The Role of Women in Cultural Heritage and Local Development Discussed in Edirne with the Participation of Assoc. Prof. Çiğdem Gürsoy, Head of the Department of Economics

Within the scope of the TÜBİTAK 1001 project titled “Cultural Heritage, Economic Development, and the Status of Women,” Assoc. Prof. Esra Bayhantopçu from Kadir Has University, the project’s principal investigator, and Assoc. Prof. Çiğdem Gürsoy, Head of the Department of Economics at Istinye University, conducted a series of meetings in Edirne.

The discussions were held with Edirne Mayor Av. Filiz Gencan Akın, village head association presidents, heads responsible for women and family affairs, and female neighborhood leaders serving in the city. The meetings focused on women’s roles in local development, the preservation of cultural heritage through women’s labor, and the structural challenges faced by female community leaders.

The project aims to transform women’s labor in rural areas into economic value, enhance women’s participation in local governance, and contribute to the sustainability of cultural heritage.