PANORAMA KHAS
Kadir Has University Awards “Emeritus Professor” Title to Prof. Dr. Dikmen Gürün
Prof. Dr. Dikmen Gürün, who has served Turkish theater for nearly half a century as an academic, critic, and administrator and has pioneered the establishment of international theater bridges, has been honored with the title of “Emeritus Professor” by Kadir Has University.
The ceremony, hosted by Kadir Has University Rector Prof. Dr. Ayşe Başar, was attended by numerous distinguished guests from the worlds of art, society, and academia, including Suna Keskin, Şerif Erol, Göksel Kortay, Meral Çetinkaya, Tilbe Saran, Nedim Saban, and Zeliha Berksoy. In her opening remarks, Rector Prof. Dr. Ayşe Başar greeted the guests, highlighting the unique contributions Prof. Dr. Dikmen Gürün has made to the university and Turkey’s cultural and artistic life, and sincerely congratulated him on his new title and academic achievements.
A Lifetime Between Academia and the Stage
After completing her education at the Arnavutköy American Girls’ School and later in the United States, and earning her Ph.D. from the Department of Theater at Ankara University’s Faculty of Letters, Prof. Dr. Dikmen Gürün distinguished herself throughout her career as a true “playmaker” who seamlessly blended theory with practice. During her 20-year tenure as Director of the İKSV Istanbul Theater Festival, she brought the world’s most distinguished theater figures to Turkey while pioneering efforts to increase the visibility of local artists on the international stage. Since 2013, Gürün has continued his work at the Faculty of Arts and Design at Kadir Has University, where he continues to make timeless contributions to the theater’s legacy through works such as “The Firebird: The Life Story of Semiha Berksoy” and “The Life Story of Yıldız Kenter”.
A Campus United by the Arts: Music, Percussion, and Dance Workshops
The dance, percussion, and music programs offered at our university bring our faculty, administrative staff, and students together in harmony. Our arts groups continue to enrich campus life with the participation of all members of our community.
Kadir Has Sailing Team Takes the Podium at the Campus Cup
The 18th Campus Cup Sailing Regatta, held in Marmaris, concluded with the Kadir Has University Sailing Team securing a podium finish.
Organized by the Marmaris International Yacht Club (MIYC) for university students and featuring 27 teams, the event saw the Kadir Has University team secure second place in the ORC-E class despite challenging weather conditions, delivering a consistent performance.
Race Performance and Success
Over the course of three days and a total of five races, the Kadir Has University team competed both within the bay and on open-sea courses. The team achieved a major success by maintaining its second-place ranking throughout all stages, which took place under challenging conditions such as high winds, storms, and the risk of lightning. The team that represented our university and achieved this great success, winning the second-place trophy, consisted of Yiğit Eren Yılmaz, Dilay Balaban, Zeynep Gülsüm Aydın, Şevval Solakoğlu, Irmak Ünal, Bilge Yerli, and Teoman Değer.
BAGEP 2026: Dr. Deniz Gündoğan Receives the İbrişim Award
Dr. Deniz Gündoğan İbrişim, a faculty member of the Core Program at Kadir Has University, was honored with the 2026 BAGEP Award in the Literature category by the Academy of Sciences. She received her award at a ceremony held at Sabancı University on April 18.
İbrişim’s award-winning research reexamines studies of cultural memory through an eco-critical perspective. Her work evaluates memory—not merely as a field based on human narratives and archives—but through its ecological, ethical, and relational dimensions, focusing on the shared impacts of war and conflict on nature and society. Within the scope of this research, the concepts of “trauma ecologies” and “ecological post-memory” are brought into discussion, offering an interdisciplinary approach to memory studies.
Emeritus Prof. Dr. Erdal Panayırcı Receives High Honor from the Academy of Artificial Intelligence Sciences
Emeritus Prof. Dr. Erdal Panayırcı, a faculty member of the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at our university’s Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, has been elected as a “Fellow” by the International Academy of Artificial Intelligence Sciences (AAIS), one of the most prestigious institutions in the scientific community.
Prof. Dr. Panayırcı was deemed worthy of this title due to his pioneering work in the field of communication and signal processing and his scientific achievements on a global scale.
A Representation at the Summit of Science
Within the AAIS, which has over 250,000 members worldwide, there are 2,435 “Fellow” members—a group comprising only the most distinguished scientists. Prof. Dr. Erdal Panayırcı’s inclusion in this prestigious community—which includes Nobel and Turing Prize laureates—is a source of great pride for both our university and the academic community of our country.
College of Europe Student Delegation Visits Kadir Has University
Our university hosted an international academic study tour organized by the College of Europe from April 19–23, 2026. As part of the program titled “Turkey: A Country at the Crossroads – Security Mediator, Gateway for Migration, and Regional Power,” a working group consisting of faculty members, administrative staff, and international students from the College of Europe’s Natolin Campus visited our campus.
The Academic Artificial Intelligence Technical Workshop at KHAS is in full swing!
The Artificial Intelligence Technical Workshop being held at Kadir Has University is proceeding in an orderly and productive manner. Launched on February 10, 2026, by our Rector, Prof. Dr. Ayşe Başar, this initiative brings together faculty members conducting technical research in the field of artificial intelligence.
Funded Projects
Computer Engineering Student May Baker Receives Grant from the EU-Funded 3D Big Data Space Project
May Baker, a student in the Department of Computer Engineering, has been awarded a grant under the 3D Big Data Space Outreach Call, coordinated by the Time Machine Organization and co-funded by the EU.
Baker’s project, “The Golden Link: Uncovering the Kapulukaya Treasure,” offers an interactive digital storytelling experience centered on 4th-century Roman gold coins, enabling users to explore 3D models, track historical movements between Antioch and Ancyra, and interact with the material through augmented reality.
Faculty of Law
“The Challenge of Artificial Intelligence for the Law” Discussed at a Panel
The Academic Artificial Intelligence Working Group hosted a significant panel titled “The Challenge of Artificial Intelligence for the Law” on April 6, 2026.
The panel brought together the authors of the book “The Challenge of Artificial Intelligence for the Law,” edited by Ozan Erözden, which was published at the end of 2025. During the event, Başak Baysal addressed legal liability, Tuğrul Katoğlu discussed criminal law, and Ozan Erözden examined the relationship between artificial intelligence and law in all its dimensions within the framework of political theory.
The Kadir Has Human Rights Center Hosted a Discussion on the Individual Application Process to the Constitutional Court
The Kadir Has Human Rights Center hosted Serkan Cengiz, a human rights lawyer from the Izmir Bar Association, for a comprehensive event marking the 15th anniversary of the acceptance of individual applications and assessing the legal gains achieved during this process.
Faculty of Law and General Public Law Society Colloquium Held at the Cibali Campus
Organized in collaboration between Kadir Has University’s Faculty of Law and the General Public Law Scholars Society at the Galata Hall, the colloquium concluded with strong participation from academics and law students. The event, which addressed current issues in public law, hosted significant discussions that bridged theory and practice.
Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences
Presentations by Our Banking and Finance Ph.D. Students at International Conferences
Cem Okat and Semih Özkan, students in our Banking and Finance Ph.D. program, presented their research on current issues in the financial world at prestigious international conferences held in Greece and Hungary.
Research by Our Ph.D. Student Cem Okat on the Political Connections of Activist Investors
Research by Our PhD Student Cem Okat on the Political Connections of Activist Investors Our Banking and Finance PhD student Cem Okat presented his study examining the impact of activist investors’ political identities on corporate performance at the 10th AMEF Conference in Greece. Our PhD student Cem Okat attended the 10th International Conference on Applied Theory, Macro and Empirical Finance (AMEF), held in Greece on April 6–7. Okat presented his study titled “Politically Active Investors and Firm Performance,” which he co-authored with Dr. Aslı Togan.
The research examines the impact of investor activists (shareholders seeking to play an active role in corporate decision-making in the United States) and their political campaign contributions to U.S. politicians on the financial performance of the firms they target. Specifically, the study empirically tests the causal relationship between activists’ political contributions and firm performance in situations where there exists conflict between corporate management and activist investors, as well as in firms operating in industries with high levels of dependence on government in the United States. The findings reveal that, in both contexts, activist investors with political connections through campaign contributions to U.S. politicians generate a statistically significant and positive effect on firm performance compared to firms that were either not targeted by activist investors or targeted by activists without political contribution activities.
Analysis of Carbon Emissions and Financial Stability in G20 Banks by Our Ph.D. Student Semih Özkan
Semih Özkan, our Ph.D. student in Banking and Finance, will present his research on the effects of carbon emission intensity on bank performance and stability at the GLOBAFA Conference in Budapest. Our PhD student Semih Özkan will present his study titled “The Varying Role of Carbon Emissions on G20 Bank Performance and Stability: Shareholder Theory versus Stakeholder Theory,” co-authored with Dr. Oğuz Ersan, at the Global Banking and Finance Association (GLOBAFA) conference held in Budapest on May 30–31.
Cibali Business Talks Hosted Leading Figures in the Industry
The “Cibali Business Talks” series, organized by Kadir Has University, brought together key figures from the business world and the entrepreneurial ecosystem with students throughout April.
As part of the series, Miray Kanık, CMO of Value Solution Partners, shared strategic insights into the dynamics of retail and shopping center management. Following that, Yunis İsmayıl, Director of the ITU Çekirdek Incubation Center, delivered a comprehensive presentation on the operations of incubation programs and the critical support mechanisms for startups’ growth processes. In the final event of the month, Ergün Kırlıkovalı, founder of Integrated Polymer Industries, shared his personal experiences on how a single idea can evolve into a groundbreaking business.
These sessions, which drew significant interest, provided students with the opportunity to gain industry perspectives in the fields of marketing, management, and entrepreneurship.
Fourth-Year Management Information Systems Students Presented Their Midterm Progress Reports as Part of the MIS400 Course
A graduation project is not the final step on the path to a diploma—it is, in fact, the first real step. At Kadir Has University’s Management Information Systems Department, there is a course that believes in these principles: MIS400. On Friday, March 27, the 16 project teams from this course took the stage for their second progress presentations. The presentation hall wasn’t just filled with slides. It bore the traces of months of work. It told the story of why certain decisions were made, and most importantly, it featured those constructive questions and contributions from faculty members. Thanks to the “Industry Mentorship Model,” students are working side by side with real industry representatives. This is not just an internship or a theoretical course; it is an effort to cultivate a generation that creates, questions, and takes ownership. The semester is coming to an end. The projects are taking their final shape. But the real question is: when these students graduate, what problem will they take the first step to solve?
Faculty of Communication
Our Department Chair of Advertising, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Perrin Emre, is on the “Social Media and Digital” jury for the Brandverse Awards!
Organized by Marketing Türkiye and BoomSonar, the Brandverse Awards is one of the industry’s most comprehensive award programs, evaluating all marketing, communication, and advertising efforts—both traditional and modern—from a 360-degree perspective. We wish our esteemed professor the best of luck as he reviews the most successful projects in the digital world during this evaluation process, which brings together academia and the industry.
Video Experiment Workshop: Digital Storytelling from Theory to Production
At the Video Experiment Workshop held on Monday, April 27, at 1:30 PM in the New Media Lab, we explored the fundamental dynamics of the video experiment format together. Throughout the workshop, we covered a variety of topics, ranging from idea development and story structure to the effective use of visual and audio materials; from basic editing and montage techniques in CapCut to the production of a short video experiment.
adHAS Takes the Stage with Three Teams at the UNİADS 2026 Finals!
At UNİADS, Turkey’s only inter-university advertising festival, we are achieving a tremendous success this year as the Kadir Has Advertising Department. On this prestigious platform, where thousands of creative minds from 137 faculties across Turkey compete, three of our teams have made it to the finalist list!
This year’s competition was not just about aesthetics and creativity, but also about a strong sense of social awareness. Our teams won the jury’s admiration with their powerful and innovative strategies aimed at breaking the cycle of bullying—which is normalized by being dismissed as a “joke” and allowed to grow through silence.
Our Teams and Heroes on the Path to the Finals:
Adios: Berra Kınacı, Mehmet Karartı, Utku Yılmaztürk, Onur Arslan, Yasemin Solak
Aspava: Defne Ergün, Nehir Devlet, Şevval Kurtul, Şeyma Kalaycı, Tutku Mira Eligül
Ekstra: Ayşe Eda Demirtaş, Arif Kaya, Burhan Eray Ballı, Dila Tanrıkulu, Enise Mendilli
We extend our endless gratitude to all our esteemed teachers and mentors who never left our students alone for a single moment as they walked this path of dedication all the way to the finals, making this proud achievement possible.
Career Journey in New Media and Communication
Students in the New Media and Communication program gathered with industry veterans to learn about career planning, transformations in the communications sector, and professional expectations in the field of new media. The event highlighted the importance of creative thinking, digital literacy, a strategic perspective, and versatile content creation. While students asked questions about work processes at agencies and brands, internship experiences, and career planning, the speakers emphasized the importance of projects developed during university and professional relationships in the career journey. The event fostered a strong environment of collaboration between academia and the industry.
Our RTS Undergraduate Students in the Official Selection of the 3rd International Turan Film Festival
Films produced by our KHAS RTC Department undergraduate students—Özgür Saghafirad, Nazım Mammadov, Sevde Sağır, Deniz Sevimli, and Meriç Yurtsever—as part of the RTC106 Techniques of Production course have been included in the Official Selection of the 3rd International Turan Film Festival!
The film “Gravity” at the 5th Kaş International Film Festival
Directed by our KHAS RTC graduate Dalya Keleş and produced by our graduate Didem Nur Yayman, the film “Gravity” was a finalist in the National Short Film Competition at the 5th Kaş International Film Festival!
GRAVITY at the 43rd Munich International Film Festival
Directed by our KHAS RTS graduate Dalya Keleş and produced by our graduate Didem Nur Yayman, the film GRAVITY continues its journey in Munich. GRAVITY will compete in the CineKidl section of the 43rd International Munich Film Festival!
“Gravity” Wins the Short Film Competition at the 45th Istanbul Film Festival!
Directed by our KHAS RTS Department graduate Dalya Keleş and produced by our graduate Didem Nur Yayman, the film YERÇEKİMİ won the Best Short Film Award at the 45th Istanbul Film Festival Short Film Competition!
WORDS Selected for the Lift-Off Global Network-Filmmaker Sessions
WORDS, a film produced by our KHAS RTC Department undergraduate students—Özgür Saghafirad, Nazım Mammadov, Sevde Sağır, Deniz Sevimli, and Meriç Yurtsever—as part of the RTC106 Techniques of Production course, written and directed by Özgür Rad, has been selected for the Lift-Off Global Network-Filmmaker Sessions.
Deniz Tortum, Faculty Member of the RTC Department, Serves as a Jury Member at the 7th International Istanbul Experimental Film Festival
Deniz Tortum, a faculty member of the KHAS RTC Department, is serving as a jury member at the 7th International Istanbul Experimental Film Festival!
The festival will take place from May 13–17, 2026.
The Program for the 25th TFAYY Conference Has Been Released!
The 25th Conference on New Directions in Turkish Film Studies, held this year under the theme “Cinema and Method,” will take place on May 7–9 at Kadir Has University’s Cibali Campus.
Miranda Banks and Basma Al-Sharif will be the keynote speakers at the conference.
You can access the conference details on our website.
A Conversation with Elif Akçalı, Faculty Member of the RTC Department, on “Two Respectable Ladies”
Elif Akçalı, a faculty member of the RTC Department, was a guest at Frankenstein Bookstore to discuss Jane Boles’s 1943 novel “Two Respectable Ladies.”
The discussion on “Two Respectable Ladies,” considered a foundational work of feminist and modernist literature, featured Elif Kolcuoğlu, the book’s publisher and translator, alongside Professor Elif Akçalı.
RTC Faculty Member Elif Akçalı Was a Guest at “The Moving Image and Theory Seminars”
Elif Akçalı, a faculty member of the RTC Department, participated in a session titled “Thinking Film History with Feminist Videographic Interventions” as part of “The Moving Image and Theory Seminars” held at Bilgi University.
Moderated by Nil Delal Şahin, the seminar examined film history through feminist videographic interventions, focusing on Feri Cansel’s work currently in production. The event took place on Friday, April 24, 2026, at 2:00 PM, at Bilgi University’s Santralİstanbul Campus.
Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences
Academic Seminar on Hypergraph Modularity and Community Detection Algorithms
As part of the seminar series organized by our Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, we welcomed a distinguished guest this week. Dr. Pawel Pralat from Toronto Metropolitan University joined us with a presentation titled “A Community Detection Algorithm Using Hypergraph Modularity.”
A New Perspective on Network Science
At the meeting held on April 22 in Room D103, Dr. Pralat explained how “network structures”—which are actually present in every aspect of our lives—can be analyzed more accurately. Noting that classical graph models are sometimes insufficient, Pralat shared examples of how the new algorithm they developed makes a difference in interpreting complex data. He emphasized why this new method, which can adapt to different scenarios, is significant for the field of network science.
A Career Spanning Academia and Industry
Dr. Pralat, who stands out not only for his academic work but also for his industry experience, presented insights from projects he has led with organizations such as Mastercard AI Garage and the Canadian Government. Hearing how he transforms his deep mathematical knowledge into practical solutions was highly inspiring for our participants.
Our Ph.D. Student Sümeyra Hassan Reaches the Finals of the IEEE ICC 2026 Ph.D. Thesis Competition
Sümeyra Hassan, a Ph.D. student and research assistant in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Kadir Has University, has qualified for the finals of the doctoral thesis competition to be held as part of the IEEE International Conference on Communications (ICC) 2026 in Glasgow, United Kingdom, with her thesis titled “Joint Communication, Sensing, and Positioning with Enhanced Physical Layer Security in RF and Optical Domains,” which she is conducting under the supervision of Prof. Erdal Panayırcı.
Sümeyra Hassan’s doctoral thesis aims to design communication, sensing, and positioning functions in an integrated manner across RF and optical domains for 6G and beyond networks, with the goal of enhancing privacy, reliability, and spectral efficiency in these systems.
Faculty of Art and Design
Our Dean of the Faculty of Art and Design, Prof. Dr. Banu Manav, Has Been Elected to the LUX EUROPA Board of Directors
The 2028 LUX EUROPA International Lighting Congress will take place in Istanbul; Prof. Dr. Manav will assume the role of Council President during that period. Prof. Dr. Banu Manav, Dean of the Faculty of Art and Design, has been elected as the Turkish representative member to the Board of Directors of the LUX EUROPA Council, one of Europe’s long-standing international platforms for lighting science.
The LUX EUROPA Council, which brings together national lighting associations as members of the CIE International Commission on Illumination, remains one of the continent’s leading scientific and technical platforms in the field of lighting science. Prof. Dr. Manav, who also serves as Secretary General of the Turkish National Committee on Lighting (ATMK), represents Turkey within this structure.
This representation is significant as it extends ATMK’s national mission within the CIE to the LUX EUROPA platform, thereby strengthening our country’s visibility in the field of European lighting science.
The fact that the next LUX EUROPA International Lighting Congress will be held in Istanbul in 2028, and that Turkey will be represented at the management level within this prestigious organization, is viewed as a significant contribution to the recognition of our country’s academic expertise on a European scale.
This representation will also pave the way for Turkish researchers and institutions to integrate more effectively into international collaboration networks.
26th Direklerarası Audience Awards
Our Theater Department graduates Bilge Çınar and Merve Asya Özgür won the Best Actress in a Small Theater Production Award at the 26th Direklerarası Audience Awards. Congratulations to our graduates Bilge and Merve!
(TAL) Theater Research Laboratory Archive Project 5th Panel Meeting
We held the fifth meeting of the panel series organized as part of the (TAL) Theater Research Laboratory Archive Project on April 20 at Kadir Has University under the title “(TAL) Theater Research Laboratory: Research on Movement and Dance.”
New Perspectives Award for Best Supporting Actor
Our Theater Department graduate Özer Keçeci won the New Perspectives Award for Best Supporting Actor at the 45th Istanbul Film Festival. Congratulations to our graduate Özer!
Golden Tulip Award for Best Actress
Our Theater Department graduate, İnci Sefa Cingöz, won the Golden Tulip Award for Best Actress at the 45th Istanbul Film Festival. Congratulations to our graduate, İnci!
“Road to Clermont” Participation Award for the Short Documentary Project “My Mother, Before Me”
The short documentary project titled “My Mother, Before Me” written and directed by Aslı Ekici, a student in our Film and Drama master’s program, and produced by Elifnaz Öngören (Dolkun Production), was awarded the Road to Clermont Participation Award at the 21st Köprüde Buluşmalar Short Film Workshop.
The CUPRA Short Film Award for the Short Documentary Project Titled “My Mother, Before Me”
The short documentary project titled “My Mother, Before Me” written and directed by Aslı Ekici, a student in our Film and Drama master’s program, and produced by Elifnaz Öngören (Dolkun Production) as part of the 21st Bridge Meetings Short Film Workshop, has been awarded the CUPRA Short Film Award.
Orlando Wins the Square Eyes Consulting Award
Orlando, directed by Halime Usta, a student in our Film and Drama master’s program, was awarded the Square Eyes Consulting Award at the 21st Meetings on the Bridge Short Film Workshop. Congratulations to our student Halime!
Interview of Month
Our Volleyball Teams Share Their Stories: Training, Goals, and College Life
This time, the stars of the court were the guests on the Blue Microphone! We talked about their intense training schedule, match-week preparations, and pre-game routines. We heard from them about the hard work and discipline behind the performances you see on the court.
Upcoming Events
Student Movies Event
May 1 | 12:00 – 20:00 | Cinema A
Strategic Planning Academy Workshop
May 2 | 09:00 – 16:30 | Block D
Turkish Music Choir Concert
May 7 | 18:00 | Grand Hall Block D
25th Conference on New Directions in Turkish Film Studies – Cinema and Method
May 7-8-9 |09:30 – 18:00 | Cinema B
Strategic Plan Administrative Workshop
May 9 | 09:00 – 12:30 | Block D
In the Light of the Past: A Chronology of Lighting Exhibition
May 12 | 16:00 | Rezan Has Museum
Strategic Plan Student Workshop
May 16 | 13:00 – 16:30 | Block D