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“Order and Chaos in the City” Discussed at the Intellectual Interaction Meetings

14.05.2025
“Order and Chaos in the City” Discussed at the Intellectual Interaction Meetings
The sixth session of the Intellectual Interaction Meetings featured comprehensive analyses of theoretical approaches to urban sociology, modernization processes, and the organization of cities.

The sixth session of the Intellectual Interaction Meetings series, titled “Order and Chaos in the City: Our Urban Future”, was held on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, at the Teoman Duralı Conference Hall. The session, which addressed themes intersecting urban, societal, historical, and political thought, was followed with great interest.

The event was moderated by Dr. Ercüment Asil, a faculty member at our University’s Alliance of Civilizations Institute. The speakers were two distinguished academics working in the fields of urban sociology, political theory, and modernization processes: Dr. Heba Raouf Ezzat (Ibn Haldun University) and Assoc. Prof. Eda Ünlü Yücesoy (Istanbul Technical University).

An Ontological Approach to Order and Chaos

The first speaker, Dr. Heba Raouf Ezzat, addressed the concepts of “order” and “chaos” within a multilayered framework, combining theoretical approaches in urban sociology with her own areas of research. Beginning with an ontological inquiry into the formation of cities (What constitutes the best societal and urban order for Muslims?), Ezzat discussed how modern cities are structured through the lens of Ibn Khaldun’s cosmology and the concept of asabiyyah, and how urban order should be envisioned in Islamic societies. Drawing on the example of Cairo, she analyzed the relationship between order and disorder in the city through ethnic diversity, forms of social organization, and financial structures. Referencing thinkers such as Hannah Arendt and Zygmunt Bauman, she offered a philosophical perspective on contemporary urban issues. She also examined the impact of capitalism on urban structures, highlighting the destructive effects of massive financial systems—distinct from traditional financial models—on the urban fabric.

Interdisciplinary Approaches and Urban Planning

Following this, Assoc. Prof. Eda Ünlü Yücesoy addressed the large-scale transformations experienced in cities with the acceleration of industrialization in the second half of the 19th century. Emphasizing the changes in population growth, spatial expansion, and infrastructure organization brought about by the Industrial Revolution, Yücesoy pointed out that the modernization process simultaneously produces both order and disorder. She underlined the importance of multidisciplinary collaboration, stressing the need for sociologists, historians, architects, and engineers to work together on a common platform. Using examples centered on Istanbul’s spatial and social transformation in the 20th century, she evaluated the contemporary concept of urban resilience.

At the end of the event, our President, Prof. Atilla Arkan, expressed his gratitude to the speakers and presented them with gifts. Enriched by the active contributions of the participants, the session provided an intellectual platform for contemplating the future of cities and served as an inspiring gathering for students and academics interested in urban studies.

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