Soofia T. Elias-Ozkan and Françoise Summers

     Since 2002, the Kerkenes Eco-Center hosts research and activities focused on sustainable practices to reduce energy consumption and improve village life for a sustainable future. The aim is to promote the use of renewable energy, appropriate building materials with low embodied energies and minimal CO2 emission. The Kerkenes Eco-center has been a center of innovation and research giving opportunities to local villagers, school children, architecture students and instructors from the Middle East Technical University (METU) to work together. Most of the research and experimental buildings are the fruit of close collaboration between team members and stakeholders as well as the support of several partners interested in archaeology, ecological architecture, environmental design research or the development of rural areas.

     The purpose of the Kerkenes Eco-Center is to promote sustainability through environmental studies. It pursues the following objectives:

• To advocate the use of renewable sources of energy;
• To act as a stimulus and a catalyst for environment-friendly building with appropriate materials and energy efficient designs;
• To act as a dynamic experimental base for testing designs, materials and activities suitable for viable and sustainable village life.
• To support the income creating activities for rural development, in order to stop and reverse the migration from rural to urban areas.

Acknowledgements

     We thank all those who have taken part in the development of the Kerkenes EcoCenter as well as our generous sponsors, especially AKG Gazbeton, the Erdogan Akdag Foundation, MESA, Votorantim Yozgat Çimento and Yenigün Insaat, without whom much less would have been achieved. We also extend our thanks to the Governors of Yozgat, the Sorgun District Governors and the Sorgun Mayors and their staff who over the years have never failed to support the project. Finally we thank the village of Sahmuratli for its continuing hospitality.