He was born in Izmir in 1963. He is the first scientist who introduced the word gemology (the science of gemstones) into the scientific and professional literature in Türkiye. Immediately after graduating from Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Engineering, Department of Geological Engineering in 1984, he became one of the people who helped establish an academic branch on jewelry, which can be considered as the milestone of the transition of the jewelry craft from regimental to schooled.

Accordingly, he started his academic career in 1984 as a mineralogist, gemologist, archaeo-gemologist, forensic-gemologist, and jewelry expert at Dokuz Eylül University, İzmir Vocational School, Department of Handicrafts, Gemology, Jewelry, and Design Program. Since this year, it has undertaken a long and arduous effort to establish and develop gemology in Türkiye, both academically and sectorally, and thus has brought more than 1,000 qualified personnel to the sector with its university-level theoretical and practical jewelry teaching for 40 years.

At the same time, he has been teaching gemology master’s degree at Dokuz Eylül University, The Graduate School of Natural and Applied Science, Department of Natural Building Stones and Gemstones since 2004. In 2011, he created the archaeo-gemological inventory for the first time of hundreds of ancient gemstone products found in the Izmir Archeology Museum, Milas Museum, and Bodrum Underwater Museum and created museum records. Since 2015, he started to teach undergraduate Archaeo-gemology courses for the first time among Turkish universities at Ege University, Faculty of Letters, Department of Classical Archeology, and subsequently at Dokuz Eylül University, Faculty of Letters, Department of Museology.

He was born in 1981 in Konya. He completed the Industrial Design associate degree program in 2001 and Gazi University, Department of Furniture and Decoration Education in 2004 as the 1st. He received her Master’s degree in 2006 and PhD degree in 2010 at Gazi University Institute of Science and Technology.

In 2005, he was appointed as a Research Assistant to Selçuk University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Department of Interior Architecture and Environmental Design, and at the beginning of 2011, he was appointed as an Assistant Professor to Selçuk University, Faculty of Fine Arts, Department of Industrial Design. At the beginning of 2014, he received the title of Associate Professor and in 2019 he received the title of Professor. He continues to work as the Head of the Industrial Design Department.

He has published many international academic articles/papers on interior architecture, spatial perception, environmental psychology, traditional civil architecture, furniture design, and sustainability.  He has received awards from many international and national competitions, especially A Design Award Competitions with his original designs. He has patents and design registrations in his field. In addition to academic studies, he focuses especially on design competitions and serves as a jury member in different design competitions. He continues to make boutique designs in product design and develop technology-based projects for disadvantaged user groups.

He was born in Antalya in 1974. Since jewellery and money changer was his father’s profession, he actively worked in all areas of the jewellery profession until he completed his university education at the journeyman-master level. Graduated from Dumlupınar University Applied Jewelry Technology Department in 2001 as an associate degree; He graduated from Gazi University Vocational Education Faculty, Handicrafts Department in 2004 for his undergraduate degree and from Gazi University Educational Sciences Institute, Handicrafts Department in 2006 for his master’s degree; She graduated from Gazi University Institute of Educational Sciences, Department of Handicrafts in 2014. She worked in the Jewelry and Jewelry Design program of Dumlupınar University, Kütahya Vocational School, Department of Handicrafts between 2005 and 2015.

Since 2015, he has been working as the Head of Department and Head of the Main Art Branch of Jewelry Design and Manufacturing, Department of Handicrafts, Faculty of Fine Arts, at Kütahya Dumlupınar University. In addition, he carries out various administrative and academic duties at the University and Faculty. His papers and articles have been published in many national and international congresses, symposiums, and journals. He is an editor in scientific publications. He also has many national and international groups and personal exhibitions. He is also a referee in various magazines and a jury member in competitions.

Assoc. Prof. Nesrin Yeşilmen was born in 1985 in Mardin, and she completed a significant portion of her education in Mersin. Focusing on her artistic career, she obtained her master’s degree in the Sculpture department in 2014. In 2018, she earned her Art Proficiency in the field of Ceramic Fine Arts with her thesis titled “The Historical Development Process of Jewelry and the Contemporary Understanding of Jewelry in the 21st Century: Interpretations of Contemporary Jewelry with Ceramic – Metal Clay.”

In 2018, Dr. Nesrin Yeşilmen began her tenure as an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Fine Arts at Mardin Artuklu University. During the same period, she assumed the roles of Vice Dean and Head of the Department of Handicrafts in the Faculty of Fine Arts. As of 2021, she continues her academic career with the title of Associate Professor in the Faculty of Art and Design.

Dr. Nesrin Yeşilmen’s works are featured in various official and private collections within the country. The artist has actively participated in numerous national and international symposiums, contributing expertise in the field of jewelry, and has published articles in national and international peer-reviewed journals. As a jewelry artist, she has held solo exhibitions of her created collections in Germany, Vienna, Budapest, Serbia, Egypt, Kuwait, Ukraine, and Poland, and has been part of group jewelry exhibitions in many countries.

Bachelor’s degree in Statistics and Social Policy from the Faculty of Economics at Istanbul University, followed by a Master’s degree in Business Administration from the Faculty of Business in 2014. Completed another Master’s degree in Economics from the Faculty of Economics and defended a doctoral thesis titled “The Importance of Branding in the Internationalization of the Jewelry Sector” in 2019, also from the Faculty of Economics.

Completed the “European Market Adaptation” training and internship organized by the EU, as well as a course in Strategic Communication at the London School of PR. Holds ISO 9001:2008 Auditor Certification and EFQM Lead Assessor Certification. Achieved 2nd place in Marketing Simulation Game Theory. Completed mentorship training in 2019.

Professionally, worked as a Research Specialist at the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (ITO), Assistant Operations Manager at Sümerbank Holding, and Marketing Manager at Koç Allianz Insurance. Since 2002, has provided consultancy services in market structuring, internationalization, and branding for SMEs.

Has been serving as a faculty member at Altınbaş University since 2023. Long-term research projects include market research books for foreign markets, profiles of exporting and importing businesses, customer satisfaction surveys, and the development of business strategic action plans. Research also covers process innovation in service companies, commercialization of knowledge in innovative ventures in Technology Development Zones, and competition analysis in the gold and jewelry sector.

Author of articles in peer-reviewed national and international journals, and presenter at peer-reviewed conferences. Serves as a jury member for the Real Estate Investment Trust and Economic Research Foundation Thesis Awards Competition.

Manuk Durmazgüler started to work in the jewellery industry in 1995 at Kapalıçarşı when he was 13. Durmazgüler is working as a goldsmith and he has been improving himself since the years he started as an apprentice. With the advantage of his hand workmanship for this profession, he generated products for various big and high-class stores. In previous years he worked in various ateliers, in 2007 he opened his workshop in Cağaloğlu. Following his atelier, Durmazgüler started to produce and sell his designs under the name of “Manuk’s Workshop”.

Creating different and unique designs by using gold, silver, and precious stones, goldsmith Manuk Durmazgüler vitalizes varied designs like your fingerprints. Manuk’s Workshop’s designs are produced by hand workmanship. All materials are natural and raw, therefore all designs have different forms and they are unique.

Following her graduation from Lycée Saint Benoît and Istanbul University with a degree in Business Administration, Müge Onan pursued her love for art and design and studied fashion at La Salle Academy. With extensive experience in the jewellery industry, including high-ranking positions at Gilan and Tiffany & Co., Müge also served as an advisor for leading international jewellery brands. After many years of honing her craft and expertise, in 2014, she established her own brand, Monan.

Müge Onan is interested in many branches of the fine arts, including painting, ceramic art, and sculpture, and her passion for art drove her to choose the field of jewellery as her professional occupation. Müge Onan believes that jewellery-making is an art, adding that the secret of this art lies in combining rare gemstones with boundless imagination.

Another fascinating aspect of the art of jewellery, according to Müge Onan, is the way in which it can eternalize special moments. Onan wishes for Monan jewellery to be part of our most intimate moments, and she describes Monan’s mission as ‘making jewellery that will help pass on love, passion, and happiness from one generation to the next’.

Sertaç Ersayın, who is the President of YEKON (Creative Industries Council Association), has completed his Bachelor’s degree from METU Faculty of Architecture, Department of Industrial Product Design and Executive MBA degree from Koç University. He believes in the creative, productive, value-adding power of design, the national economy, social welfare, a more qualified life culture and competitive impact. He believes that objects and solutions that improve our quality of life also bring together ideas with high environmental sensitivity and approaches that center humanity.

Ersayın has assumed important responsibilities in Türkiye and abroad as an Industrial Designer, Manager, Director and C-level manager in many different product categories that are mass-produced. He has developed and managed projects in many different fields from white goods, building groups, small household appliances to furniture, electronic products, design strategies and design policies to creative industries. He has served as a jury member in many different international design competitions such as IF Design Award, Design Turkey, Design Intelligence Award, Shenzhen Industrial Design Awards, Design Management Award, Golden Pin, Seoul Design Award. Ersayın, who has been working part-time at Kadir Has University and Medipol University, also continues to provide consultancy services in different sectors and fields with his company.

Sertaç Ersayın, who is the President of YEKON (Creative Industries Council Association), has completed his Bachelor’s degree from METU Faculty of Architecture, Department of Industrial Product Design and Executive MBA degree from Koç University. It believes in the creative, productive, value-adding power of design, the national economy, social welfare, a more qualified life culture and competitive impact. He believes that objects that improve our quality of life, and solutions also bring together foci with high environmental sensitivity and approaches that center people.

Gülnur Özdağlar is an architect who has also worked on graphic design and particularly on digital art after a decade of heavy architectural practice. She won awards in architecture and digital art. After many years of creating on a computer, she began to seek experience in “making” with her hands.

Her experiments on transforming plastics led her to develop her technique based on upcycling plastic bottles, melting them into unique ethereal shapes.

She exhibited her first plastic jewelry collection in 2008 which attracted attention enough to make her leave architectural practice and work as a full-time artist. She has been designing and exhibiting a new collection every year since 2008.