Papers > By author > Binbuga Kınık Burcu Nur

It is commonly stated that mega projects during AKP governments are used to generate consent from large sections of the urban population through discourse of growth-oriented modernization and developmentalism. Istanbul is a striking case in terms of being main focus of government's interventions that intensify through neoliberal urbanization under the name of mega projects in recent times. As Istanbul has been the locus of government intervention through mega projects including construction, infrastructure, transportation and urban transformation projects, there emerged vigorous grassroot movements opposing these projects, rising up to against plunder of the parks, neighborhoods, squares, and forests in the city, mobilizing for protection of the nature, urban fabric and historical culture of the city and demanding democratic and participatory decision making. In this chapter, I aim to show this discontent; namely, the networks opposing ecologically destructive projects in İstanbul. This study is based on the data gathered from participant observation and in-depth semi-structured interviews between January and June 2017 with 25 activists.