RURAL FUTURES | FUTURE RURALS
International Symposium
October 15–16, 2026
Istanbul Museum of Painting and Sculpture
The rural is increasingly being declared as a 'new common ground for humans and all nonhuman living and non-living entities,' and highlighted as a 'new' space for living alongside the city—a shift that calls for reconsidering rural geographies from within their own contexts, challenging conventional views from the city to the countryside, and rethinking rural futures through new perspectives, lines of inquiry, and unconventional models and projects. In response, the international and transdisciplinary symposium Rural Futures | Future Rurals aims to bring together ongoing studies on rural territories, alternative forms of living, and design research by starting from the question "What are we looking for?" and inviting critical and creative perspectives on "the futures of the rural" and "the rurals of the future." Rather than a retrospective showcase of past projects, the symposium is conceived as a platform for exchange aimed at generating new discussions and possibilities for the future.
Taking place at the Istanbul Museum of Painting and Sculpture on October 15–16, 2026, the event is organized in collaboration with Istanbul Technical University (ITU) Faculty of Architecture and the Architectural Research European Network Association (ARENA) Alter Rurality Project.
