The 1st Troy World Homer Readings for the Visually Impaired Panel, emphasizing global brotherhood in memory of the visually impaired poet Homer—who penned the epic of the ancient city—was held at the COMU Troia Cultural Center during the "Year of Troy," declared on the 20th anniversary of Troy’s admission to the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage List.

The event, held under the auspices of the Çanakkale Governor's Office and hosted by Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, was attended by Deputy Governor Turan Yılmaz, COMU Acting Rector Prof. Dr. Mustafa Görün, President of the World Blind Union Dr. Fredric K. Schroeder, President of the Turkish Federation of the Blind Turhan İçli, President of the Çanakkale Branch of the Turkish Association for the Visually Impaired İbrahim Battal, and 250 visually impaired participants from over 20 countries and across Türkiye.

Following a moment of silence and the Turkish National Anthem, the panel proceeded with opening speeches. İbrahim Battal, President of the Çanakkale Branch of the Turkish Association for the Visually Impaired, expressed his gratitude to COMU Rector Prof. Dr. Yücel Acer for his unwavering belief and support for the project from the start, as well as to all university staff involved.

Acting Rector Prof. Dr. Mustafa Görün noted that numerous international and national projects have been carried out since the start of 2018, the Year of Troy. He stated that the objective was to promote Türkiye, Çanakkale, and Troy to the world while raising awareness. Emphasizing COMU's pride in being part of such a project, Prof. Dr. Görün wished that the panel would contribute to love, brotherhood, and peace.

Rector’s Advisor Prof. Dr. Yunus Eryaman provided brief information about the university and mentioned that he is managing three other ongoing projects in different countries for the Year of Troy, including collaborations with Harvard University, Hamburg University, and Krakow University in Poland. He added, "However, I must say that the most remarkable and moving project for me has been the Homer Readings."

Following the speeches, the program moved to a two-session panel moderated by Prof. Dr. Eryaman and concluded with a Q&A session.