Research Information System
in: What's Around Design?: Strategic and Speculative Biodesign for a Sustainable Future: Volume 2, Springer Nature, pp.236-249, 2026
“Caravanserai Summer School”, initiated by the independent initiative “Depo Pergamon” in Ferizler village of Bergama (İzmir, Türkiye), with the technical and economical support of “Meydan Architecture + Design” in 2022, aims to carry out architectural restoration through collaborative and ecological methods. At a time when villages are still being abandoned due to migration to cities or transformed by the introduction of standardized and ready-to-use materials for more convenient architecture, this project aims to re-discover and adapt local and traditional construction techniques to improve the living conditions while preserving and promoting the original architectural features of the villages. This adaptive reuse project proposes a new model of ecological restoration using natural and local materials such as stones, timber, earth, straw, manure, water and sun but also finds solutions to reduce waste by converting old building elements to host different functions. Thanks to the participation of students in the workshop, several alternative techniques are being taught, experimented, and exhibited, and therefore an ancient know-how is being revitalized through the extreme attention given by the participants to the existing constructions. This paper examines this summer school experience and the natural building materials and techniques used in this out of the box vernacular restoration process.