NEWSROOM

Civil Society Summit 2023, organised by İLKE Foundation Civil Society Academy, was held in Istanbul on December 2nd. This year's theme of the summit was "Resilient Civil Society". At the summit, where Civil Society Awards were also presented, panels and various events on civil society and disasters were held.

TURKEY - At the summit, where the opening speeches were made by İLKE Chairman of the Board of Directors Lütfi Sunar and the Chairman of the Board of Trustees Nihat Erdoğmuş, in addition to the civil society awards, a panel on civil society and disasters, an event where high-impact civil initiatives were explained, and a debate where the competence of civil society and the division of labour were discussed.

Civil society increases social resilience

Speaking at the summit, İLKE Board Chairman Lütfi Sunar said, "The greater the distance in societal terms, the more social vulnerabilities increase. These can be socioeconomic inequalities, gender differences, or disparities among power centres. As society's political, social, and economic segments move further apart, as inequalities increase, social vulnerabilities also increase. Therefore, a resilient society should be more integrated and interact more with each other. In a sense, civil society organisations, or more broadly, civil society, actually enhance social resilience."

It is necessary to break away from the past and face the realities of the present

In his speech, İLKE Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Nihat Erdoğmuş, said, “It is necessary to understand each other, make sense of the difficulties and come together to produce solutions. This can form the basis of a resilient society. Secondly, to break away from the models of the past and face the realities of today. It is important to use valuable past references such as the Ahi order, but it is necessary to directly adapt the institutions of this past to today's realities and work effectively. Finally, we think about how we can adapt to change. Change is an inevitable reality, so it is important to consider how to keep up with these changes and be flexible in the process. Developing this ability to adapt individually and at the organisational level can increase our resilience.”

The Civil Society Awards were presented

An award ceremony was held at the summit to encourage high value-added and impactful work done in civil society. The awards given in the fields of "Volunteerism", "Innovative NGO", "Outstanding Activity", "Sustainable Project”, and "Effective Humanitarian Aid" found their winners. The winner of the Volunteering Award was Tülay Gökçimen, the winner of the Outstanding Activity Award was Orphan Foundation, the winner of the Innovative NGO Award was Publishing Detective, the winner of the Sustainable Project Award was Umuda Koşanlar Association, and the winner of the Effective Humanitarian Aid Award was IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation.

“Civil Society Solidarity and Sustainability Panel in Disasters”

A panel titled "Civil Society Solidarity and Sustainability in Disasters" followed the award ceremony. In the panel focusing on increasing the resilience and effectiveness of civil society, topics such as institutional structure, wide sphere of influence, producing original projects, strategic planning, sustainability and resistance to disasters were discussed. The panel emphasised that strategies should be developed for civil society to play a more prepared, resilient and effective role in disasters.

Anadolu Platform President Turgay Aldemir, one of the panellists, stated, "Civil society organisations play a bridging role in uniting the parties involved in the issue in terms of local, national, and international collaborations, establishing effective cooperation points. They possess the potential to effectively mobilize the resources of both public institutions and private organisations, especially with their natural reflexes such as demonstrating an effective governance model and quickly taking positions to address the needs of those affected by disasters."

Example startup stories were told

To support the effective projects created by civil society during disaster and crisis processes and to inspire new studies, four effective example initiative stories were told in the "Tell Me in 5 Minutes" section. In this section, the activities of civil initiatives such as Otama Kırkpınar, Earth Children Association, Give a Hand to Brotherhood, Debris Listening Application and Gönül Mutfağı, which carried out effective activities in the field after the February 6 Earthquakes were explained by their volunteers and founders.

Young people discussed the competence of civil society in disasters

In the final part of the summit, during a debate moderated by the President of the Debate and Oratory Association, Yavuz Yiğit, the youth discussed various issues related to civil society, including the argument that "the competencies of NGOs should be determined before disasters, and these NGOs should be obligated to divide tasks based on their competencies after the disaster." The topics covered included young participation in civil society, its gains, areas of activity, limitations, and roles in sustainable initiatives.