From The President: As 2012 Ends
Dear Friends of TASSA,
Since the last issue of The Bridge in September, TASSA committees have undertaken a number of activities. First, TASSA was invited by the State Department officials to take an active role in the USA-Turkey Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) on Science and Technology Cooperation that was “supposed” to be held in Istanbul. I say “supposed” because the Sandy storm spoiled the planned sessions. But a select group of scientists was able to meet and exchange ideas in Ankara and Istanbul. TASSA Vice President Candan Tamerler represented TASSA in these meetings and you should read her column to be more informed about what went during the JCMs.
Another major activity pertains to the TASSA analysis of the proposed Turkish Council of Higher Education (YÖK) legislation. TASSA committees produced a report that analyzes the pros and cons of the YOK proposal. We have shared our views with YOK and the report is up on YOK’s web site. We also placed the report on TASSA website. Please have a look at the report and if you have any further comments please share them with us.
In this issue, we also feature a number of TASSA friends and their accomplishments. As I read through these accomplishments I feel so proud to see brilliant Turkish minds are at work making life better for humanity. Thank you Altan-Bonnet, Bahri, Betul, and Inanc! Keep up with the great work.
On November 13 a number of TASSA members and I have attended Dr Kemal Dervis’ talk at an event organized by the Turkish Embassy to observe the passing of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. It was a fascinating talk that placed many issues facing Turkey into perspective. We placed the transcript of Dr Dervis’ talk here and I urge everyone to read it.
This issue of The Bridge is the last for 2012. As we approach the end of 2012, I can’t believe how fast the year has gone by. Despite the speed, it was a very productive year for TASSA. I hope 2013 will be as productive and we all work together to lift TASSA to new heights.
Cheers,
Haluk Unal