GRF Young Scholars Seminars
2016 Term, Second Part

The second part of the 2016 term of GRF Young Scholars seminar, which is held with the participation of Turkish undergraduate students from the prominent universities of Turkey and the world, took place on December 24-26, 2016, at Robert College, Istanbul. Throughout the seminar, the participants had discussions with GRF Vice-Chairman and President Memduh Karakullukçu, attended interactive presentations delivered by GRF members, and presented a book they had previously read and written a report on during the “Book Discussion Panels”.

In the sessions led by Mr. Karakullukçu, the discussions were based on the articles and reports written by leading academics and intellectuals of the world, and were held with the active participation of the students.

In addition, GRF Members Ambassador (Ret.) Ender Arat, Vestel Executive Board Member Cengiz Ultav and Ambassador (Ret.) Sönmez Köksal delivered presentations and shared their assessments on the following topics respectively: “Turkey’s Asylum Policy throughout History,” “The Future of Technology-Based Development in Turkey: Global Opportunities and Areas Ripe for Improvement,” and “The Middle East”. The following books were selected for the “Book Discussion Panels”:

• Big Data: A Revolution That Will Transform How We Live, Work, and Think - Viktor Mayer-Schönberger

• Democracy in Retreat: The Revolt of the Middle Class and the Worldwide Decline of Representative Government- Joshua Kurlantzick

• Identity Economics: How Our Identities Shape Our Work, Wages, and Well-Being - George A. Akerlof

• The Paradox of Liberation: Secular Revolutions and Religious Counterrevolutions - Michael Walzer