Through the Urban Basins of Izmir project, we identified the city's natural red lines to provide a foundation for circular city planning.

These are:

1. Fault Lines
2. Streams and Floodplains
3. Historical Heritage
4. Sensitive Ecosystems
5. Suitable Agricultural Plain Lands

When we overlay the above listed key layers, a clear picture emerges outlining the most critical areas where we need to avoid dense development. The sections of the city outside these critical areas offer greater potential for more dense urban development in Izmir.

Potential development areas are composed by ten categories of land-use:

1.   Green Areas
2.   Residential Areas
3.   Transportation
4.   Social Areas
5.   Education
6.   Art Islands
7.   Trade
8.   Entertainment & Tourism Areas
9.   Public Administrative Buildings
10. Industry

With this methodology, we encounter a planning approach that is not new but forgotten: basin-scale planning.  The aim of the Urban Basins of Izmir project is to harmonize the city's inherent abilities and potentials. This project will create a digital twin of the city, including its resilience, food security, historical heritage, critical infrastructure, green-blue infrastructure and demographic structures. This digital twin will be the most important guide to determining the right policies for making Izmir a circular city.

The Urban Basins of Izmir project aims to collaborate with the public and civil stakeholders at the local level while forming a network of international collaborations. Izmir partners with global initiatives focusing on new urbanism concepts such as Cities With Nature, Biophilic Cities, and National Park City Foundation.