Latest! Research interests Ongoing works Peer-reviewed journal articles Reports and working papers Conference papers Awards Research profiles Get in touch! Show all

Latest!

Front cover of Nature Sustainability! | Global wood harvest is sufficient for climate-friendly transitions to timber cities
Expanding plantation forests is under discussion to build future timber cities, with potentially negative impacts on natural forests and biodiversity. For example, did you know that tree plantations and logging are among the drivers of forest loss in the Amazon rainforest? Here, we explore more sustainable pathways to timber cities. Read more!

Research interests

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How does climate change affect nature and humans?
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How does anthropogenic land use transform the nature?
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What are the ecological and social impacts of urbanisation?
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How do climate interventions affect soil?
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Can material transitions help mitigate climate change?
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How can data science support sustainable development?

Ongoing works

Gobal material transitions and ecology.
Yayla et al. In preparation.
Climate finance mechanisms for underdeveloped regions.
Yayla et al. In preparation.
Mitigating hidden climate change impacts of timber cities critically depends on proactive forest and waste management.
Yayla et al. Under peer review.

Peer-reviewed journal articles

Global wood harvest is sufficient for climate-friendly transitions to timber cities.
Yayla et al. (2025) Nature Sustainability.
Bayesian material flow analysis of the construction aggregate cycle in England.
Mason et al. (2025) Resources, Conservation and Recycling.
Artificial intelligence (AI)-based occupant-centric heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) control system for multi-zone commercial buildings.
Yayla et al. (2022) Sustainability.
Life cycle assessment with BIM towards sustainable energy policy-making: The case of urban transformation in Istanbul.
Yayla et al. (2021) International Journal of Sustainable Construction Engineering and Technology.

Reports and working papers

Material flow analysis: Insights and evidence from the NICER Programme.
Myers et al. (2025) UKRI NICER Programme.
Our shared understanding: a circular economy in the built environment.
Our Shared Understanding (2023) University of Cambridge Repository.

Conference papers

Bayesian material flow analysis: A general methodology with application on wood life cycles and timber city transitions.
Wang et al. (2025) American Geophysical Union 2025 | American Geophysical Union.
Dynamic life cycle assessment of reinforced concrete and engineered timber buildings.
Yayla et al. (2025) International Conference on Industrial Ecology 2025 | National University of Singapore.
The global wood cycle.
Yayla et al. (2025) Sustainable Built Environment Conference 2025 | ETH Zurich.

Awards

The Imperial College Trust grant
The Imperial College Trust | 2025
Professor Milija Pavlovic grant
Imperial College London | 2025
Best poster award
Towards a built environment: bridging the gap between research and practice symposium, London | 2023
Dixon scholarship
Imperial College London | 2022-2026
Postgraduate research scholarship
Republic of Türkiye Ministry of National Education | 2022-2026
Graduate research scholarship
The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye | 2020-2022

Research profiles

Get in touch!

Have something in mind? Or just want to say hi? Send me an e-mail!