From Istanbul to Amberg-Weiden: SUSTAIN-ED Completes Its First Stop

Ibn Haldun University Career Center has completed the Istanbul mobility of SUSTAIN-ED (2025-3-TR01-KA152-YOU-000384503), a youth exchange project carried out under the Erasmus+ KA152 programme. Run in partnership with OTH Amberg-Weiden in Germany and TÜRGEV in Türkiye, the project brought together international students from diverse cultural and academic backgrounds at partner institutions in both countries. SUSTAIN-ED aims to explore young people’s perceptions of sustainability in education through the perspectives of different countries.

The mobility opened on 20 October with a welcome programme at IHU’s Başakşehir Campus. After institutional introductions and icebreaker activities, participants attended the seminar “Sustainability in Education from an EU and Türkiye Perspective” delivered by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mustafa Alper Özpınar. In the afternoon workshop, students worked in mixed groups to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the European Union’s and Türkiye’s approaches to sustainability in education.

The second day was dedicated to cultural and field visits. Participants toured the Istanbul Archaeological Museums and the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts with expert guides, rethinking the concept of sustainability through the lens of historical and cultural heritage. The day continued with a technical visit to İstinye University International Sustainability Research and Application Center (IRCOS) and ended with a dinner at Cemile Sultan Liman Hanı in Eminönü.

On the final day, participants turned what they had gained from the seminar and museum visits into posters, social media content and short videos. The groups then brought their ideas of what a sustainable campus could look like to life through prototype models. Working in four groups, they went on to prepare the first drafts of the Sustainability Action Plan, one of the project’s core outputs. The mobility closed with a screening of the documentary A Life on Our Planet, followed by a reflection circle.

The project’s second mobility will take place on 7-11 December 2026 at the OTH Amberg-Weiden campus in Amberg-Weiden, Germany, where participants will continue developing the action plan they began in Istanbul.

Through SUSTAIN-ED, the Career Center continues its mission of helping students gain international experience, strengthen their intercultural collaboration skills and grow into individuals who are engaged with global issues.

Instagram: @sustainedproje

Erasmus+ Result Platform: https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/projects/search/details/2025-3-TR01-KA152-YOU-000384503