Türkiye
Prof. Dr. Günay Çifci completed his undergraduate education in the Department of Geophysics at Yıldız University, his master's degree at the Institute of Marine Sciences and Technology (IMST) at Dokuz Eylül University (DEU), and his Ph.D. at the University of Trieste (Italy) and the Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences at DEU. Moreover, he founded the "GazHidrATek" R&D company within the technopark Izmir at the İzmir Institute of Technology campus, which officially commenced operations in 2024. He participated in the UNESCO-supported Floating University Training through Research Cruises in the international waters of the Mediterranean and Black Seas in 1991, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, and 2004. In 2001, he was a visiting researcher for postdoctoral studies at Virginia Tech University's Department of Earth Sciences in the United States. He served as a member of the Executive Committee representing Türkiye for the project "Marine Gas Hydrates: Indigenous Resources in the European Seas (MIGRATE)."He has acted as a partner and coordinator in European Union 5th, 6th, and 7th Framework Programme projects, as well as Horizon 2020 initiatives. From 2005 to 2018, he conducted research as the founder of the Seismic Laboratory (Seis Lab) at Dokuz Eylül University, established with the support of the State Planning Organization (DPT 2003K120360 no). He provided consultancy services for the interpretation of geophysical, geological, and ROV data during the feasibility studies of the Blue Stream Natural Gas Pipeline Project in the Black Sea, conducted aboard the research vessels Gelindzhik, Mare Oceano, and Polar Princess between 1998 and 2000. Additionally, he completed over 10 TÜBİTAK projects and 9 EU-funded projects, alongside participation in more than 11 national and international projects. He secured over $30 million in funding, including two DPT projects (Geophysics Seislab and Çakabey Research Vessel 2007K120740 no) and one Turkish Petroleum (TP) project related to gas hydrates and the petroleum industry. As the coordinator of Türkiye's first national gas hydrate project, he successfully completed its initial phase in collaboration with Turkish Petroleum and DEPARK. He continues his research in the fields of Marine Geology and Geophysics at the Institute of Marine Sciences and Technology at Dokuz Eylül University.