MİRAS Projects
MİRAS works with communities to develop grassroots initiatives that benefit local artists and businesses and are sustainable. For this reason, we collaborate as much as possible with local artists, teachers, artisans, businesses, and organizations. This fosters greater self-sufficiency and revitalizes the economy both now and in the future.
PLAYING WITH MUSIC
“Play Through Music” is a workshop model that provides concrete support for Hatay while also aiming to foster peer solidarity in various locations through music and play. It is organized as part of a peer support program to ensure the continuity of the creative music workshops we conduct for children affected by the earthquake in Hatay.
Designed for children ages 3 and up, our workshop centers on music, movement, and play, and is led by Ayhan Öztürk, who is known for his work in children’s music pedagogy and the Orff-Schulwerk approach.
The workshop aims to provide a fun environment where children can sing, dance, and play musical games using the Elementary Music and Movement Education approach, guiding them toward music and art through joyful and educational interactions free from competition.
MIO centers on music, movement, and play.
👨👩👧👦 Our family-participation music & movement workshop will be held at the Istanbul Toy Museum.
For details, please visit the link:
PEER SOLIDARITY FOR HATAY
The MİRAS Center for Cultural Sustainability is expanding its scope of activities by building cultural bridges between Istanbul and Hatay through education, culture, and arts-focused projects that promote inter-city peer solidarity.
Through its “Peer Solidarity for Hatay” program, MİRAS aims to forge connections between the experiences of children and youth in Istanbul and Hatay and to create platforms for interaction. Based on the principle of natural solidarity, this program aims to ensure that activities carried out in one city open up opportunities for children and youth in the other.
These initiatives, which enable children and youth to learn the concepts of solidarity and support through social interaction and shared experiences, are carried out through music workshops, intangible cultural heritage projects, and programs that supplement school curricula.
THE GEMS OF BALAT
THE LIVING HUMAN TREASURES OF CULTURAL HERITAGE PROJECT
“The Gems of Balat” is a project led by MİRAS that fosters peer solidarity through the documentation of intangible cultural heritage. The program highlights the knowledge and experiences of cultural bearers living in Istanbul’s historic Balat neighborhood, while engaging young people as active participants who come into direct contact with this heritage.
Led by MİRAS, the project to be carried out by Eyüboğlu College IB students encompasses the stages of research, documentation, digital storytelling, and curatorial production. Through fieldwork with artisans, shopkeepers, and artists in Balat, the students will produce a bilingual archive and documentary content.
The project’s “peer solidarity” dimension, which extends to Hatay, includes a field study that students will conduct to contribute to the sustainability of MİRAS’s cultural and artistic initiatives in the region, as well as a fundraising event titled “The Gems of Balat Documentary Special Night,” which will showcase the results of this research. This special evening will bring participants together through the documentary to experience the stories of our “Living Human Treasures” from the perspective of young people.
In this regard, “The Gems of Balat” will present a holistic model of learning and solidarity that encourages the sharing of knowledge, experience, and responsibility among cities; at the same time, it will honor cultural bearers who have dedicated more than fifty years of their lives to their professions. The funds raised from the event will make it possible for more children in Hatay to access music and arts education.
LEARNING WITH MY PEERS
Istanbul-Hatay Education Bridge
“Learning with My Peers” is a learning and engagement program developed by MİRAS based on its peer solidarity approach. The program’s first implementation brought together IB students from Istanbul Eyüboğlu College and students from Azize Süleyman Yalçın Elementary School in Meydan Village, Samandağ, Hatay, online throughout the 2025–2026 academic year. The project aims to enable students in Istanbul to share their knowledge, time, and skills with students in Hatay, while students in Hatay transform this process into a mutual learning experience through their own experiences and context. The project contributes to the establishment of long-term bonds among students and the creation of a lasting foundation of solidarity through education. Prior to the educational process, Clinical Psychologist Cemre Kürşat conducted a preparatory seminar for Eyüboğlu College students on communicating with children in the context of disasters and trauma. This preparation was intended to ensure that peer-to-peer interactions took place on a safe and mindful foundation.