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Gümüşlük Akademisi We make our way to the Aegean town of Bodrum and tuck ourselves away in the gardens and shacks of Gümüşlük Akademisi, run by Latife Tekin, a Turkish novelist, and Emre Çetinkaya. It is hard to define the place. It is not a hotel, not a camping site, not a school. It is a modern day appropriation of what an Ancient Greek agora might have been –a beautiful outdoor space for experiential thinktanks and communal living. In fact, Gümüşlük Akademisi is short for Gumusluk Academy Foundation of Art, Culture, Ecology and Scientific Research. Every year, they hold workshops and other activities that cover these fields and host both Turkish and international visitors It is helpful to refer to Steven Johnson’s idea of platforms in order to make sense of the Academy. Johnson points out that social innovation thrives in certain ecosystems that create a basic platform upon which others can build. One example is how reef corals allow for unprecedented biodiversity. Another example is Twitter. Both of these are fairly simple platforms upon which others can build. Gümüşlük Akademisi is a similar ecosystem for social innovation.
Seed Exchange Def. A place where farmers and gardeners meet to swap seeds. In Anatolia, this practice is highly personal. A neighbor should give his/her seeds only to a person whom they knew and trusted with them. Often, these seeds had been passed down though the family and are considered very important within the family itself. Seed exchanges provide platform for farmers who are interested in swapping their seeds to exchange them with like-minded people. This has become increasingly important in a time where seeds are being manufactured to only produce one fruit instead of five or more. As Iram put it, I don’t see a reason why there should be hunger in this world. Therefore she mobilized famers, and created several seed exchanges in and around Bodrum. It’s still a small business but she hopes to be able to grow it in the future. We tried to help by setting up a wordpress website for them, so that they could increase efficient communications and attract more sponsorship. We really hope the venture will grow in the future; Iram has a personal stake in this venture, and is genuinely passionate about this issue. Neha Goyal
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