainable practices in every field and supporting projects. We value our collaborations with educational institutions highly. This workshop with Yeditepe University, inspired by DHL designs and stemming from our sustainability strategy, is very valuable to us. As pioneers of green logistics, we aim to show that a green world is possible by coming together with the youth and contributing to establishing this awareness. We will continue to support such projects in the coming period. I congratulate everyone involved in the workshop, especially our students who impressed us with their creativity."
"What Makes Us Unique is Design"
The workshop, aimed at reintegrating waste into the circular economy through functional product design inspired by DHL Express's sustainability strategy and initiatives, was led by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ayşem G. Başar, Head of the Industrial Design Department at Yeditepe University. Explaining that the Design and Advanced Recycling Laboratory was established with university-industry support as the Turkish leg of the Netherlands-based social responsibility project Precious Plastic, Başar highlighted the laboratory's distinction from other recycling facilities in Türkiye: "What makes us unique is 'design.' After collecting the raw materials, original designs are realized in the Department of Industrial Design. Our students create various design materials, from chairs and tables to lighting designs and separators. We can produce filament. We can print our products with a 3D printer.
Moreover, we provide 3D printing services for students from other departments who need it for their projects."
During the 12-week workshop, students utilized waste from Akademi Çevre Entegre Atık Yönetimi Endüstri A.Ş.'s Recycling Facility in Istanbul.