On June 12, 2024, a meeting was held to discuss the development of the innovation ecosystem within the framework of university-industry partnerships at the Sustainable Development Center with the participation of representatives from higher education institutions and Sanem Yalçıntaş, the founder and director of Turkey's "CATALYSADE Technology Transfer and Innovation Inc," as part of the preparations for the Education Development Forum initiated by the Education Development Fund.

Vilayat Valiyev, the Rector of the Azerbaijan University of Technology, greeted the guests in his opening speech and discussed the benefits of the "University-Industry Dialogue Platform" established as a result of the Education Development Forum held last year. The Rector emphasized that this meeting played a crucial  role in the preparation of the "Education Development Forum 2024," which is planned to take place in 2024.

Elnur Nasibov, the Chairman of the Board of the Education Devedlopment Fund, began by praising the significant progress made by Azerbaijan's higher education institutions in prestigious rankings such as the "QS World University Rankings." He then discussed the importance of fostering collaboration between universities and industries to advance the innovation ecosystem. Nasibov stressed the need for a stronger focus on science and innovation activities, as well as the implementation of joint innovative projects. He also mentioned that, for this reason, the upcoming meetings of Sanem Yalchıntash, the founder and CEO of "CATALYSADE Technology Transfer and Innovation Inc.," would be held with private companies.

Head of the Department of Science and Higher Education at the State Agency for Science and Higher Education (SASHE), Samir Hamidov praised the work of the Education Development Fund and emphasized that SASHE would continue to support the Fund in its future activities, as it has done in the past.

Sanem Yalchintash, the founder and director of "CATALYSADE Technology Transfer and Innovation Inc.," shared her extensive experience in the industrial sector and noted that the university-industry collaboration model had been established in Turkey since 2006. In her detailed presentation on the topic of the "Innovation Ecosystem in Azerbaijan," Yalchintash answered all the questions raised after the presentation. The meeting continued with discussions.

Representatives from the Azerbaijan University of Technology, Baku Slavic University, Baku Engineering University, Karabakh University, Azerbaijan State University of Oil and Industry, Azerbaijan State Economic University, Sumgayit State University, and Azerbaijan University of Technology attended in the roundable discussions.