Since April 2025, ASF-UK has been collaborating with the Sivil Düşler Association on a new participatory research initiative in Antakya, Türkiye. The project, Mapping the Unseen: Recovering Living Heritage and Supporting Community-Led Relocation through Data-Driven Approaches, is funded by UCL’s Data-Empowered Societies Small Grants Programme, in partnership with The Bartlett Development Planning Unit and the Department of Risk and Disaster Reduction.
This initiative focuses on the Dom community, a historically marginalised group displaced by the 2023 earthquakes. Many Dom families lost their homes in neighbourhoods such as Emek, Altınçay, and Saraykent and have since been relocated to temporary container settlements, often without legal recognition or the right to return.
In May, ASF-UK and partners facilitated a community workshop exploring what living heritage means to Dom residents and how it can inform more just and culturally meaningful relocation. The team also launched a community-led data collection effort, training ten Dom community members to survey households across the container cities.
By mapping memories, places, and values, the project aims to support the Dom community in negotiating for relocation solutions that reflect their way of life and cultural continuity.
Stay tuned for updates as this important work progresses.
