The Izmir Institute of Technology currently houses within its campus a Technopark (IZTEKGEB). The park has 4 extremely well laid out pleasant looking buildings; who wouldn’t want to work in a brick building that overlooks the sea side village of Gülbahçe I can’t imagine…. But that in itself is the challenge. And that is why is I’m here.
IZTEKGEB accommodates less than a 100 small companies, all small young entrepreneurs primarily into R&D. The current workforce in the Techno Park may not be large at all (Think 400 people), but does this region have the potential to develop into a technology hub?
Anything’s possible right… I grew up in the ‘garden city’ or the ‘pensioners paradise’ as they used to call it once upon a time. Today, many people stare at me in disbelief when I describe the Bangalore I grew up in, but today it is what it is.
So Izmir, gateway to the historic attractions of the Aegean region and the warm beaches nearby and the hot springs and that coastline and the cruise ships….. and we’re strategizing on a plan to grow a Techopark!
I am now down full two days of being locked up in meeting rooms with the IZTEKGEB Team, 500 pages of documentation on the city, its economic development, government policies, etc and a whole day of brainstorming and deliberating with my team….. goes without saying, we still have a lot more to go before we can come up with any answers.
But I am for sure enjoying every moment of this…. And the tons of Turkish Coffee and Turkish Tea I get to drink all through the day!
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