15.3.1. Sustainable use, conservation and restoration of land (policy)

METU has a policy to conserve, restore and sustainably use the land ecosystems associated with the university, in particular the METU Forest, the campus steppe and Lake Eymir.

Policy

METU's Nature and Ecosystems Policy, one of its published Sustainable Campus Policies, states: "METU campuses consist of very rich land, lake, and marine ecosystems that very few universities in the world have. It is one of the principles of our University to use these ecosystems as natural laboratories to protect and develop them in addition to coming up with exemplary strategies for their sustainable use." Among the principles it commits the university to put into practice are "developing an integrated management strategy prepared specifically for METU to protect land and sea creatures and ecosystems" and "creating a database on the unique biodiversity of campuses, developing practices for the protection of endangered species as listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the protection of the ecosystem against invasive species."

The same commitment is set in METU Strategic Plan 2023–2027, approved at the joint meeting of the University Senate and the University Administrative Board on 26 April 2022. Objective O4.2 is "Protecting the unique spatial and architectural structure of our campuses, as well as the rich forest, steppe, sea, and lake ecosystem integrity and biodiversity; meeting the spatial requirements within sustainable, smart, enduring and accessible campus approaches", and its Strategy S2 is "Researching the ecological and biodiversity values of our campuses and promoting them by considering the protection-use balance, continuing and increasing forestation efforts and the tree planting festival."

Legal protection

Parts of the campus are designated 1st-, 2nd- and 3rd-degree natural protected areas and archaeological protected areas. The METU Forest is managed under Forestry Law No. 6831 and Law No. 2863 on the Protection of Cultural and Natural Property, and the METU Conservation Zoning Plan sets out how the campus may be developed.

https://ihm.metu.edu.tr/tr/eymir-gol-kurallari

The policy in practice in 2025

Restoration and extension of the METU Forest: on 11 November 2025, National Afforestation Day, METU planted saplings on its campus, continuing the forestation tradition that created the METU Forest.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DQ6zQC2DEbg/

Sustainable use of the campus and Lake Eymir: EKOSAM's METU Carrying Capacity Project is developing a biodiversity-based visitor management plan for the central campus and Lake Eymir, and the lake's rules allow fishing only in set periods and under control, allow no boats on the lake other than the patrol boat and authorised craft, and prohibit grazing, camping, fires, beehives, unauthorised planting, excavation and the use of agricultural chemicals on the lakeside land.

https://ekosam.metu.edu.tr/tr/odtu-bap-merkez-odtu-tasima-kapasitesi-projesi

Knowing what to protect: on 25 May 2025, METU EKOSAM, the EKOSAM Student Club and the Nature Conservation Centre Foundation held Türkiye's 7th Tür Say! bioblitz on campus, open to anyone, adding to the database of campus species that the policy calls for.