JUST CITY USKUDAR

Gizem Yagmur Golbası

By Landscape Architecture IV Studio

Prof. Dr. Hayriye Esbah Tuncay

Res. Assist. Gizem Aluclu

Istanbul Technical University - Department of Landscape Architecture

SENSE OF SMELL

Providing justice in the city is possible with the joint efforts of all individuals who have contact with the city. In order to distribute the burden and benefit in the space in a fair way, individuals should feel a responsibility towards the society. Urban memory and the way it perceives the city are of critical importance for the society to adopt the city. Collective memory offers shared joys and common sorrows, connecting society together. Perceiving the city enables the society and the city to be analyzed correctly in environmental, social and economic contexts.

Our sense organs play a dominant role in perceiving the city. While helping us to define the physical environment, it also shapes our inner world, emotionally and mentally. Unlike other senses, the sense of smell works against our will and cannot be managed. It is paired with our most basic vital function, breathing. Therefore, it is vital and continuous.

The data obtained as a result of anatomical, physiological and psychological examinations of scent have scientifically revealed the close relationship of the intensity of the memory coming with the smell with the subconscious and long-term memory. The fact that the sense of smell has a much closer connection with memory when compared to other senses causes us to question how the scents in the space leave traces on the collective memory. The fact that scent is a mechanism that ensures survival for all living things brings the universal dimension of justice and the pluralistic approach of democracy to the agenda and enables us to use the understanding of justice for everyone in the space.

The primary purpose of this study is to recognize Uskudar, determine its actors and deal with them through the concept of justice. Identifying the problems related to the just city and generating systemic solutions to them is also considered as the second phase of the study. In the third phase of the study, the project will be completed by selecting a specific area as a result of the identified problems and using the data obtained as design input.