In the United States, Turkish Professor Koray Özpolat is honored with an International Award

In the United States, Professor Dr. Koray Özpolat, who works at the University of Rhode Island, was internationally recognized for his classroom project in sustainability and supply chain education as part of the 2026 PRME Education Awards. Özpolat's work was announced as a Disciplinary Honorable Mention in the "Supply Chain" category in PRME's official results.

Award Announced in Cairo

The awards presented by Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME), an initiative of the United Nations Global Compact, were announced at the PRME Global Forum held in Cairo on 28 June 2026. PRME evaluated the academic and educational work of scholars who advance sustainability and responsible management in business and management education at this year's event.

43 Applications from 22 Countries Reviewed

For the 2026 PRME Education Awards, 43 applications from 22 countries were examined by the jury. The assessment resulted in four main award winners, eight runners‑up, one Honorable Mention in the "Outstanding Creativity" category, and 11 Honorable Mentions across various disciplines. Applications were evaluated on criteria such as educational quality, applicability to diverse contexts, demonstrated impact, and contribution to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Only One Academic from the United States

In a statement released by the University of Rhode Island on September 1, it was noted that Özpolat is the only academic to receive recognition from a university in the United States. Serving as a professor of Supply Chain Management within the university's College of Business, Özpolat stood out for his work in an award program that includes academics from international universities.

Students Seek Solutions to Real Problems

The award‑winning work of Özpolat is titled “Teaching Supply Chain Sustainability and Cross‑Cultural Communication by a Case Competition.” In the project, students collaborate with peers from universities in different countries to examine the sustainability and supply‑chain challenges faced by real companies and work to develop solutions to those problems.

Applied Learning Through International Collaboration

Rather than limiting supply‑chain courses to theoretical content, the project aims to have students conduct hands‑on work with international teams. According to Özpolat’s own statement, the study combines supply‑chain education with experiential learning, international collaboration, and sustainability‑focused work. In addition to students, teaching assistants and university partners from various countries also contribute to the process.

Özpolat’s Academic Field of Study

According to the records of the University of Rhode Island, Prof. Dr. Koray Özpolat serves in the Supply Chain Management field at the university's College of Business. The academic’s research topics include the geopolitics of supply chains, humanitarian logistics and disaster management, and teaching and learning research with emerging supply chain technologies. Özpolat completed his PhD in 2011 in Business and Management at the University of Maryland, College Park.

Recognized on the PRME Global Education Network

PRME stated that the purpose of the 2026 awards is to link business and management education with the Sustainable Development Goals and to support the preparation of future managers for global challenges. The organization highlighted the awardees’ work as best‑practice examples within the PRME community. Özpolat’s work was listed as one of the initiatives that combine sustainability and intercultural communication in supply chain education within this framework.