The opening program of the 18th TÜBİTAK Middle School Student Research Projects Erzurum Regional Exhibition, organized under the auspices of Erzurum Technical University (ETU), took place.

The aim of the 18th edition of the TÜBİTAK Middle School Student Research Projects Competition, which commenced with the Erzurum Regional Final at ETU, is to encourage teamwork among young individuals, preserve our societal and cultural values, adhere to scientific ethical standards, and enhance imagination, creativity, engineering, problem-solving, and intellectual skills.

Across ten fields including Biology, Geography, Values Education, Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, History, Technological Design, Turkish, and Software, there were 16,712 project applications nationwide, with the Erzurum Region ranking second with 2819 projects.

The opening program of the event held at the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture was attended by Erzurum Deputy Governor Ahmet Özdemir, Deputy Mayor of Erzurum Metropolitan Municipality Recep Kaplan, ETU Rector Prof. Dr. Bülent Çakmak, TÜBİTAK Project Competitions Erzurum Regional Coordinator Prof. Dr. İrfan Kaymaz, Erzurum Provincial Director of National Education Yakup Yıldız, academics, teachers, and numerous students.

Addressing the audience, TÜBİTAK Regional Coordinator Prof. Dr. Kaymaz highlighted the role curiosity plays in the advancement of science and provided information about the competition process.

Following Kaymaz's speech, Rector Çakmak expressed his pleasure in hosting the TÜBİTAK Middle School Student Research Projects Erzurum Regional Competitions: "Seeing the bright-eyed youngsters in this room fills us with hope for the future of our country. As long as you continue to work tirelessly and generate projects, I am confident that the world will become a better, more just, and more livable place. These efforts you make will not only remain as cherished memories for you but will also serve as valuable references. When you move on to high school and then university, the synergy and motivation you gain from today will inspire you to undertake new projects, providing you with significant advantages upon graduation. On this occasion, I extend my best wishes to each of you and express my gratitude to everyone involved in organizing the TÜBİTAK Middle School Student Research Projects Erzurum Regional Competition, especially to the coordinating professors Prof. Dr. İrfan Kaymaz and Prof. Dr. Birol Soysal."

Speaking at the event, Deputy Governor Özdemir emphasized the importance of countries striving for self-improvement to focus on science and technology: "Under the leadership of our President, we are working with all our might to support our young people, who are our country's greatest assurance, in developing their own technology and becoming a country capable of exporting it to the world within the framework of the vision of the national technology move. From a young age, we are endeavoring to strengthen the science and technology ecosystem, such as TÜBİTAK, and bring our students together with projects that support the national technology move. The Middle School Student Research Projects Competitions are one of the finest examples of this approach. I congratulate our young people, who will be influential in the second century of our Republic, for their efforts in this process, and I wish the event success."

Following the speeches, the program continued with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, during which Rector Çakmak and accompanying officials visited each booth, gathering information from students about the projects they had developed.

Corporate Communication Directorate 22.04.2024