Assoc. Prof. Dr. Duygu Erten holds a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering from Boğaziçi University (1988) and earned her M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Rutgers University, USA. She has served as a faculty member at the University of Southern California and completed the "Leadership in Sustainability" program at Harvard University.

With 17 years of experience as a licensed civil engineer in the U.S., Dr. Erten managed her own sustainability consultancy for a decade. She currently teaches sustainability, green building design, ethics, and NGO studies at Boğaziçi University, Istanbul Technical University (ITU), and other institutions. An accredited expert in green building systems, including LEED and WELL, her research focuses on green buildings, the circular economy, and zero waste initiatives.

Dr. Erten has been instrumental in developing the YES-TR certification system and has led several national and international sustainability projects, including Horizon 2020’s Smart Finance for Families program.