Evaluation of Social Resilience Through the Adaptive Cycle Concept in Mahmutbey, Istanbul

Once a rural settlement on the European side of Istanbul, Mahmutbey has been transformed over the past century from a rural settlement to a highly industrialized urban center. The paper uses the Panarchy framework, a model explaining repetitive cycles of involvement with exploitation, conservation, release, and reorganization of socio-economic and ecological factors, to identify how socio-economic and environmental factors influenced this evolution of the neighborhood. Mahmutbey had historically been a Kalfaköy and is known to have experienced reform after the 1923 Greco-Turkish population exchange. Furthermore, mahmutbey has been changed by the industry's rapid growth in the mid-20th century and has become better connected to Istanbul Center by investing in new infrastructure, such as highway expansions, İSTOÇ Trade Center, and new metro lines. However, these developments have not cleared the neighborhood of traffic congestion, informal housing, abandoned green spaces, social life, and economic inequalities. This paper considers these changes from the point of view of using Panarchy and adaptive cycle concepts, which we can examine to find ways to enhance social resilience on a neighborhood scale and in areas experiencing rapid urbanization, such as mahmutbey was selected for this paper. Studying and understanding Mahmutbey’s current phase of the Panarchy and Adaptive cycle will suggest possible strategies for promoting long-term social resilience to foster the neighborhood's social resilience.