ACCTING aims to understand the impact of Green Deal policies on vulnerable groups, prevent inequalities, and produce knowledge and innovations to advance behavioural change at individual and collective levels for an inclusive and equal European Green Deal. Read our report on all 693 mapped initiatives.

Championing ecological living in Turkey 

The Buğday Association for Supporting Ecological Living (Buğday Ekolojik Yaşamı Destekleme Derneği) is a leading force in promoting sustainable living in Turkey. Since 1990, the association has been dedicated to creating awareness and offering solutions for ecological issues, especially focusing on the irreversible destruction of natural systems. It aims to foster a harmonious relationship with nature through its projects, which span local, national, and international levels. 

Projects that make a difference 
Buğday has spearheaded several innovative initiatives, such as the first 100% ecological markets in Turkey, seed exchanges, university campus gardens, and campaigns to reduce pesticide use. One of the most notable is the “No Pesticides on My Plate” campaign, which successfully mobilised over 160,000 signatures and reached 10 million people. These projects contribute directly to food security and values, promoting sustainable agricultural practices and eco-friendly consumption. 

Empowering vulnerable communities 
The association primarily supports small-scale farmers who struggle to access traditional markets. It also focuses on communities at risk from environmental damage, such as children facing climate change impacts. Through education, advocacy, and direct support, Buğday helps these groups adopt more sustainable and healthier ways of life, empowering them to take control of their food systems and local environments. 

A legacy of global collaboration 
With a strong network of international partners, Buğday has become a hub for global ecological initiatives. It has hosted international conferences, including the IFOAM World Organic Congress and the WWOOF Conference, and collaborated on projects like “MedCaravan” and “AYE!” These partnerships enhance Buğday’s impact and provide valuable insights into agroecology and sustainable farming practices, both within Turkey and beyond. 

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ACCTING aims to understand the impact of Green Deal policies on vulnerable groups, prevent inequalities, and produce knowledge and innovations to advance behavioural change at individual and collective levels for an inclusive and equal European Green Deal. Read our report on all 693 mapped initiatives.

Soil-to-Soil Biodegradable Waste Management Project, Türkiye

Soil-to-Soil Biodegradable Waste Management Project – We Make Life Better Environment and Climate Association (“Yaşamı İyileştiriyoruz Çevre ve İklim Derneği”), collects biodegradable waste food, consisting of vegetables and fruits, from the marketplaces (bazaars) and transforms them into compost for soil regeneration in agriculture.

Disadvantaged women are included in the project by working in the community kitchens/food banks where the usable food left in the marketplace is cooked and distributed.

The Association has established partnerships with 52 municipalities and several academics in Türkiye. The government authorities do not provide finances but can/do support in another way, such as designating lands that can be used as compost areas and providing the necessary equipment for compost production and distribution. 

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ACCTING aims to understand the impact of Green Deal policies on vulnerable groups, prevent inequalities, and produce knowledge and innovations to advance behavioural change at individual and collective levels for an inclusive and equal European Green Deal. Read our report on all 693 mapped initiatives.

Akbelen Collective, Turkey

The Akbelen Forest Solidarity collective in Turkey demonstrates how an environmental struggle to protect forests threatened by coal mining redefined public interest based on the rights of people to a healthy environment and to continue to make a sustainable living, and the right of future generations to inherit an undisturbed and unpolluted environment. This clashed with the state´s definition of public interest, which was based on the energy needs of industry and general use and could not prevent the forest from being destroyed. This case provides alternative perspectives on public interest that can also be relevant for other environmental struggles.

Even though the forest was eventually destroyed and the mining project expanded, this struggle strengthened the case for environmental rights as a principle for public interest. The Akbelen collective continues its forest watch right by the destroyed forest to continue documenting the environmental harm produced by the mine and provide support to other local anti-mining forest defence movements across the country. 

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Photo: Joel Muniz  on Unspalash 

ACCTING aims to understand the impact of Green Deal policies on vulnerable groups, prevent inequalities, and produce knowledge and innovations to advance behavioural change at individual and collective levels for an inclusive and equal European Green Deal. This bottom-up initiative was collected by Burcu Borhan Türeli; Esin Düzel and Ayşe Gül Altınay within ACCTING’s mapping of inspiring practice cases, within the Farm to Fork Research Line. Read our report on all 693 mapped initiatives.

Deep Poverty Network, Turkey

During the pandemic, the Deep Poverty Network was established in 2019 as a solidarity network “that carries rights-based work in dozens of poor neighbourhoods that tackle urban poverty” in Istanbul. Besides their educational and policy activities on the root causes, dimensions and implications of poverty as lived by the most vulnerable (homeless, unemployed, Roma, and on the brink of starvation), the Deep Poverty Network carried out a food access campaign to 1000 families, 60 of which are women-led. It was founded by activists, researchers, sociologists, psychologists, and journalists. The project aims to break the cycle of poverty by eradicating the deep poverty some people have fallen into. This organisation has collaborated with social workers, volunteers, professionals, public institutions, local governments, and other national and international NGOs.   

Food security and distributive justice for vulnerable groups    

The project has been making major strides since its launch. Among these:  

• Established a system that directly supports households regarding nourishment (healthy food), basic care, diaper, and baby formula via direct purchases made by individual supporters through online markets.  
• Provided support to over 2,000 households living in 171 neighbourhoods of 34 districts of Istanbul  
• Provided a refillable grocery card or a digital grocery code with a monthly balance of 400 or 600 TL with the households supported in their network to use them in specific markets.  
• Prepared five research reports, four information notes, two emergency calls, one storybook (“Absent Stories”), and an audiobook to discuss the unsustainable conditions of poverty as a human rights violation to mobilize the media and public institutions.   
• Prepared regularly the monthly poverty agenda monitoring in the parliament as a series where one can follow the questions, research commission proposals and law proposals themed on human rights violations caused by poverty. All their content is available in Turkish and English on their website.   
• Visited families in their neighbourhood and conducted individual interviews with each family member.   
• Provided information and guidance to support groups to reach Social Service Centers and various NGOs in line with their needs.  
• Engaged in employment and training in cooperation with various institutions when possible.   
• Supported women producers and families to participate in the Women’s Labour Markets organized by the Istanbul Volunteers.  
• Reached more than 15,000 people living in conditions of deep poverty in over 3,000 households within over 160 neighbourhoods in 32 districts of Istanbul (Between March 2020 and December 2021) 
• Guided families, particularly single women and single mothers, to apply and benefit from specific social support schemes and helped them to get an identity card for their children if needed. 

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Photo: Thousandlies on  CanvaPro

ACCTING aims to understand the impact of Green Deal policies on vulnerable groups, prevent inequalities, and produce knowledge and innovations to advance behavioural change at individual and collective levels for an inclusive and equal European Green Deal. This bottom-up initiative was collected by Burcu Borhan Türeli, Esin Düzel and Ayşe Gül Altınay within ACCTING’s mapping of inspiring practice cases, within the Farm to Fork Research Line. Read our report on all 693 mapped initiatives.

Women in Fisheries Society, Turkey

Combatting gender discrimination through Women in Fisheries Society

In Turkey, at least one out of every 30 fishers is a woman. Although women are vital to the fishing industry, they confront major issues as a result of gender discrimination in the sector, such as the social view that fishing is a “male profession.” To solve this problem, a group of women from various occupations launched the Women in Fisheries Society: an ambitious NGO striving to strengthen women fishers’ rights while protecting coastal ecosystems. The organisation’s founders contributed to the Women Fishers Commission establishment in 2017 under the umbrella of Turkey’s largest fisherman’s cooperative, which had previously refused to admit female members. After recognizing Women in Fisheries Society as an NGO in 2019, the group attracted even more support on a national and international level.

Joining effort for a fair fishing industry

The project aims to change the unfavourable circumstances faced by women fishers in Turkey while developing a joint effort to have their voices heard, gain political weight, and influence policymakers. This initiative also stands for;

• Changing the traditional idea of gender roles in the fisheries sector by having women in fisheries provide training, consulting, and mentoring
• Inspiring women to lead their communities while increasing their visibility and representation in the workforce.

The society also intends to carry out a variety of activities, such as advocacy and communication training to safeguard marine and coastal ecosystems, as well as research conduction and information dissemination in diverse fields of nature conservation and gender.

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Photo: Ramon Kagie on Unsplash

ACCTING aims to understand the impact of Green Deal policies on vulnerable groups, prevent inequalities, and produce knowledge and innovations to advance behavioural change at individual and collective levels for an inclusive and equal European Green Deal. This bottom-up initiative was collected by Burcu Borhan Türeli, Esin Düzel and Ayşe Gül Altınay within ACCTING’s mapping of inspiring practice cases, within the climate change Research Line. Read our report on all 693 mapped initiatives.

Muğla Environment Platform, Turkey

A common mission to protect nature

Muğla Environment Platform (MUÇEP) is an initiative developed by citizens and non-governmental organizations from all Turkish cities to protect nature and common living spaces in the Muğla region. The common platform is an umbrella organization made up of 32 organizations (local seed exchange associations, medical associations, beekeepers associations, local groups, and municipal committees) in the greater Muğla area, one of Turkey’s most popular tourist destinations like the well-known town of Bodrum and home to luxury resorts.

A campaign to cancel a zoning plan

The project launched a significant petition campaign in Mula’s Gökova Special Environmental Protection Area aiming to revoke a zoning plan; The proposed plan ignored the effects of excessive tourist visitation and instead proposed the construction of hotels in the region. According to experts, such buildings will lead to catastrophic environmental destruction since the area is located in a designated first-degree earthquake region.

In the 2021 wildfires, MUÇEP mobilized their networks to coordinate volunteers and to promote their case. The initiative was able to gather thousands of individual petitions as part of the campaign which later were submitted to the Mula Environment Directorate. The joint effort significantly impacted on the area.

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