It was Ibn Khaldun who established a new science to study civilizations. This was six centuries ago. Strikingly, today the term “civilization” has once again become one of the most popular units of analysis in social sciences and media. One can even claim that today’s civilizations define the new axis of social, cultural and political divisions in the world.
Furthermore, the matrix of relations among civilizations has undergone a radical change in our age due to the fast developing communication and transportation links between peoples. Humanity is eager to understand this process. This growing interest in civilizations and the relations among them is what led to the establishment of the Alliance of Civilizations Institute (ACI) in 2010.
The Alliance of Civilizations Institute is a graduate school offering MA and PhD degrees specializing in Civilization Studies. The instruction and research in our Institute is characterized by a global perspective which finds its expression in the multidisciplinary and multi-lingual approach adopted by the Institute. Turkish, English, Arabic are among the languages which are used in graduate education at ACI. Disciplinary perspectives from humanities and social sciences are employed in an interdisciplinary manner while studying a particular civilization.
As the Institute Director of ACI, I have no doubt that the Institute will soon take its place among the leading institutions of the world in the field of Civilization Studies with its diverse international faculty and student body as well as collaboration with similar institutions all over the world.
Ass. Prof. Vahdettin IŞIK
Dean