​Project Title: A Review of the Architectural and Cultural Features of the Granaries of Sındırgı, Balıkesir

Since the Neolithic period, when settled life and agriculture began in Anatolia, various structures have been constructed for the storage of agricultural products. Over time, these storage structures evolved into in-house facilities, annexes to dwellings, and large-scale granaries managed by state authorities. Today, traditional grain storage buildings used as residential annexes continue to exist in many rural areas of Anatolia.

One of these regions is Balıkesir, where wooden grain granaries located in rural settlements represent both the agricultural production history and the architectural and cultural identity of the region. Concentrated particularly in the districts of Bigadiç, Sındırgı, Dursunbey, and Kepsut, these structures stand out for their distinctive construction techniques and structural systems within the tradition of Anatolian wooden architecture.

This study aims to investigate the architectural and cultural characteristics of wooden grain granaries located in the villages of Karacalar, Dereboyu, Yaylabayır, Çamalanı, Dedeler, Gözeren, Çayır, Düğüncüler, and Kürendere in the Simav River Basin of Sındırgı District, Balıkesir. The granaries will be analyzed in terms of their spatial organization, construction techniques, materials, façade characteristics, and their relationship with the rural fabric and cultural landscape.

The study seeks to contribute to the documentation and preservation of these structures— important witnesses to Anatolia’s agricultural heritage and wooden building tradition—and to reveal their potential for reuse and integration into regional tourism and eco-tourism activities.

Key words: Sındırgı, agricultural production, granaries, wooden architecture, architectural heritage 


Project Title: Monitoring Landscape Restoration After Land Development: A Case Study in Çatalca, Istanbul 

Landscapes degraded as a result of architectural and infrastructural development may lead to the depletion of natural resources through the exceedance of their carrying capacities and to the disruption of ecosystem balance. Therefore, the restoration of such areas using sustainable methods is of great importance from environmental, ecological, and aesthetic perspectives. In this project, the long-term performance of landscape restoration techniques will be evaluated through monitoring and observation activities conducted once a month over a six-month period.

The study area is an embankment slope along the Northern Marmara Motorway located in the Çatalca district of Istanbul, where landscape restoration was implemented following motorway construction. It has been observed that the applied landscape restoration techniques have maintained their functionality sustainably for five years without requiring any maintenance. Within the scope of the project, the long-term success of these techniques will be quantitatively assessed using the erosion pin method and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based mapping techniques. In addition, the survival rates of the plant species used in the restoration will be evaluated. 

The obtained data will be analyzed using statistical methods, and the results will scientifically demonstrate the effectiveness of landscape restoration techniques applied in areas degraded by post-construction activities 

Key words: Landscape Restoration Technique, Sustainable Landscape Design, Environmental Sustainability