Food, from production through consumption to waste is a complex system at the centre of human life and culture. Food therefore is an important new area for entrepreneurial activity and design has a key role to play in its development working with business and academia. How can researchers in design and business from the UK and Turkey work together to promote entrepreneurialism and sustainability?

This workshop will provide an important opportunity to share learning from and build on the successful 4 year Arts and Humanities Research Council funded Design in Action project. Gray’s School of Art, Robert Gordon University, led on the food theme resulting in several new startups.

Under the Researcher Links scheme offered within the Newton Fund, the British Council and TUBITAK will be holding a four-day workshop on design entrepreneurship in Istanbul, on 3-6 October 2017.

Based on a concept developed by Gray’s Early Career Researcher, Dr Nil Gulari the workshop is being coordinated by Professor Emeritus Anne Douglas (Robert Gordon University) and Professor Alpay Er (Ozyegin University) and will have contributions from other leading researchers including Professor Ozlem Er (Istanbul Technical University), Chris Fremantle (Robert Gordon University), Dr Nil Gulari (Robert Gordon University) and Dr Isıl Oygur Ilhan (Ozyegin University). All travel and accommodation expenses will be covered by the Newton Researcher Links programme.

Gulari’s Phd (2014) focused on Design Support Programmes in UK including Gray’s Centre for Design Innovation (c4di), Design in Action and her current research investigates design-led entrepreneurship and innovation in Estonia, Turkey, and France. Leaders of these programmes, including Professor Ozlem Er, came together during the Scottish Design Summit in 2015 in Edinburgh to exchange current thinking and plan future collaborations.

We are now inviting Early Career Researchers in the fields of design, business or food related science (completed their PhD within the last 10 years or equivalent research experience) from the UK and Turkey to apply to attend this workshop.

The application form, with more details on the initiative, is attached here: Newton Fund call information and application form and should be sent to n.gulari@rgu.ac.uk before the deadline of the 7th August.

Applicants should address the questions via email to n.gulari@rgu.ac.uk. Selected applicants will be informed by 2nd of August 2017.

Key Information:

Workshop Title: Rethinking food: The creativity of entrepreneurship

UK coordinator: Professor Anne Douglas, Robert Gordon University

Partner Country coordinator: Professor Alpay Er, Ozyegin University.

Discipline: Creative fields, Business and Food sciences

Dates and venue: 3-6 October 2017, Istanbul