LAVENDER SCENTED SCHOLARSHIP FROM EGET FOUNDATION

News Source: Ulusal

Özlem Uzman, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Education, Geriatrics, Ecological Agriculture, Tourism (EGET) Foundation, met with members of the press in Ankara for breakfast and explained the activities and goals of the Foundation.

Founded by Özlem Uzman and Safai Özer, a painter, writer, architect and thinker who died in March 2022, the Foundation’s sole purpose is to provide scholarships and increase the number of scholarship recipients so that low-income students are not cut off from university education.

Uzman, the President of the Foundation, says that he and Safai Özer first bought and donated land in the Armutçuk neighborhood of the Menteşe district of Muğla, in order to establish an agricultural enterprise so that the Foundation would have a regular income for years to come.

“Although EGET Foundation is a young foundation established in 2015, it still provides scholarships to 96 students. EGET Foundation is an organization that allocates all its earnings to scholarships. Apart from the employees, the members of the Board of Directors do not receive any remuneration.” Uzman said, “Since 2016, 36,448 students have applied for EGET Foundation scholarships. Together with our graduating students, 191 students have benefited from EGET Foundation scholarships. As of April 2023, we are giving scholarships to 96 students. This year, our foundation started to give scholarships to high school students as well as university students.”

408 THOUSAND UNIVERSITY STUDENTS DROPPED OUT IN 2017-2018

Describing the activities of the Foundation and answering questions, Özlem Uzman said:

-The problem of young people failing, failing to start education, dropping out of education because they do not have enough financial support is much bigger than you think. Every year we experience great sadness during scholarship applications. Although we are still a young foundation, 36,448 students applied for our scholarships in seven years. We believe that these numbers should be taken into account in terms of the economic difficulties that students face.

-As we see the responses to the questions in our software, we feel great sadness for the students we cannot help, for the students we cannot afford. The problem is deeper than you think. This year, workers, farmers, low-income earners have suffered a huge loss of income due to the pandemic. The unemployment rate rose. We are afraid that in the coming years, there will be many students who will not be able to go to university, who will drop out of education. Our experience shows this. Tens of thousands of students drop out of university every year, simply because of financial constraints.

-There are no regular statistics on students leaving the university. According to the response to a parliamentary question, the number of university students who dropped out of education in 2017-2018 was 408 thousand.

-It would not be wrong to say that the economic conditions we have been experiencing recently, especially the severe rent problem in big cities with many universities, and the lack of dormitories will disconnect more students from education compared to the past.

-First of all, we call on the state, politicians and local governments. They should develop programs to ensure that needy students are not cut off from education. This is one of the problems that cannot be postponed.

-At this stage, we call on everyone to support EGET and other foundations to keep low-income high school and university students in education.

-Another important call is that especially in small cities and districts, students are seen as a source of income, a source of rent. This attitude must be abandoned immediately.

SPECIAL SOFTWARE TO IDENTIFY SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS

EGET Foundation has created a special software to be as unbiased as possible in determining the scholarship recipients. This software, funded by the founders of the EGET Foundation, ranks applicants based on their answers to the questions asked in the application.

Regarding EGET’s scholarship processes and sensitivity, EGET Foundation Chairman emphasized the following:

-The evaluation of the applications is carried out by means of a software developed entirely by EGET Foundation in line with our Scholarship Regulation, with an information system that eliminates human error.

-With our software called ‘BUSED’ (Scholar Selection and Evaluation System), we are able to process, evaluate and report thousands of data accurately, easily and quickly in accordance with the criteria set by our Education and Scholarship Commission.

-Our priority when identifying students is financial deprivation. In the system where positive discrimination is given to female students, the number of siblings in the family, grade point average, parents’ employment status, etc. can be taken into consideration. factors affect students’ ranking score.

-After an impartial ranking by BUSED, students who pass the threshold score are asked to upload their documents to the system. At the end of the online interview with the students whose documents are approved, the students who will receive a scholarship from EGET Foundation are determined one by one.

-Our Foundation, which determines the students to whom it will award scholarships through a digital and completely impartial evaluation system, has also registered its competence in this field by developing a mobile application and becoming the first Foundation in Turkey to accept applications through a mobile application. One of the most challenging issues for the various NGOs that provide scholarships is to identify the students to whom they will provide scholarships in a fair manner. Through its Economic Enterprise, our Foundation also offers non-governmental organizations that wish to benefit from BUSED’s system, which has been developed and perfected over the years, the opportunity to benefit from the system through rental or purchase.

TRUFFLE BECOMES A SCHOLARSHIP FOR STUDENTS, LAVENDER TURNS INTO AN INDUSTRIAL PRODUCT

Since 2015, the first year of its establishment, EGET Foundation started to provide scholarships to university students with its own resources and donors. In Armutçuk Agricultural Enterprise, which has a total area of 22 acres, an agricultural initiative that will set an example for Turkey was launched and oak saplings inoculated with truffles, one of the most expensive foods in the world, were planted. About this initiative, Özlem Uzman noted the following:

-How we would ensure the continuity of EGET Foundation scholarships was something we thought long and hard about even before we established the Foundation. Rather than a non-governmental organization that seeks to survive only by soliciting donations, we preferred to establish a structure that creates its own revolving fund with the projects it develops and the investments it makes, and to become a -social entrepreneur- in its current definition.

-The first activity of our economic enterprise was EGET Foundation Armutçuk Agricultural Enterprise. 415 oak saplings, purchased from the Truffle Application and Research Center of Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University, with truffle spores grafted onto their roots, were planted on 24-May-2015.

-Thus, our company has established the largest private truffle plantation in Turkey with an area of 22,000 m2. Truffles are among the most expensive foods in the world and grow 10-15 cm below the ground in the roots of some trees such as oak, hazelnut and pine. This type of mushroom, which can be found with specially trained dogs, is especially preferred by gourmets in Europe and America. The first harvest of this mushroom, which can reach 1000 euros per kilogram, is planned for 2024.

In order to add additional value to the land during the development phase of the truffle, EGET Foundation planted lavender among the oak saplings. This proved that lavender can be grown in this coastal region. Lavender saplings were sold to farmers who wanted them, and scholarship income was obtained by selling the lavender obtained. Another output of lavender farming was honey. Lavender honey was obtained from hives placed around the land. Regional beekeepers also brought their hives to the region for the second year in a row. It was determined that many beekeepers in the region brought a total of around 900 hives. EGET Foundation increased the number of scholarships with the income from lavender honey produced in its own facility.

CONTRIBUTING TO TURKEY’S DOMESTIC PRODUCTION WITH LAVENDER OIL

Turkey is a geography where almost all agricultural products and aromatic plants grow. Surprisingly, close to 300 million dollars worth of cosmetic plant oils are imported annually, with a deficit of around 170 million dollars.

In order to transform the lavender oil into value-added products with higher returns, EGET Foundation first obtained lavender oil and water, and in the second stage, established the distillation unit for the organic certified product on the agricultural land. Özlem Uzman commented on this initiative as follows:

-On 8-May-2016, we created the first lavender field of the coastal cities by transferring 2600 roots of Lavandula X Intermedia Super A lavender to the land. In October 2019, we completed the lavender planting process in our Armutçuk Agricultural Enterprise by planting 2300 roots of Lavandula Angustifolia, which we grew from cuttings, and 250 Super A breed lavender. Lavender is the common name of about 20 species of the genus Lavandula of the Honeysuckle family. Lavender is an effortless plant that can grow in all soil types, especially in calcareous soil, which is not preferred by farmers.

-We utilize the lavender we grow in our Armutçuk Agricultural Enterprise in many ways. We sell lavender seedlings all over Turkey through our website and other digital marketplaces. However, we have set our primary goal to produce higher value-added products. In order to transform lavender oil into products with high added value, we developed the idea of producing pure lavender oil cosmetic products from our own lavender oil. This is how the EGET TEN brand was born.

-We registered these cosmetic products in the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Health Product Tracking System and launched cosmetic products approved by the Ministry of Health. Thus, we have shown that Muğla is not only a tourism and agricultural city, but also a cosmetics brand that consumers can buy with confidence. Moreover, unlike other cosmetic products, the proceeds from its sales are transferred to low-income students through EGET Foundation scholarships, which is another source of pride for our Muğla.

-Our lavender (5,150 roots) grown on a 22,000 m2 area was entitled to receive organic agriculture certificate in 2022. In order to obtain organic lavender oil from our organic lavender, we established our own distillation unit.

-Thus, EGET Foundation Economic Enterprise established the first organic certified distillation unit in Muğla by breaking new ground.

AWARD-WINNING OLIVE OIL FROM JAPAN

EGET Foundation’s agricultural, cosmetic and food products meet with consumers both in its own online store and in large virtual stores with the slogan “From nature to you, from you to education”. The EGET Food pages include lavender honey, puren honey and EGET Foundation’s EGET MEMECİK and EGET ELA special pressed gourmet olive oils produced with good agricultural principles. At EGET Gıda (eget.com.tr/mağaza), purée and lavender honeys and EGET KUZLUK olive oil await those who enjoy gourmet flavors. EGET Agriculture sells vermicompost, lavender seedlings, flower seedlings, quality peat for good and ecological agriculture.

“The successes of the EGET brand are not limited to this: The early harvest unfiltered extra virgin olive oil sold by our Economic Enterprise under the brand EGET Kuzluk in the EGET Food category was awarded a silver medal among 700 brands from 23 countries at the International Olive Japan 2020 Extra Virgin Olive Oil Competition in Japan. A few days ago, we learned that our EGET Memecik olive oil was again awarded with a silver medal among 702 international brands from 24 countries at the Olive Japan 2023 competition.”

CONTRIBUTIONS OF EGET ACTIVITIES TO MUĞLA AND TURKEY

After planting truffles, EGET Foundation applied to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to have truffles recognized as a primary agricultural product.

EGET Foundation became the first customer of truffle-infused oak saplings produced at Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University. Thus, the University went beyond experimenting with truffle inoculation and gained practical experience.

Following the truffle initiatives of the EGET Foundation, private and legal entities, especially the Mugla Metropolitan Municipality, have started to grow truffles.

EGET Foundation proved that lavender can also be grown in coastal cities by planting lavender on a large scale. By selling seedlings, he contributed to initiatives to plant lavender. After EGET Foundation, many cooperatives and individuals, including Muğla Metropolitan Municipality, started to grow lavender.

EGET FOUNDATION’S CULTURAL ACTIVITIES

EGET Foundation continues its activities by restoring an old mansion in the old Muğla in the central district of Menteşe in Muğla. After the restoration of the mansion and the arrangement of its garden, Old Muğla started to receive more visitors due to its unique structure. The number of restored buildings increased. It is a candidate to become an important tourist spot.

EGET Foundation launched an activity called “Bookshelves without Doors, Books on the Streets” to encourage students to acquire the habit of reading books. Local students can pick up and read the books placed in front of the Foundation building. She summarizes the books or draws pictures of the stories. Once a year, these works are given incentive gifts.

Educational meetings about agriculture and soil are organized for accessible primary school students in Muğla. We are making “vermicompost” with the students of Yönelt College Blue Cloud Class.

We provide theoretical and practical training on ecological agriculture to primary and secondary school students in the Ecological Agriculture area created within the framework of a protocol with Muğla American Culture College.

Our Foundation, a pioneer in organizing the Lavender Harvest Festivals in Muğla, has been hosting hundreds of nature lovers every summer at the lavender harvest festivals it has been organizing since 2017. Expanding the scope of the annual lavender festivals, EGET Foundation organized educational workshops for children and adults during the 2022 festival.

We make speeches about good agriculture, our foundation and our purpose at the universities and festivals we are invited to.

#student scholarship #Lavender #Truffle