SOCIAL ECONOMY BLOG- SCHOLARSHIPS FROM NATURE TO STUDENTS - EGET FOUNDATION 1

BLOG: SOSYAL EKONOMİ

04.05.2018

Author: Aylin Çiğdem Köne

In celebration of Foundation Week, which takes place in the first week of May, we are publishing the interview we conducted with Özlem Uzman and Safai Özer, the founders of the EGET Foundation, during our meeting on April 27th. The foundation, which has initiatives in lavender, truffle, olive oil, and honey production, aims to provide numerous young people with educational scholarships using products derived from nature. Despite being a relatively new foundation and not yet able to support a large number of students, it was impossible not to be impressed by the way both Ms. Özlem and Mr. Safai addressed the problems and the solutions they presented. In our conversation surrounding education, geriatrics, ecological agriculture, and tourism, we learned a great deal and renewed our hopes. Therefore, we did not want to shorten the interview. The text you are about to read covers the first part of the interview, focusing on scholarships and education. Ecological agriculture, agricultural tourism, and geriatrics will be covered in the next article.

“We turned a deaf ear to those who said, ‘Nothing will ever happen in this country!’ We are trying to be a source of hope.”

Özlem Uzman, Safai Özer

Why a foundation instead of an association? Would it be appropriate to start by asking about your reasons for preferring a foundation?

S.Ö: There were associations. But associations are just shoddy organizations anyway.

Ö.U: They can't write that.

S.Ö: If you're not going to write it, let's not talk. Shoddy, really shoddy.

Ö.U: Let's not say shoddy. Let's say foundations, for example, work more comprehensively.

S.Ö: Excuse me, but associations are shoddy organizations. They're organizations without direction, based on the people in management at the time. Organizations that lack solid principles, constantly zigzagging depending on the structure of their boards of directors. And they're organizations with a weak chance of becoming fully institutionalized. Because their financial resources are extremely limited. Limited financial resources already tie the hands of institutions and organizations.

We also worked in associations. We are the founders of ANFAD, the Antalya Photography and Cinema Amateurs Association. We served as the Chairman of the Board for 3 years. People join associations just to be a member of something. Even if an association has a principle, let's say, the number of people who embrace that principle is less than the fingers on one hand. That's what associations are like. It wasn't possible to achieve anything with associations because they lacked principles. The possibility of ensuring the continuity of the principles set by their founders disappeared as soon as the association's board of directors changed. Foundations are different. Foundations are serious civil society organizations whose foundation regulations are approved by court order, are under the supervision of the General Directorate of Foundations, and are also under the supervision of the Ministry of Finance. So there's a seriousness to it. Because we preferred that seriousness, we felt the need to establish a foundation instead of an association.

"We dedicated our lives to the foundation."

Hacı Latifler House – Foundation Headquarters

Ö.U.: We want the name EGET to live on for many years. We were very careful when forming the board of trustees. The biggest problem was this: Foundations become unable to receive donations, or perhaps the other trustees don't work with the same sincerity, and the foundation disappears. Although, as Mr. Safai mentioned earlier, the closure of the foundation is by court order, all the efforts go to waste. After the founders die, there is nothing left of the foundation. We have witnessed many examples of this.

We asked ourselves how we could prevent this, how we could ensure its longevity. That's when the idea of ​​the foundation operating like a company emerged. In other words, if the foundation creates its own revolving fund, if it has its own money, if it doesn't beg everyone for donations, if it aims to survive for many years with a company mentality and structures itself accordingly, then we can keep it alive for years. We said we could provide scholarships to thousands, even hundreds of thousands of students. This is perhaps what distinguishes us from other foundations. What happens in other foundations? The company earns money. A portion of the assets is transferred to the foundation, using the names of the founders or the family, and that goes away somehow. It's also for the sake of fame, reputation, or having my name mentioned.

In our case, names are completely irrelevant; we emphasize this repeatedly everywhere. All of Mr. Safai's and my assets belong to this foundation, leaving nothing for our children. Our entire time is dedicated to it. We live and breathe EGET almost 24 hours a day. We rarely leave here before 10 pm. We only have one Sunday, and even then we're discussing what to do. In short, we've dedicated our lives to the foundation. That wasn't quite the Turkish way, but Mr. Safai is very particular about Turkish words.

S.Ö: We are sensitive, not delicate.

Ö.U: Sensitive, sorry, I'll translate that into Turkish immediately.

S.Ö: Indeed, the supporters of the identification of the Turkish language, which was once in the majority, have been reduced to a minority as a result of political maneuvers and changes. Yet, speaking Turkish in Turkish is also essential. We have dedicated our lives to the foundation.

Ö.U: Therefore, this is partly what distinguishes us from other foundations. When selecting our board of trustees, I always say this: We want members whose hearts beat like ours, who look in the same direction, who have the same perspective. Generally, no other foundation has such members. They consist of distinguished people. We have two student members, one is Ms. Necla (Dal) and the other is Ms. Çiğdem (Kuş). They truly inject a different kind of blood, life, and youth into us, giving us momentum. No other foundation has student members. I don't know, maybe it's rare. We have two student members. We initially had a board of trustees of 20 people. Then one member left, and now we are 19. We have an advisory board.

How did the founders of the foundation come together around the purpose you mentioned?

Ö.U: We met Mr. Safai 9 years ago. That's a separate story, I won't go into details, but Mr. Safai's perspective on life... I lived in Istanbul for 26 years. My past, my capitalist perspective, was completely different. Then suddenly, a certain amount of wealth accumulated, and while we were talking about how to utilize it, we both said let's establish a foundation. Mr. Safai said to me... He is really interesting. I was in Istanbul at the time, and he was in the village where he had lived for 20 years. You think about it, I mean, we're definitely going to establish an education foundation, but what kind of structure will this education foundation have? I thought about it for two days and told him the things that now form the foundations and perspective of EGET. He said, "Those were already my thoughts." So we didn't add a single thing to each other's thoughts. We thought the same things in different places.

"Our first goal is to provide education scholarships."

The first letter of your foundation's short name represents education. This shows the priority you place on education, and we know that you provide scholarships to undergraduate students who face financial difficulties during their university education. Could you please explain your scholarship system?

Ö.U.: I'm interviewing students after all these years… We've established, or are trying to establish, a different system. We can only provide a limited number of scholarships. Hopefully, we'll reach thousands when our current projects are realized. But right now, we're giving scholarships with limited budgets. Therefore, it's very important for us to be able to give scholarships to the right students.

This year, 11,400 students applied. At first, I was happy, I mean, we're a two-year-old foundation, so many students applied. But then, considering the situation the country is in, I saw how dire it is. And honestly, I lost sleep during that month. You can't keep up, you can't cope. How can you keep up with everyone? First, we accept online applications from students; we've adjusted the computer program accordingly. We have various criteria. We make a scoring system based on those criteria, and we call students for interviews, starting from the top. 98% of the interviews are via Skype because we give scholarships all over Turkey. Then you see; when we select and evaluate our students, we try to identify candidates who are suitable for nurturing these humanitarian feelings within them. For example, to continue receiving scholarships, there's a requirement to have worked on a social responsibility project for three days. This might not be the case in many places.

S.Ö: Not yet worked, but will.

Ö.U: Excuse me. They are committing to work. It can be any organization for three days. It doesn't have to be the EGET Foundation. But if they can't find a place and say, "Where am I going to do this social responsibility project?", then we say, "Here, let's give you a task at the EGET Foundation." This is to create that awareness.

What criteria does the program you use consider?

Ö.U: There are many criteria. One of them is; we have certain universities in Turkey that we have determined. Studying there gives an extra point. But more importantly, the criteria that gives high points are; the number of siblings attending high school and university. As the number of siblings increases, the likelihood of family support decreases. Therefore, we give students an extra point. If they don't have parents, if one parent has died, or if the spouses are separated, we give different points accordingly. We have various criteria like this. If a competitor has represented our country in an international competition (and they need to document everything), we give them extra points for that. We have approximately 20 different criteria.

While developing these, we sat down and talked with our Board of Trustees. Thanks to Ms. Çiğdem and Ms. Necla, who are also students, they researched all the institutions that offer these kinds of scholarships. They worked to identify the most suitable ones for us. Then those criteria were determined. These were converted into software. Within that software, we have nearly 40 questions. All online. We don't interfere in any way. We open our scholarships on different dates each year. During that time, we publish information in various fields. We send posters to universities. They apply within that framework. At the end of the application period, we see the scores in our system on the same day, showing which student received what score.

However, what tires us out is this: We only give scholarships to undergraduate students. Unfortunately, we receive many applications from associate degree students. Even though we list them, many still wonder, "Will I get in?" If they are in an intermediate year, we require a minimum GPA of 2.5. We don't accept students below that. But there are those who say, "But would you accept me too?" We need to filter these students manually. Because they apply there, but when you look at the form, you see it. Also, universities now have very different systems. There are programs that appear as associate degrees but are actually bachelor's degrees. Or there are programs with the same name but are both associate and bachelor's degrees. They really wear us out, making us think, "Let's not make a mistake, let's not infringe on anyone's rights." We give positive discrimination to female students. In fact, we talked to Mr. Safai about this in the last two years, and we realized we've given a little too much positive discrimination.

S.Ö: We lowered their scores.

Ö.U: Yes, we lowered them. This year, I even saw that there were only female students. I lowered the scores by another 10 so we could invite male students. We added another 10 ordinary students. Because we gave too much positive discrimination to girls. So, we have these kinds of criteria.

We always say this: We are not God, but we are truly at ease. Because we are choosing the right students. In the Skype interviews, yes, they have the actual scores, but those human qualities or their thoughts on education are very important. We choose them there. You probably know Professor Özlem (referring to Professor Özlem Şahin Güngör, a faculty member at Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University) from her work in Public Administration. We conduct these meetings together, and we both come out with the same opinions. Neither of us says no. Because the students' situations become very clear.

Now, Ms. Necla and Ms. Çiğdem have also created a Facebook group for scholarship students. We communicate via WhatsApp or email, but we want a friendly environment there so they can get to know each other better. We've created that now.

S.Ö: These children have to prove from the Real Estate Directorate whether they own a house. They have to prove from the Traffic Branch Directorate of the Police Department whether they own a car, a vehicle, or a family vehicle. Because, unfortunately, when everything gets tainted, students also get their share of this, and some start scholarship hunters. There's no place for scholarship hunters among our foundation's scholarship recipients. Students have to bring proof of all this when they apply for a scholarship. Don't you have a house? Bring your documents. Don't you have land? Bring your documents. Don't you have a car? Bring your documents. Is your father on minimum wage? Bring your documents.

Ö.U: We even ask for rental contracts.

S.Ö: They have to document everything. Okay, it's a burden, but the students warned us. They said, "Look, there are scholarship hunters." The academics on the scholarship committee warned us. They said there are serious scholarship hunters. They said there are people getting scholarships from three or five different places. What can we do? We had to take precautions.

Ö.U.: Because you're infringing on someone else's rights. I saw 16 siblings in one application. I told the secretary, "There's a mistake here, there can't be 16 siblings." Let's call them and evaluate accordingly. Because they're getting points based on the number of siblings, they'll be infringing on someone else's rights again. The child called. They had 26 siblings. We're even giving that student a scholarship now.

Now, when we talk about education for these students, we have a WhatsApp group for quick communication. We deposit the scholarships. Now, some ask, "When will my scholarship be deposited?" if it's not deposited – we always deposit it with a date, but because we deposit it via bank transfer, it might fall on a weekend or something. But when it is deposited, the number of those who say thank you is limited. We even encourage them to say thank you. When one person says thank you, another says thank you too. We try to educate them in every way, so they learn to say thank you immediately. Because no one is obligated to do anything for anyone. They should realize that this is a blessing.

“We never want to be a foundation limited to Muğla or even Turkey.”

EGET stands for geriatrics, ecological agriculture, and tourism, right?

Ö.U: Yes. The name is Mr. Safai's idea, but it already summarized our plans very well. We first determined what we would do, and the name fit perfectly. Also, the English and German versions start with the same letters. That was very important for us.

Why were the English and German names important?

Ö.U: Because we didn't want to remain just a foundation operating in Turkey. We absolutely needed to have some kind of presence abroad. We needed to reach out to different places. We needed to enter into different collaborations. If EGET were pronounced differently in German, it would cause confusion.

Neither our Board of Trustees nor our Advisory Board consists solely of people from Muğla. We didn't specifically aim to establish ourselves in Muğla anyway. We searched for land for seven months. Because Mr. Safai is close to agriculture and knows about animal husbandry, he said, "150 acres of land would be enough for us." We found 156 acres. So, it was just 6 acres more than enough. Therefore, when we found the land here, we decided that our foundation center should be in Muğla. But we never want to be a foundation limited to Muğla or Turkey. The more people we can reach, the more people we can serve, the broader our horizons we try to keep. Currently, we have activities in the education and ecological farming sectors. We are waiting for building permits for our lands in Elkin and Böbecen for our geriatrics and tourism projects. After that, God willing, there will be important projects.

Our main goal, our primary goal, is to provide educational scholarships. We believe that the biggest deficiency in this country is education, and if this country is to progress, it can only do so through education, primarily through education. That's why we provide educational scholarships. The other items were created to enable us to provide educational scholarships. Of course, ecological farming is also included. Turkish lands are being lost, and so are the world's lands. Ecological farming is an indispensable part of this. But while we are generating income for the EGET Foundation Economic Enterprise, our sole purpose is not just to generate income. The sole purpose is to earn money by doing the right things. I'll talk about that later. We acquired a worm compost dealership. If someone had told us, "EGET Foundation will earn this much money by selling chemical fertilizers," we would never have sold them. The work we do must respect nature, respect people, and be part of our goals.

"While striving to create resources for education, we are also creating education."

S.Ö: While striving to create resources for education, we are also creating education. Look, there used to be State Production Farms. They were closed. They were given away. They ended up in the hands of those who wanted to do proper farming, and the necessity of establishing modern businesses for those who want to do proper farming arose spontaneously. You need to establish businesses where farmers can be trained. How can they be trained? Our people can only be trained visually. You can talk about things for hours, but no, brother, they need to see it with their eyes, touch it with their hands, then they will believe it. Since the State Production Farms have also been closed, these people need to see examples of work and businesses they can learn from. Of course, these agricultural enterprises will also be used to train and equip farmers. They will be established to facilitate the formation of cooperatives.

Someone was telling me the other day. They went to Armutçuk… and said, “A 90-year-old man with a cane said, ‘Do you see that place? These people are going to grow mushrooms, and I’ve been following them.’ He said, ‘Let them grow mushrooms there, I’ll do whatever they do.’” There are little children from the village. They come to help us from time to time. When they see us, they come running, elementary school students and neighbors. They are being educated.

Ö.U: That’s what we call raising awareness.

S.Ö: That’s education, exactly, through application.

But when you say education, doesn’t it usually bring to mind receiving education through an institution?

S.Ö: Of course not. We can’t ignore the Village Institutes; they are real educational institutions.

How much do you think young people know about this past experience?

Ö.U: They don’t know, they don’t know.

S.Ö: Turkey experienced the Village Institute application and experience.

“It’s possible to make a lot of money from ecological farming, from organic farming.”

Permaculture Practices in the Foundation’s Garden

Ö.U: It’s possible to make a lot of money from ecological farming, from organic farming. We closely follow fairs abroad, both organic fairs and organic food fairs. Every year we go abroad to at least two fairs. There’s an incredibly developed sector there, and they make very good money, selling at very high prices. We will hopefully showcase this. We will say, “Look, we did this, and you can make this much money from it.” Because I haven’t been in much contact with villagers before, but it’s something they don’t know. And you tell them, “Science proves it,” you go with analysis reports. They say, “Do you know better than my grandfather?” They look at it very coldly.

S.Ö: At the festival in Ula, an old man, a white-haired, bearded man, was looking at the worm compost with suspicion. He picked it up, put it down. The former Ula Agricultural Director said, “This is a very reliable fertilizer, use it.” He takes it and leaves it. We said, "Look, take this and put it on your olive trees, we don't want any money from you. We don't want any money, really. Take it. It's liquid worm fertilizer. Spray it on your olive trees, spray as much as you can, spray half of them, leave the rest. If you see a difference, you can bring the money back, here's our card." We told the man to go. The man couldn't rest easy. He went and found some money from somewhere 15-20 minutes later. He insisted on bringing the money and giving it to us. He said, "Okay, I'll use it, and I'll come back and tell you what the result is, that's my promise." We had this experience. Now we are starting a new project with some pioneering farmers and this company that produces worm fertilizer. We talk about education, we talk about ecological farming, right? We're putting our hands in the fire. We will give these people the fertilizers at half price. We will give the fertilizers to pioneering farmers at half the retail price.

Who will cover the difference?

S.Ö: We will say, "If you see the benefit, come and pay us the difference."

What about those who don't pay?

S.Ö: May those who don't pay be well.

Ö.U: We will cover it.

S.Ö: We will cover it. We have that much confidence in the product. We have that much confidence in the people of the country, that's why.

“It is necessary to bring together those seeking solutions and those seeking solutions in the field of agriculture.”

S.Ö: There are solutions. It is necessary to bring together those seeking solutions and those seeking solutions in the field of agriculture. It is necessary to act as an intermediary between those seeking solutions and those seeking solutions. This falls to civil society organizations like ours. Otherwise, people who are obsessed with money don't have such concerns. They are just buyers and sellers. Their only concern is how much they can sell. People are not in search of such radical solutions. For example, we are about to start an educational campaign in the coming period to popularize worm compost, which is essential for ecological farming. We have divided it into four groups: A: Children and young people, B: Technicians, C: Academics, D: Producers. We will provide different trainings to these four separate groups.

Out of every 100 foods we eat, out of every 100 fruits and vegetables we consume, 52 are pesticide residues, poison residues. Why do those things sold as agricultural chemicals have skulls on them? What's a skull doing on a chemical? Because it's poison. The person producing it is also poisoned when using that chemical in their field. And the other person is poisoned in their home. We're in this vicious cycle. The same companies that produce these poisons also produce cancer drugs. Bayer bought Monsanto. They produce poison there, and they produce GMO products. Along with GMO products, they produce the herbicides they mandate. And they also produce cancer drugs. They hit from two angles. First they cause cancer, then they supposedly cure it. Although, they don't actually cure it. Has anyone ever recovered from cancer?

It's a terrible thing. This chain needs to be broken. And that's a matter of education. As soon as the topic of becoming a distributor for worm compost (although we're not legally distributors yet, and haven't fully met the requirements of the Provincial Directorate of Agriculture) came up, we immediately started making a children's book about worms. Because that's where our target audience should start. In the coming period, starting in Menteşe District, we will place worm aquariums in schools, together with the company we will be distributing for. Children will bring food scraps, fruit and vegetable scraps from their homes and put them in the aquarium along with paper, allowing the worms to produce fertilizer. They will be able to fertilize their own gardens and potted plants with that fertilizer. In this way, they will begin to take their first steps towards organic farming, modern agriculture, at that young age. We have such a project for primary schools in the coming period.

Ö.U: We are about to find a sponsor for the children's book. We will print about 5000 copies. Because it's quite costly.

Note: I would like to thank Güneş Kurtuluş for transcribing the audio recording of this interview.