Projects Before 2013

YEAR/NUMBER

PROJECT NAME

PROJECT AIM (BRIEF INFO ABOUT THE PROJECT)

HUMAN RIGHTS LAW RESEARCH CENTER 

2011-2014

European Sourcebook of Crime and Criminal Justice Statistics–Data Contribution

European Sourcebook of Crime and Criminal Justice Statistics is an ongoing project and publications produced by European Sourcebook Group, in the context of different research projects that aim to collect, organise and analyse data regarding crime and criminal justice system in European countries. The main publication that is produced in this way "European Sourcebook of Crime and Criminal Justice Statistics" was published first in 1999, and since then five editions were published. For the 4th edition that was published in 2010 and the 5th that was published in 2015, Asst. Prof. Galma Akdeniz, a member of the Human Rights Law Research Center, collected crime and justice data for Turkey and thus contributed to the publication.

2012-2014

Women’s Collaboration for Gender Justice

The project is led by Purple Roof Women’s Shelter Foundation. Istanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center, Van Women Association and  Antalya Women’s Solidarity Center are among the partner institutions. The overall objective of the project is to make problems faced by women who are subject to male violence in applying legal mechanisms and using their rights more visible; raise awareness of target groups to such issues; draw attention to the bond between legal arrangements and law enforcement; raise functionality of existing mechanisms in a way to enhance gender justice and gender equality.

2001-2012

OSI Network Scholarship Programs 

The project aims at the cooperation of Istanbul Bilgi University and OSI to administer the scholarships at the University of Essex and at Cambridge University offered to scholars from Turkey.

2009-2012

JUSTMEN

The EU funded JUSTMEN (Menu for Justice) was a research project carried out to compare and investigate legal education in various EU countries in undergraduate and graduate levels.

December 2010-June 2012

Awareness Raising in the Areas of Non-Discrimination and Equality Targeted at Civil Society Organisations (ART Project) 

The overall goal of the project is to improve the impact and effectiveness of civil society organisations (CSO) with regard to the implementation of equality and non-discrimination legislation and policy. The project is managed by Human European Consultancy (HEC) in partnership with the Migration Policy Group (MPG).The project is supported by the EU Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity (PROGRESS). The project involves 32 countries (EU, EEA/EFTA, Croatia, FYROM, Serbia and Turkey) where local partners implement project activities. İstanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center is designated as the local project partner in Turkey. The project aims to help strengthen the capacity of CSOs working on non-discrimination and equality by developing training materials and activities for 32 countries across Europe. In order to reach this aim, training manuals were developed and training seminars provided for CSOs.

October 2011-February 2012

Restriction of Political Speech on the Internet: Implications for Freedom of Expression in Turkey

Project purpose is an assessment of legal and regulatory measures to political speech on the Internet. The assessment will result in better understanding whether the current Turkish approaches comply with the requirements of Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights or not. The project is supported by Foreign and Commonwealth Office Human Rights and Democracy Fund.

December 2009-June 2011

Mapping of the Anti-Discrimination Legal, Institutional and Policy Framework in Turkey and the Western Balkans

The Migration Policy Group (Belgium) in partnership with the Human European Consultancy (the Netherlands) conducted a mapping of the legal, institutional and policy framework regarding anti-discrimination in Turkey and the Western Balkans. The project is supported by the EU Programme for Employment and Social Solidarity (PROGRESS) and implemented in eight countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, FYROM, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey) by local partners. In Turkey İstanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center is designated as the local partner. The study covers an analysis of discrimination issues in Turkey and the Western Balkans with a mapping of the anti-discrimination legislation, policies and stakeholders. The scope of the mapping study is determined according to the scope of Racial Equality Directive and Employment Equality Directive of the Council of EU. The report illustrating the findings of the mapping study deals with the issue discrimination based on racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age and sexual orientation and examines legislation containing discriminatory elements and cases of discrimination in the fields of employment, education, training, social protection, access to goods and services, health services, social advantages and membership of workers’ organisations. The study takes into consideration the gender dimension of each of these grounds of discrimination, as well as multiple-discrimination.

February 2009-February 2011

Combating Discrimination in Turkey through Documenting and Reporting

The overall objective of the project is to contribute to revealing ongoing discrimination practices and realisation of necessary structural changes and to strengthen the mechanisms that work towards combating discrimination in Turkey. The specific objective of the project is to contribute to the improvement of the status of groups in Turkey who are discriminated against on the grounds of race or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability and their sexual orientation or sex identity. The project is planned taking into consideration the important role that civil society plays in protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms and addressing the issue of discrimination. Accordingly civil society organisations (CSO), trade unions and lawyers (who defend the rights of people encountering discrimination) are defined as the main target group of the project. The project is funded by the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights of the European Union. Global Dialogue provided additional funding to the project.

2009-2010

Effective Defense Rights in the EU and Access to Justice 

"Effective Defense Rights in the EU and Access to Justice: Investigating and Promoting Best Practice Project" aimed to explore effective defense in criminal proceedings across 9 European jurisdictions. It also aimed at contributing to the implementation of the right of suspects and defendants. The project was funded by the European Union and Open Society Institute.

November 2005-December 2010

Strengthening Respect for the Human Rights of Women in Turkey

The overall objective of the project is to promote the elimination of discrimination and violence against women in Turkey. The specific objective of the project is to contribute to the realization of human rights standards on the human rights of women by the judges, prosecutors, lawyers and the women’s NGOs. The project encompasses activities that aim at reinforcing the capacities of the aforementioned key actors to effectively implement international and European standards on the protection of the human rights of women. Accordingly, the members of the judiciary and the women’s NGOs are the main target group of the project. The project is implemented in cooperation with the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI) and is funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). The project is implemented between 1 November 2005-1 December 2010. All together 295 participants joined the seminars organized within the framework of the project. 

November 2005-December 2010

Strengthening Respect for Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Turkey

The project is implemented in the framework of the Strengthening Respect for Human Rights in Turkey Programme. The overall objective of this programme has been to contribute to the ongoing process of strengthening human rights protection and promotion, rule of law and democracy in Turkey. The programme aimed at giving key professional groups and civil society organisations in Turkey a higher level of theoretical and applied understanding of international human rights standards. The programme focused especially on the human rights of women and people with disabilities. To increase the multiplier effect and the sustainability of the trainings, training and reading materials in Turkish have been developed within the framework of the programme. The programme was supported by Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI) and Swedish International Development Co-operation Agency (SIDA). Within the framework of the Project for Strengthening Respect for Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities in Turkey a number of training seminars were organised on human rights of the people with disabilities. 

September 2006-September 2009

Training of Turkish Judges and Public Prosecutors on Human Rights and Strengthening the Local Capacity for the Internalization of Human Rights Standards

The objective of this project is to develop the local capacity of Turkish Judiciary with respect to interpretation and application of universal human rights standards and to secure the legal and institutional guarantees necessary for the protection of human rights in Turkey. The project aims to improve systematic training of judges and public prosecutors on the international standards of protection of human rights and their domestic application, toward increased compliance with European norms. At the end of the project period, judges and public prosecutors were trained on issues relevant to their profession and their fields. The project is supported by Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MATRA). Consortium members are Utrecht University School of Law, the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights and Turkish Justice Academy.

September 2006-July 2008

Promoting the Practice of Victim-offender Mediation

 
This project aimed to promote the practice of victim-offender mediation in criminal cases.  he project was organized in cooperation with the European Forum for Restorative Justice. Within the context of this project, research reports regarding victim-offender mediation were prepared, training of members of the judiciary, lawyers and NGO representatives were organised, and training manuals were developed. The project is supported by the European Initiative for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR).

June 2006-May 2008

Restorative Justice: An Agenda for Europe

European Forum for Restorative Justice was the leader of this project, in which south European countries cooperated to promote the practice of victim-offender mediation in criminal matters. The project was supported though AGIS 3-Judicial Cooperation in Criminal Matters Project. Human Rights Law Research Center of İstanbul Bilgi University acted as a project partner from Turkey. In the context of this project restorative justice policies in south European countries were analysed, international meetings and conference of this topic were held, and finally the report was prepared and published.

2006-…

Legal Assistance Network (Pro Bono)

Since 2006, Istanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center has been running a pro bono aid network. Just like its predecessors abroad, lawyers work voluntarily. Free legal advice is offered to the non-governmental organizations that have meager means to pay for a lawyer, sometimes individual applicants are channeled through these NGOs for legal advice. In a sense, this is a work the lawyers carry out in parallel with their social responsibility. (For more information: https://probono.bilgi.edu.tr/en/)

December 2005-October 2007

Government Responses to Human Trafficking in Turkey: Evaluation and Mapping of National Referral Mechanism for Victims of Trafficking

Istanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center acted as partner and a consultant for Turkey for OSCE-ODIHR in this project, which aimed to map National Referral Mechanisms for victims of human trafficking in a number of countries, and to evaluate the responses to human trafficking problem as well. In the framework of the project legal position of human trafficking victims in Turkey was evaluated, along with assessment of how victims are identified, what kinds of protection are available to them, and how trafficking cases are processed in the criminal justice system. Further, a study of how trafficking is presented in the local media was also conducted.

June 2006-September 2007

Justice Watch

The principal objective of the project is to display the relationship between the citizen and law from both sides of the picture. On the one side, the project aims to display what kind of place law occupies in the life of the citizen, when and why the citizen approaches the law, what s/he expects from law, and on the other hand, it aims to present how comprehensible, accessible and user-friendly courts are in terms of their structure and procedure, as they are the first institution that comes to mind when the subject is law. For this purpose, the project carried out a nation-wide survey on attitudes towards courts, conducted a Courtwatch activity whereby visits to courthouses were made and developed a media archive where chronological overviews of highly publicized legal cases are provided.

July 2005-July 2007

International Crime Victim Survey 2005

International Crime Victim Survey (ICVS) is an international research project that attempts to measure the extent and the nature of criminal victimisation, by going beyond official records, and by obtaining information about victimisation directly from the victims of crime and coordinated by UN Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and is currently the biggest ongoing comparative research on crime and victimization. In 2005, the 5th wave of the study was conducted across the number of countries, with Turkey participating for the first time with a survey limited to Istanbul households. Goal of the project was to study the extent and nature of criminal victimization, including the reporting to police, fear of crime and punitiveness among general population.

July 2006-July 2007

RAXEN_CT: Information Network on Racism and Xenophobia in the Candidate Countries Croatia and Turkey

As of June 2006, Istanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center has been selected as the national focal point (NFP) for European Monitoring Centre for Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC, current European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights-FRA) in Turkey. At the national level the NFPs are EUMC's main source of data and information on the situation concerning racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism and related intolerances. NFPs' deliverables constitute at the national level the essential background material for the development of comparative reports and studies by the EUMC at the European level. As the NFP for Turkey, Istanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center has set up a national information network, which includes cooperation with main actors in the fields of racism, xenophobia and anti-Semitism, being either governmental institutions, NGOs, research bodies, specialised bodies or social partners. In this way the Center is considered to be the national coordinator for reporting to the EUMC. The Center is also required to coordinate and structure the national data collection and transmit the information to the EUMC according to specific guidelines.

November 2004-February 2007

Access and Impact of Criminal Legal aid before Istanbul Courts

A diagnosis was made of the civil courts of First Instance in Istanbul in order to understand the users, uses and the process and delays in the system. Judges were interviewed to find out related judicial management issues. This research was carried out with the assistance of OSI Turkey.

November 2004-December 2006

The Study of the Accessibility and Quality of Criminal Legal Aid in Turkey

The goal of the project was to determine the accessibility rate of the criminal legal aid service sponsored by the government for those detained, arrested and prosecuted, and the quality and impact of service provided. The research aimed to find out the accessibility rate and impact of the government sponsored legal aid provided to criminal defendants before Istanbul courts. Project partners were Open Society Institute and Royal Danish Embassy Ankara.

June-October 2005

Study on Legal Needs of the Urban Poor

Within the framework of this research project, data was collected to understand the legal needs of the urban poor in Dolapdere as a pilot project for a large legal needs study. The study is supported by Istanbul Bilgi University Research Fund.

May 2004-September 2005

Human Rights Capacity Building Project in Turkey

This project aims at strengthening the awareness on international standards and mechanisms for protection of human rights among members of the judiciary, government officials and NGO representatives besides strengthening academic capacity in the field of human rights. The project is implemented in partnership with Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI) with the support from Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA).

November 2004-January 2005

Distance Learning Program for Judicial Reform in Turkey

This distance learning program was organised for judges, prosecutors and lawyers and covered subjects that would be priorities in a possible judicial reform in Turkey (judicial ethics, alternative dispute resolution methods, case management and the like). These subjects were discussed with the participation of foreign and international experts for six weeks. The partner of the project is World Bank Institute.

September 2002-September 2004

Strengthening the Human Rights Capacity in Turkey

Within the framework of the project pilot seminars for judges and prosecutors were conducted. The aim of the seminars was to enable the judges and prosecutors to take into consideration the human rights obligations of Turkey, in the administration of justice. The project is implemented with the partnership of the Open Society Institute Assistance Foundation.

October 2003-June 2004

Training Programme for Turkish Judges and Prosecutors  

This project aimed at running training seminars in Lund and Strasbourg for Turkish judges and prosecutors affiliated with the State Security Courts and Court of Cassation. The programme intended to reinforce the knowledge in international and European human rights standards, particularly those related to the administration of justice. A follow up meeting which brought these two groups together was organised by Istanbul Bilgi University Human Rights Law Research Center. The judges and prosecutors who attended the seminars had the possibility to reinforce the knowledge they obtained through applying it in the case studies. The project is implemented in partnership with Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI) with the support from Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). 

2004

Legal Aid in Turkey

With the framework of the project a roundtable was convened with the participation of local bar organizations and foreign experts of legal aid. Various models of legal aid, types of services and criteria and priorities for the delivery of service were discussed. The target group were representaives from the Ministry of Justice and the Bars. The partner of the project was Open Society Institute Assistance Foundation.

2003-….

Bilgi Legal Clinic

The legal clinic is as much a method of law education as an outcome of the law faculty’s policy of directly serving society. This policy of education and social responsibility was introduced to law education in the US in the 1960s.  At that time, the main aim was protecting the rights of black Americans, who were deprived of protections provided by law and lived in a society rift because of racial discrimination. Underlying the legal clinic is the idea of providing legal services to segments of society without access to such services to solve their legal problems. During the preparatory year preceding 2003, when education started at the clinic, the Bilgi Faculty of Law collaborated with the law schools of the American University and Georgetown University in Washington, DC, the Eötvös Lorand University (ELTE) in Hungary, and the University of KwaZulu in Natal, the Republic of South Africa, considering their strong and prolonged experience in clinical law education. Working meetings were held at these universities and in Istanbul, and followed by a capacity building program in this area.

EU INSTITUTE

2008-2011

Jean Monnet Module - Conceptualising the EU: Institutions, Policies, and Political Debates

The aim of this module is understanding how the institutions and policymaking processes within the EU function. Selected policy areas are examined in detail.

2009-2012

Tolerance, Pluralism and Social Cohesion: Responding to the Challenges of the 21st Century in Europe         

In recent years, tensions have bubbled up between indigenous communities, native minorities and immigrant communities across European Union. Most severely victimized by this conflict have been people of Muslim origin. While in some countries these tensions have singled out autochthonous minorities, in others they have been directed at immigrants. Within the framework of the ACCEPT PLURALISM project, efforts are being made to understand the dynamics of these tensions and why there isn't more tolerance in many EU countries and Turkey

2010-2013

Identities and Modernities in Europe: European and National Identity Construction Programmes and Politics, Culture, History and Religion

European identity is in a constant state of construction that has no end. The aim of this project was to understand the very different processes involved in the creating European identity through the use of the "pluralist modernity" paradigm. This study, which contains the findings of research done in Bulgaria, Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Turkey and the UK, reveals that European identities are not monolithic but rather pluralistic.

2012

Jean Monnet Chair: European Politics of Interculturalism

The project aims to provide students with a better understanding of the European integration process through supporting research, the enhancement of university networks and funding various teaching activities.

2012

Digital European Union: An e-book for High School Students

The project aims to increase the level of participation to EU related processes and to reduce prejudices towards the EU among citizens of Turkey by enhancing knowledge and awareness among young citizens of Turkey of issues related to the European integration.

2008-2010

Interact – EU, France, Turkey University Dialogue

The aim of this study was to contribute to the civil society dialogue in Turkey, France and the EU by setting up a number of academic networks among universities, civil society organizations and academicians.This project was conducted in partnership with Sciences Po Paris, Istanbul IFEA and Istanbul Bilgi University. It included many seminars, conferences, summer schools, workshops and academic publications.

CENTER FOR MIGRATION RESEARCH 

2003

Euro-Turks: A Bridge or a Breach between Turkey and the European Union?

The study examines the demographic structure, political culture and opinions of Euro-Turks living in France and Germany about European Union and Europeanism and makes a comparative analyses of different models of integration employed by these two countries.

2005

Long Way: A Documentary Performance on Romani/Gypsies in Turkey

Making use of a documentary and stage performance, the project aims to objectively present the life philosophy, problems and expectations of Romani/Gypsies to make the recognition of their cultural richness in a holistic and nonprejudicious manner possible.

2006-2008

Internal Migrations in Contemporary Turkey: Integration or Return?

The fundamental aim of the project was to determine the preconditions for the successful “integration”, both in urban life and the local and national economy, of depropertied migrants during the forced migration in Turkey, and to study the structural and individual conditions working for or against these preconditions.

2007

Belgian Turks: A Bridge or a Breach between Turkey and the European Union?

This study draws a demographic map of Turks in Belgium and examines how they see the concept of the EU and Europeanism, and what they think about Belgium and Turkey.

2010


The Establishment and Sustainability of the Tarlabaşı Community Center for Social Rehabilitation Activities

The Tarlabaşı Community Center was founded as a social consensus model in Tarlabaşı, one of the most economically disadvantaged neighborhoods in Istanbul. It operates to help the residents of the area to integrate into social life, access public services, create an adaptation model for children and youth, and support social cohesion among different social, ethnic and religious groups.

2007-2010

Literacy Acquisition in the Context of Migration and Multilingualism

The study, which was conducted in colloboration with Osnabrück University and Potsdam University, aimed at comparing the literacy acquisition of students in schools located in neighborhoods densely populated by immigrants in Germany and Turkey.

2007-2008


Tarlabaşı Children Protecting Their Rights:  Raising Awareness about Children’s Rights among Children who Live and Work in Tarlabaşı

The objective of the project is to raise awareness about children's rights among children who are disadvantaged socially, educationally and economically due to migration and poverty. Besides it aims to determine the existing conditions of child labor, and to raise awareness about child labor.

2008-2009

Imagine the Future: Digital Storytelling


The project enabled immigrant youth in different parts of the world to talk about their dreams for the future by telling their own stories. The digital stories they told were disseminated in various forms, including news, documentary, fiction and advertising campaigns on radio, television, and printed and web-based publications, to serve as food for thought for listeners, thus enabling them to extricate themselves from the stereotypes generally found in the media.

CENTER FOR CIVIL SOCIETY STUDIES

NGO TRAINING AND RESEARCH UNIT

2003

Training Program for NGOs

The aim of this program was to create a pool of trainers and to develop a training program. 140 people, either volunteers or people working in civil society, attended the three-month training program held over three terms; and a data bank containing the e-mail addresses and mailing addresses of participating NGOs was developed.

2004

Summer Training Program for Anatolian NGOs

Based on the mission and previous experience of the Center, a summer training program was developed for NGOs unable to attend the three-month program. In the one-month training program implemented in 2004 summer, 30 people from a wide range of NGOs throughout Turkey participated.

2005

Hybrid (Distance and Face to Face) Training Program for Anatolian NGOs

The Center implemented a program that combined face-to-face classroom training and distance-learning to empower NGOs. The aim was to disseminate the experience and the training tools it had accumulated over two years to a greater variety of NGOs over a larger geographical area.

2005

Training Program for the Department of Associations of the Ministry of Interior: Training and Capacity Development for Trainers

Capacity development training was provided to specialists working at the Ministry of Interior's Department of Associations. The training wasimplemented in partnership with the British Embassy in Ankara, the International NGO Training and Research Center (INTRAC) in the UK, and the NGO Training and Research Center.

2004

Social Assistance for the Democracy and Human Rights Project

The project was conducted by the Kadıköy Municipality and funded by DİHAA Macro Projects.  The training was designed by the NGO Training and Research Unit and was included as part of the development of the "Capacity Development for Local NGOs" module. The training was carried out in Kadıköy with 200 NGO representatives.

2004

Equal Citizenship and the Participation of Disabled Individuals and Disabled Women

The project was conducted by the Kocaeli Branch of theTurkish Association for the Disabled. The NGO Training and Research Unit took part in the design of the training and the capacity development module. The project was supported by the Local Initiatives Fund as part of the EU Civil Society Development Program.

2005

Publication of Educational Materials for NGOs - 1

The Center prepared manual books to be used in the capacity development of NGOs and grassroots organizations. The manuals are covering topics such as Project Cycle Management (logical framework analysis and budgeting), Accounting and Financial Management, Volunteering, Strategic Development for NGOS, Financial Management and Resource Development, and Organizational Management.  They were published in the second half of 2006. Five of the manuals were written for NGOS by instructors in the training program.  Two of the books were translated as part of the Education Kit series of the Youth Workers Training Partnership Program run by the European Commission and the Council of Europe.

2006

 Capacity Development Training for NGOs in Zeytinburnu/Istanbul

The training was carried out by the Zeytinburnu Municipality. The NGOS Training and Research Unit contributed to the design of the training, the selection and training of the trainers, and the assessment of the "Capacity Development Training for Local NGOs." Three training sessions, "Introduction to Civil Society and NGOs," "NGOs and Volunteering," "European Integration and NGOs," and "Strategic Development and Strategic Managment," were attended by 30 NGO representatives in  Zeytinburnu.

2005

NGOs in the EU Accession Process - I

The Center launched a project in September 2005 to improve the ability of NGOs working in the area of rights to participate in EU negotiations. The Center served as a platform for setting up a network that will make civil initiatives and rights-based NGOs more active and effective in the process.  The project included two workshops and a variety of working groups that focus on negotiation topics.

2006

NGOs in the EU Accession Process -II

The Center aimed at developing capacities of groups woking on the human rights of women, youth policy and social rights about policy making and lobbying at the international level of representatives . A study visit for this purpose was conducted in Brussels in October 2006 to be able to meet with representatives at the EU level.

2006

Social Rights and Youth in the EU Accession Process

The Center aimed at creating awareness and disseminating information in Turkey to support the participation process. By focusing on the European Union, its values, how it functions and its politices, particularly social politicies, it sought to keep social policymakers abreast of topics through international and local partnerships.

2007

Capacity Development Training and Training for Trainers - Positive Living Association (PYD)

The training was conducted for the PYD. The NGO Training and Research Unit was responsible for the design of the training, the selection and training of the itrainers,  the implementation of the training, and the evaluation of the overall "Capacity Development Training and Training for Trainers - PYD" training program. 30 volunteers and PYD staff attended the sessions "Introduction to Civil Society and NGOs,"  "NGOs and Volunteering," "Communication Skills," "Advocacy and Policy Impact," "Organizational Management," "Resource Development," "Instruction and Facilitation Skills."

2007

Publishing Training Materials for NGOs - II

The Center prepared a series of ten source books to contribute to the capacity development of NGOs and grassroot organizations. The sourcebooks, which contain the topics of European Integration and NGOs and Social Inclusion, were published in the second half of 2008. They were written by instructors in the NGO Training Program. Initially, 2,000 copies were published, with 1000 of them distributed to NGOs throughout Turkey and 1000 sold online by Istanbul Bilgi University Publications. Ten CDs were prepared as interactive educational tools. Books and interactive CDs can be acquired free of charge from the Center's website.

2010

Publishing Training Materials for NGOs - III

The center prepared a series of seven sourcebooks to contribute to the capacity development of NGPs and grassrots organizations by empowering their skills to monitor public spending. The sourcebooks were published between 2012-2013. They were written by academicians in the NGO Training and Research Unit. Initally 2000 books were published, with 1000 of them being distributed to NGOs across Turkey and the other 1000 being sold online by Istanbul Bilgi University Publications.

2010

Adrese Büyüteç (Magnifier to the Address)

The Magnifier to the Address Project aimed at increasing youth participation in decisionmaking and policy making processes related to youth. To accomplish this, the project strengthened the ability of youth to monitor services provided by public agencies for them. The project also empower their report writing skills as well as lobbying skils at the national level.

CENTER FOR CIVIL SOCIETY RESEARCH

YOUTH STUDIES UNIT

2012

Bir Maruzatım Var Video Project II

A sourcebook and an online guide using the Bir Maruzatım Var Video Project as a model case were published. The intended audience of these resources was those working in civil society. In addition, two training sessions, one national and one international, were held for youth so that they could not only use videos as a means of self expression, but also acquire citizen journalism skills so that they could use them as a way of disseminating news as well.

2011

Bir Maruzatım Var Video Project

Under the coordination of the Youth Studies Unit and in partnership with the Swedish Youth Council (LSU) and the Community Volunteers Foundation (TOG), the Bir Maruzatım Var Video Project was conducted between October 2011-Ocak 2012. The project, which focused on participation, aimed to empower the expression tools and skills of young peeople to make it visible what it is like to be a young person in this society from the words, perspectives,values and experiences of young people themselves.  To accomplish this, two national workshops, two in Turkey and one in Sweden, and one international workshop, in Istanbul, were held. These workshops were instrumental in putting together a website to which young people can continually load the videos they shoot.

2012

Routes to Transformation Youth Exchange Program

Routes to Transformation Youth Exchange Program designed and implemented within this scope gave young people with an interest in music the opportunity to improve their musical abilities and to engage in intercultural learning. Twenty young people participated in the first youth exchange, which was held in the Dutch city of Utrecht between 27 April-12 May 2012. The second stage of the project was conducted between 13-26 October in Istanbul in the fall of the same year. By the conclusion of the project, large concerts, three each in Istanbul and Utrecht, had been held, an album released and a project documentary filmed.

2009

Problems and Needs of Youth Organizations and Associated Recommendations

Twenty focus groups were conducted with 135 young persons in seven different provinces. The results of the study were evaluated and a report on the problems and needs of youth organized in civil society and recommendations for addressing them were prepared as a report and published.

2009

Sweden -Turkey Youth Policies Seminar -II

25 youth organizations from Istanbul, Ankara and Stockhom met at ten local meetings and two international workshops to exchange ideas about youth policies, advocacy, and policymaking and lobbying activities. Best practices were exchaned and a strategy paper was prepared.

2009

Sweden-Turkey Youth Policies Seminar - I

25 youth organizations from Istanbul, Ankara and Stockhom met at ten local meetins and two international workshops to exchange ideas about youth policies, advocacy, and policy making and lobbying activities. Best practices were shared and a strategy paper was prepared.

2009

Creative Ideas Meetings

The purpose of these meetings was to develop the capacity of youth groups that were qualified to receive financial support in the World Bank’s Creative Development Ideas Competition and to increase their dialog with civil society. In the scope of the Project supported by World Bank, four workshops were organized for youth and youth workers from 20 different youth groups. The transcriptions of the Youth and Gender, Youth and Employment, Youth and Disability, and Youth Work Workshop Meetings were published together with suggested reading resources. In addition, a video was released about the youth groups and their projects who had benefit from the creative ideas meetings.

2009

Living Library Training and Book

Between 2009-2011, five living library events were held and three comprehensive videos about three of these events were released. In addition, living library training was conducted with 20 young people from five diffdrent youth groups. After this training, a "Living Library Training Experience Sharing" book was published as one of the Baykuş Training Book series of Youth Studies Unit and the Living Library Organizing Video Guide was released.

2009

European Voluntary Service

Between 2009-2011, five European  Voluntary Service volunteers were hosted.

2009

Study Visits for Youth Organizations

The study visits conducted with 25 youth from 15 youth organizations between 2009-2010 laid the foundations for the Think Purple and Magnifier to the Address Projects held in partnership with the Community Volunteers Foundation between 2010-2012.

2009

Youth Centers Network Project

Two national workshops and training programs were organized within the scope of this project, were attended by 14 youth workers from eight youth centers working with different youth groups from different locations and 45 youth. Following this training programs, the participants collaborated for different projects, such as the Gapgenç festivals. Sharing of experience between youth and youth organizations was achieved and videos documenting the process were prepared and released. 

2008

Baykuş Youth Trainings

85 young people from 30 provinces participated in the following training workshops: Non-formal Learning in Youth Work, Volunteering in Local Youth Work, Youth Work, Internet Use in Youth Work, and Language Use in International Youth Work. Books covering the training modules and experiences were published and were made accessible online after beeing shared with participant organizations.

2008

Intercultural Compass

The book "Pusala," a sourcebook on human rights for youth, was translated.

2009

Kısa Dalga (Short Wave) Youth Center

250 disadvantaged youth participated in workshops  on rhythm, theater, photography, English, Music, Video,German, the Environment and Design. Between 2009-2011, they put on performances at more than 50 festivals held in different cities. Videos related to their work were regularly put on the website.

2010

Kısa Dalga (Short Wave) Youth Center Hip Hop School

Approximately 200 youth from five provinces attended the rap, graffiti and dance workshops held between 2009-2010.

2008

Kısa Dalga (Short Wave) Youth Center

This is a project designed to support the work, exhibitions and performances conducted between 2008-2010 at the rhythm, circus acts, visual arts, magazine, photography and theater workshops carried out at the Kısa Dalga Youth Center.

2006

Gepgenç Festival 2006

In the scope of the five-day Festival organized with a coordination of 30 different youth organizations, 250 different activities were realized including a best practices conference, a youth symposium, NGO fair and workshops implemented by 200 different organizations.. A book about the festival was published.

2008

Gepgenç Festival 2008

The theme of the five-day Festival organized with a coordination of 50 youth organizations was"Neighborhood".Nearly 10,000 young people and 141 youth organizations attended the festival where more than 150 events were realized. These events included a Youth NGO Fair, workshops, a Best Practices Conference, exhibitions, art performances, a GePGeNç Forum, film screenings, the Social Rights Coffeehouse, and the Living Library. A book about the festival was published.

2012

Youth Bank Project

This project was supported by the Sabancı Foundation (http://www.sabancivakfi.org/), the Mott Foundation (http://www.mott.org/) and the Community Volunteers Foundation (www.tog.org.tr). The purpose of the project was to increase the active participation of young people in social life and to support them in their efforts to raise the quality of life in their own localities. It provided small grants for projects of youth groups working to meet the need of youth in a particular neighborhood/district or city. The Youth Studies Unit provided support to the educational and documentational components of the project, and it was responsible for the projects realized by youth at the Kısa Dalga (Short Wave) Youth Center.

2012

Young Campus for Human Rights

The Young Campus for Human Rights Project was implemented with the partnership of the Community Volunteers Foundation and the European Union Turkey Delegation. It was an 18-month project that aimed at not only raising awareness among youth about human rights, but also at developing different creative tools that young people committed to using their talents and energy in fighting for human rights could use in advocacy work. Advocacy projects , supported by face-to-face training, a distance-learning program, an interim assessment meeting, study visits and field visits, were conducted in the neighborhoods of ten youth groups. In addition, at the conclusion of the project, two books, one as a theoretical and one as a practical guide were prepared.

 

Bir Tam Bir Öğrenci

The project served to get disadvantaged young people to participate in culture and art activities. The Child Studies Unit informed young people in the Eyüp area about the project and associated activities.

2011

Young Status of Participation

The key purpose of the Young Status of Participation Project was to increase participation of youth in the legislative process, which is not very widespread in the area of youth. Accordingly, the project aimed at getting young people to acquire information about the tools and methods they can use to become more involved in the legislative processes. One of the ways in which it did this was by holding training programs in January and February 2012 for young people, 20 at each time, who had previously participated in rights-based projects and/or trainings. The goal of this training was to enable the participants to acquire the knowledge and skill they needed to make their own needs and demands visible on the agenda of the the Turkish parliament.  A monitoring an evaluation report assessing the extent to which these goals were reached was prepared. In addition, the relationship between youth and legislative bodies was strengthened and a youth friendly guide for legislative processes that could be used by youth organizations was published. The different tools the youth prepared in the training programs (general debate, parliamentary question, off-agenda speaking, etc.) were shared with relevant parliamentarians to be put on the agenda of the Turkish parliament. 

2010

Adrese Büyüteç (Magnifier to the Address)

Following the training program in March 2010, local monitoring youth groups, in which 45 Community Volunteer youth participated, were formed in 16 provinces. These groups carried out a civil monitoring study designed to assess the status, quality, assessibility and performance of public services provided to young people. In this regard, academicians and youth workers, who participated in the project prepared shadow reports on European Union Offices at Universities, Health Services at Universities, Municipal City Council Youth Assemblies, Public Youth Centers, Sport,Health and Culture Directorates at Universities and Public Dormitories of General Directorate of Student Loans and Dormitories. Professionals used the findings obtained from the reports prepared by the young people and reorganized them within a rights-based conceptual framework under six headings: Youth Representability, the Right of Youth to Freedom of Movement and Education, the Right of Youth to Housing, University Health Services, What Kind of Youth Center, and the Right to Organize at Universities. Interim assessment meetings gave the participants in the project the opportunity to look at each other’s experiences and to empower themselves with these experiences and the perspectives put forward by the academicians and youth workers to make sense of their findings. The participants also actively participated in the lobbying marathon held at the end of the project in Ankara. In the last phase of the project, a comprehensive Project Report Book and a Project Guide, which introduce the participatory monitoring method as an advocacy model, were published. The Project Documentary released at the end of the project complemented the documentation phase by coveing the entire process.

CENTER FOR CIVIL SOCIETY STUDIES

CHILD STUDIES UNIT

2008

The Board Game "Söz Küçüğün" and Peer Training

The Board Game "Söz Küçüğün" was a project designed to raise awareness and knowledge about human rights among children between 10-15 years. The project also included a peer training program to empower young people to asssist the learning processes of children about human rights and children's rights. 01.09.2088

2008

Impact Assessment of Rights in Education Project

The impact asessment of the Rights in Education Materials prepared by the Sabancı University Educational Reform Initiative was conducted by ERA Research in consultation with Istanbul Bilgi University Child Studies Unit. 01.09.2008

2009

Children's Rights Festival

The Children's Rights Festival has been held on 20 November, the day ÇOÇA (Child Studies Unit) was founded, since 2007. In 2009, the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Convention on the Rights of theChild, ÇOÇA held two separate festivals, on 20 and 21 November, which were attended by various organizations and NGOs. The aim of the festivals was to create platforms where children could think, discuss and produce ideas about children's rights, with an emphasis on the participation of children. In addition, their intention was to work with the children to raise awareness about children's rights among adults in their own localities. 20.11.2009

2008

Child Well-Being Research Project

The Child Well-Being Research Project was jointly run by the Child Studies Research Unit, the Center for Migration Research, and Boğaziçi University's Social Policy Forum, with the financial support of TÜBİTAK. The aim of this project was to introduce a new perceptive of child poverty by replacing the approach based on income with one based on the "well-being" of the children, determined by looking at the services and opportunities provided for them. Within the scope of the research indicators of well-being, in parallel with international studies where determined other factors , such as financial status, health, education, participation, home and environmental conditions, risks/safety, relationships and subjective notions of well-being. The extent to which the indicators were operational was determined in the fieldwork phase of the study. In the scope of the fieldwork surveys were conducted using a sample of 963 children betwen 12-18 years old and 956 parents, in Istanbul. After making descriptive analyses in eight indicator categories, relationships between particular variables were examined. 01.10.2008

2009

Translation and Dissemination of "Pusacılık" (Compasito) Project

The aim of the "Translation and Dissemination of "Pusacılık" was to adapt the book "Compasito," which had been prepared by the Council of Europe as a human rights sourcebook for children, for the Turkish audience by translating it into Turkish, and to disseminate it to stakeholders working with children through special trainings. 01.04.2009

2010

 Rights Stage: Children's Rights Program

In February 2010, the Child Studies Unit laid the ground for a program with Terakki Foundation Schools that would enable them to collaborate towards the common goal of "creating and spreading a living culture that protects children's rights." As part of this program, the Rights Stage social activity club educational program was developed betwen February-June 2010 by working with experts from the Child Studies Unit and Terakki Foundation Schools. A manual was prepared for "facilitator" teachers that would be running the Rights Stage Program. Within the framework of this program, a training was organized in Auguest 2009 with classroom teachers and social science teachers at Terakki Foundation Schools. 01.02.2010

2010

 My School is my Future

This project, which was conducted by the Child Studies Unit in collaboration with the Community Volunteers and ING Bank, was a social responsibility initiative focusing on “maintaining school attendence,which is a prerequisite to enable each individual to effectively benefit from the right to education and a serious problem in Turkey.  A pilot version of this project was conducted between March 2010-November 2010. Within the framework of the project, homework support was provided and social activities organized by TOG volunteers to children in grades 6-8, the aim of which was to encourage school attendance and prevent children's dropouts from school system without having received a diploma. As part of the pilot project, the Child Studies Unit conducted art workshops revolving around the theme “the importance and meaning of school attendance for children” at five primary schools in five provinces (Düzce, Edirne, İstanbul, Malatya, Tokat). With the photographs of the workshop activities attended by a total of 100 children and interviews conducted with them, a documentary and social advertisements on “maintaining school attendence” were produced and released.. 01.03.2010

2010

World Environment Day Festival

5 June, which was declared as "World Environment Day" by United Nations in 1972, is celebrated with a variety of activities worldwide to call public attention to protect the enviroment and the ecological system, to raise concern in all people for these topics, to expand their participation in doing something about them, and to get public institutions to make policies that address these issues. The Child Studies Unit taking a stand for the argument that the rights of all living creatures in nature are an inseparable component of the rights of children, carried out the first Nature Festival for children, with the aim of raising awareness about this topic among children and adults. 05.06.2010

2010

Gender Equality Research and Training Material Development Project - I

The Gender Equality Project aimed developing an awareness and critical perspective among children about different gender roles and characteristics ascribed to men and women in society, and making them to understand that these different characteristics of men and women are equality valuable. The project, to which Assoc. Prof. Ayten Zara Page served as advisor, was conducted as a focus group study with students and teachers at Silahtarağa Primary School. The study examined the children's perception of gender equality and the differentiating daily life experiences  of boys and girls. The results of the study were used in the educational game design process ending up with two educational board games for primary and secondary school children. 01.03.2010

2011

Children's Rights Festival

This festival was held on 20 November 2011 by the Istanbul University Child Studies Unit with the support of ING Bank. 20.11.2011

2011

Monitoring and Evaluation Project of Children's Rights Trainings

Within the framework of this project an impact assessment about children's rights trainings previouslyimplemented by the Istanbul Bilgi University Child Studies Unit, was conducted and a monitoring and evaluation report was prepared. 01.06.2011

2012

Gender Equality Research and Training Material Development Project - II

The aim of this project, which was conducted at various primary schools in Istanbul, was to research the perception of gender equality and their experience in raising boys and girls, and to prepare animation films as educational material on gender equality for the parents. In preparation for the reseach, a three-day workshop on gender equality was held in October 2012. This workshop was attended by 35 guidance counselors and school psychologists from 32 districts in Istanbul. These counselors and psychologists collaborated throughout the project.  Moreover, educational plays about gender equality that were prepared for children were put on at the schools between October-December 2012. An animation films was prepared on the basis of the research findings that could be used particularly by guidance counselors in educational activities designed for families.  These films were shared with guidance counselors for use in schools. 01.04.2012

2012

Human Rights Films for Children Project

Within the scope of this project two animation short films about Universal Decleration of Human Rights and Convention on the Rights of Children were produced and released on a web page to be used as a educational tool by stakeholders working with children. 01.04.2012

2011

Respect for Diversity Festival for Children

The Respect for Diversity Festival for Children was organized in 2011 by Child Studies Unit in collaboration with You've Got My Hand Association and ING Bank. 06.02.2011

2012

Respect for Diversity Festival for Children

The Respect for Diversity Festival for Children was organized on 24 October 2012 by Child Studies Unit in collaboration with You've Got My Hand Association and support received from ING Bank. A total of 120 children from You've Got My Hand Association and ING Bank attended the festival. The children participated in daylong workshops on respect for diversity and preventing discrimination. This was followed by an exhibition where the children expressed themselves through various forms of art, including drawing/painting, collage, short film and puppets, as outputs of the activities they participated throughout the day. 24.01.2012

2011

A Manual for Young People working with Children (Animation Film)

Within the scope of this project in partnership with the Community Volunteers Foundation (TOG), Park Bravo,  the Child Studies Unit produced an animated short film as a manual for young volunteers working with children. The video has being disseminated and used as a training material by TOG and the Child Studies Unit. 30.09.2011

2012

The Constitution is my Constitution Project

The main objective of this project coordinated by Istanbul Bilgi Child Studies Unit and the Agenda of the Childs Association, was to develop and implement a model to foster children's rights to participation so that they could express their opinions in the debates that began with the preparation of a new constitution in Turkey. This project included workshops designed as opportunities to enable children to express their views about the Constitution and activities to make them visible for policy-makers. 01.04.2012

2012

Towards Democratic Schools: Participatory School Practices Empowering Students and Schools

The project "Towards Democratic Schools" was conducted by the Children's Studies Unit in partnership with the Sabancı University Education Reform Initiative for the purpose of contributing to the strengthening of a democratic school culture in Turkey. The project aimed at "facilitating the full and effective participation of children, parents, teachers, school administrators and staff - who are natural stakeholders in schools - in the educational process and decision-making mechanisms. The project aimed to promote the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and positive attitudes towards democratic citizenship and human rights by the stakeholders in order to promote and expand "participative school" practices. Eyüp Merkez Primary School was selected as the pilot school for this purpose. 17.08.2012

2012

Youth-Friendly High Schools

The project was carried out by the Çelikel Foundation in collaboration with the Istanbul Bilgi University Child Studies Unit. It made use of democracy and human rights education in high schools as a means for getting young people tobecome aware of their rights and responsibilities, and to recognize and respect differences. For this purpose, workshops were organized to ensure cooperation of schools and families. At three schools - Ümraniye 75. Yıl Commercial High School, Ümraniye Anatolian High School, and Ataşehir Anatolian HighSchool about 1000 9th and 10th grade students  ,80 parents, and a total of 60 teachers from two of the schools participated in the workshops. 17.08.2012

2012

Empowering Workshops for TEGV Volunteers: Volunteer Participation Development Project

Within the scope of the project workshops were developed and organized to train TEGV volunteers in human rights and democracy, which also included trainings in children's rights and children's participation. 17.08.2012

2012

Reinforcing the Participation of Civil Society Organizations in Preventing Violence towards Children

The project was conducted by the Agenda of The Child Association and the Istanbul Bilgi University Child Studies Unit for the purpose of monitoring national and local practices on the prevention of violence against children and to increase the participation of civil society organizations in these preventive processes. 18.12.2012

2012

  Children's Rights Education for Members of the Denizli Foster Family Association

A tarining on children's rights was provided to members of the Denizli Foster Family Association. 15.03.2013

CENTER FOR SOCIOLOGY AND EDUCATION STUDIES

2011/1

 Prejudices, Stereotypes and Discrimination: Sociological and Educational Perspectives

Background texts to familiarize teachers and students on topics related to discrimination were developed and the book "Discrimination: Multidimensional Approaches" was published.

2011/2

How to Deal with Discrimination in Education Settings: Lesson Samples and Resources for Educationalists (ASED)

A sourcebook consisting of course modules on discrimination was published and an interactive DVD was prepared.

FACULTY OF COMMUNICATIONS

2008-

Adım Adım/Step by Step

The project aimed at raising awareness and developing funding opportunities  through sports for CSOs operating in Turkey.

2010

Difference Makers