BERKER ELBELİ

Sustainable Development with Local Solutions; Saray Municipality’s Environmentally Friendly Projects

Abstract

While major problems such as environmental pollution, climate change and depletion of natural resources are increasing worldwide, local governments are looking for various innovative solutions to combat these problems. Saray Municipality, with the importance it attaches to environmentally friendly projects, aims to provide effective solutions to these global problems on a local basis and aims to inspire other municipalities by discussing how local governments can create a cleaner and livable environment with sustainable energy and environmental projects.

As Saray Municipality, we participate in all calls to support the natural texture of our district, each of which has different categories, but the general title is sustainable energy. In this context, our biggest step was to participate in the Net Zero Cities Program in line with the goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2050 and to obtain approval from the Saray Municipality Council in this direction. We applied to the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization’s EU-Turkey Climate Change Grant Program (EU-TR CCGP) call with the idea of “Developing an Action Plan for Climate Neutrality in Saray”. With this project, we aim to obtain high quality fertilizer from organic waste in our district and support sustainable agriculture.

We participated in the İMERMAID 2 Project Call, the theme of which is water and ocean cleanliness, with the project “Improving the Water Quality of Ergene River in Saray District”. Our motivation in this project was to improve the water quality of the Ergene River, which originates from our geography, to protect biodiversity and restore the ecosystem in the region.

We applied to the fourth call of the Streets are Transforming Program organized by the Union of Marmara Municipalities, which is the largest management network of our institution in the region, and we were accepted. Saray Municipality’s pedestrianization of the street around a school block is an important urban intervention that prioritizes the safety of children and families, as well as supporting sustainable transportation in our district, reducing vehicle traffic in the region and improving local air quality.

Keywords:  Saray Municipality, Renewable Energy, Sustainable Development, Net Zero Cities, EU-TR CCGP, İMERMAID, Streets are Transforming

Biography

Undergraduate:

Atürk University Faculty of Environmental / Environmental Health Engineering / Environmental Engineer (2004-2008)

Work and Experience:

Saray Municipality    /  Director of Parks and Gardens (2023-Present)
TESKİ (General Directorate of Tekirdağ Water and Sewerage Administration) / Environmental Engineer (2016-2023)
Teknik Kimya Sanayi / Environmental Engineer (2012-2016)
BK Giulini / Environmental Engineer  (2009-2012)
Fish Processer / Peter Pan Seafoods / Environmental Engineer (2008)