Following the great earthquake disaster that occurred in 2023 and the events that followed, some non-governmental organizations, foundation universities, private sector organizations and associations representing them started the formation of the Disaster and Emergency Technologies Initiative with a Search Conference last March. On June 22, 2023, at the meeting hosted by TED University, the establishment protocol of the “Disaster and Emergency Technologies Platform”, the first step of the cluster, was signed.
AKUT Search and Rescue Association, Ankara Chamber of Industry 1st Organized Industrial Zone, Science Tree Foundation, Başkent University, Izmir University of Economics, Koç University, OSTİM Organized Industrial Zone, Sabancı University, TED University, Turkish Economic Policy Research Foundation are among the organizations that signed the cooperation protocol.
Prof. Dr. İhsan Sabuncuoğlu, Rector of TED University, stated that he believes that the Disaster and Emergency Technologies Platform will be an exemplary cluster model for both Turkey and the world, and said, "Today we are lighting a spark with a core team. We want this spark to grow further and turn into a big torch and become an example for Turkey and the world." He said.
This platform, which was established as a university, private sector and NGO cooperation structure against disasters and emergencies of all types and scales that may occur in Turkey; To contribute directly to the strategic planning process to be carried out by the public sector before disasters, to carry out studies to support the role of the public sector in order to ensure effective publicly coordinated response in case of disasters and emergencies, to produce and develop new and innovative information, technology, products and services, and to establish the necessary shared facilities and infrastructures for this purpose, To contribute to the updating of the training curriculum for all stages of the disaster process in educational institutions at all levels, to develop programs and contents that can be used to have a qualified workforce in this field, and to maximize the technological, social and economic benefits that can be achieved through university - private sector - NGO cooperation, accelerating the transformation to an environmentally and socially sensitive industrial structure and developing cooperation with international stakeholders, creating clusters and similar structures that will minimize future disaster risks with integrated planning approaches, mobile systems, new and advanced technologies and data-based systems that focus on sustainability, and ensuring that investments in this field are made in the most efficient and accurate way, The aim is to support appropriate prioritization, to strive for the most accurate development of legislation and regulatory rules in this context, to increase the competitiveness of our country in this field and to support the increase in value-added exports, and to establish an interlocutor as a reliable civil organization for possible disaster-related support and project financing from abroad to our country.