For more livable cities...

Urbanization and population density in Turkey rises day by day. Needs of the rising population increase as well. According to the data provided by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TUİK), while number of inhabitants per square kilometer was 2.420 in 2007, this number increased each year, reaching 2.849 in 2016.

With the rise of urbanization, the services that need to be offered in the city spread to a wider range. Şehrine Ses Ver is a social initiative, aiming to get to know our cities better, shed light upon our cultural and social values, and design a more livable city together.

Şehrine Ses Ver social initiative has been launched by Merve Akdağ Öner, a young architect, and a group of designer and social scientist friends. Şehrine Ses Ver aims to come up with solutions to the actual problems in our cities, by bringing together inhabitants of the neighborhoods, designers, social scientists, public institutions and investors.

Şehrine Ses Ver organized many different activities up until today. From workshops to design camps, thousands of people contributed to the activities organized. Together, they sought an answer to the question "how can we design a better living experience in the city?"

The initiative conducted activities in Kadıköy, Üsküdar, Beşiktaş, Eyüp and Bomonti districts of İstanbul, as well as in the cities of Kayseri, Erzincan and Balıkesir. They interacted with thousands of people in these areas, to exchange ideas for a more participative public space. One of them was "Come With Your Dreams, Beşiktaş" interactive board project. In the scope of the project, inhabitants of Beşiktaş gathered together and pinned their ideas and needs to the board. The volunteers of Şehrine Ses Ver, communicated these needs, ranging from transportation to green space and lightning, to the municipality. They also began to design solutions to these problems. This way, Şehrine Ses Ver contributed to the communication between the locals and the authorities, while designating problems and offering solutions.

Şehrine Ses Ver initiative dreamed of designing a future together for more livable cities. The initiative included not only architects and city planners, but also the inhabitants of the city in the process of designing public spaces. It increased social communication and interaction. It raised awareness for building a common language and a common mind in city life. Şehrine Ses Ver led people from different disciplines come together for a creative process, and created a huge difference in the lives of the city's inhabitants.