Editorial: Human-Centered Planning and Design: From Doxiadis’s Ekistics to contemporary and future visions

Dr. Derya Oktay (PhD, YTU & Oxford Brookes Univ; GradDipUD, Oxford Brookes Univ; MSc, METU; BArch, GU) is a professor of architecture and urban design at Maltepe University, Istanbul. Previously, she held key roles such as founding dean of a school of architecture, founding director of an urban research center, and head of an international master’s program in urban design. Her research focuses on urban design, sustainable architecture and urbanism, ecological design, public spaces, and quality of urban life. Dr. Oktay has published extensively, including books, journal articles, and conference papers. She has delivered invited talks globally and received the 2021 WREN Pioneer Award (World Renewable Energy Network, UK). Dr. Oktay's publications have earned widespread recognition, placing her among the world’s top 2% scientists for each year since 2020, according to impact research conducted by Stanford University. She has been a visiting professor at leading universities in the USA, UK, and Italy. Along with her role as Editor-in-Chief of Ekistics and the New Habitat, she serves on the editorial boards of four prestigious journals and contributes to scientific panels and design competitions at both national and international levels.