Aydın Doğan Foundation
The Aydın Doğan Foundation was established on April 15, 1996 to pursue initiatives that contribute to the development of the society and the country in every respect. The Foundation engages in a wide range of social welfare activities, and contributes to the fields of education, healthcare, scientific research, culture, arts, and sports.
Since its debut, the Foundation has extended support for provision of high-quality education and training at institutions by organizing national and international competitions, granting awards, and building sports facilities and educational institutions. The Foundation’s priorities are to maintain a robust administrative and financial structure, implement activities in line with its causes, and strengthen relationships at an international level.
Aydın Doğan International Cartoon Competition
Open to professional and amateur cartoonists from all over the world, the long-running Aydın Doğan International Cartoon Competition is widely recognized as an event of global renown in Turkey. Now in its 27th year in 2010, the Competition attracted 2,561 entries; cartoons from 865 artists in 73 countries. The jury honored Ahmet Öztürklevent from Turkey with the first prize, while Sergei Bobylev from the Russian Federation received the second prize and Kürşat Zaman from Turkey received the third place.
- Please, pay a visit to the Virtual Museum of Aydın Doğan International Cartoon Competition.
Exhibitions
Cartoons deemed worthy of exhibition from the Aydın Doğan International Cartoon Competition are presented to the public throughout Turkey, and in particular to students at universities every year. Exhibitions were organized to present the award-winning cartoons in various cities across Turkey, including Adana, Ankara, Izmir, Istanbul, Antalya, Ordu, Altınoluk, and Muğla.
Competition for Young Communications Majors
To contribute to the training of media employees and to encourage ongoing improvement in the field of communications, the Aydın Doğan Foundation organizes an annual competition for young communications majors. The 22nd Competition for Young Communications Majors included 924 student participants from 28 universities, presenting 922 projects in categories such as writing, visual, audio, advertising, public relations, and Internet publishing. Juries awarded prizes to 76 projects of 139 students from the faculty of communications at 20 universities.
Aydın Doğan Award
Presented each year on a different theme, the Aydın Doğan Award is given to individuals who have contributed to both their profession and to Turkey. In 2010, the Award designated Cinema as the theme. The Jury, composed of Doğan Hızlan (Chairman), Tarık Akan, Mithat Alam, Tevfik Başer, Atilla Dorsay, Prof. Dr. Oğuz Onaran, Murat Özer, Prof. Sami Şekeroğlu, and Azize Tan, presented the award to Nuri Bilge Ceylan for his role as one of the leading figures in the recent progress of the Turkish cinema. His work offers striking and globally remarkable examples of Turkish cinema’s identity quest, and he is an inspiration for succeeding generations, both with his success and his awards.
Educational Projects
Since its establishment, the Aydın Doğan Foundation has underwritten a number of educational projects to further the creation of a modern and respected society in Turkey. Educational building projects carried out to date by the Foundation include:
- Sema Işıl Doğan Elementary School / Gümüşhane
- Atatürk University Aydın Doğan Private Elementary School / Erzurum
- Aydın Doğan Elementary School / Göztepe, Istanbul
- Yaşar-Irfani Doğan Industrial Vocational High School / Kelkit, Gümüşhane
- Milliyet Teachers’ High School / Erzincan
- Hürriyet Vocational High School for Hoteliers / Erzincan
- Aydın Doğan Trade Vocational High School / Istanbul
- Gümüşhane University Kelkit Aydın Doğan Vocational High School / Gümüşhane
- Galatasaray University Aydın Doğan Auditorium / Istanbul
- TEGV Sema-Aydın Doğan Education Park / Istanbul
- Sema Doğan Park / Kelkit, Gümüşhane
- Aydın Doğan Science and rts Center / Afyon
Kelkit Aydın Doğan Vocational High School
With its foundation laid on July 27, 2002, Kelkit Aydın Doğan Vocational High School, affiliated to Gümüşhane University, opened its doors with an enrollment of 90 students on September 28, 2003. In the 2008-2009 academic year, there were 526 students enrolled in the school. In addition to the regular curriculum, the school offers intensive education in English with the support of the Foundation. The Organic Agriculture Program offered at the Kelkit Aydın Doğan Vocational High School, coupled with the large number of enrolled students, is of utmost importance in securing the permanence and sustainability of agriculture in the Kelkit region.
Aydın Doğan Trade Vocational High School
Built by the Aydın Doğan Foundation in 1998 and donated to the Ministry of Education, the Aydın Doğan Communications Vocational High School has been renamed the Aydın Doğan Trade Vocational High School based on the decision of the Ministry. The school continues to provide education in the field of media and communications.
Dormitories for Female Students
Built by the Aydın Doğan Foundation within the scope of the “Dad, Send Me to School” campaign and donated to the Ministry of Education, girls’ dormitories continue to serve female students, with generous support from the Aydın Doğan Foundation. The dormitories include Nene Hatun High School’s Aydın Doğan Dormitory for Girls (Erzurum), Aydın Doğan Dormitory for Girls (Erzincan), Hacı Hüsrev Doğan Dormitory for Girls (Kelkit), Aydın Doğan Dormitory for Girls (Kürtün), Aydın Doğan Dormitory for Girls (Köse), and Aydın Doğan Dormitory for Girls (Şiran).
Prefabricated Sports Halls
In 2010, prefabricated sports halls were built and opened by the Aydın Doğan Foundation in Erzincan’s Milliyet Teachers’ High School and the Yaşar-Irfani Doğan Industrial Vocational High School to provide students with the highest possible level of sports education and activities.
TEGV Sema-Aydın Doğan Education Park
Affiliated with the Educational Volunteers Foundation of Turkey (TEGV), the Fındıkzade Sema-Aydın Doğan Education Park opened in 1996. All the park’s educational areas were renovated with contributions from the Aydın Doğan Foundation, which also assumed responsibility for the park’s annual operating expenses. With educational support offered to nearly 36,000 children since it first opened, the Sema-Aydın Doğan Education Park consists of five structures that include an administrative building, education building, guesthouse, volunteers’ academy, and a gymnasium in an open area of 27,000 square meters.
Sema Doğan Park in Gümüşhane
Designed to contribute to the cultural and social life of Gümüşhane, the Sema Doğan Park opened on July 24, 2008. The enclosed areas inside Sema Doğan Park include a multi-use hall for events like conferences, wedding ceremonies, and concerts. Workshops are also housed in this enclosed section and serve a range of purposes that include improving local handicraft skills and increasing the commercial viability of women-produced handicrafts. In addition, a restaurant helps preserve local cuisine traditions, with an added contemporary twist. An outdoor amphitheater constructed in harmony with the natural slope of the land, as it was in antiquity, is the site of movie screenings, theatrical plays, concerts, folklore performances and conferences; there are also play areas for children, as well as sports and picnic facilities.
Kalender Metin Doğan Public Kitchen
With donations through the Social Assistance and Solidarity Foundation of Kelkit, the Aydın Doğan Foundation continues to support the Kalender Metin Doğan Public Kitchen, which is a part of the initiative to serve the community in Kelkit and provide female students and citizens in need with hot meals.
Aydın Doğan Science and Arts Center
The Aydın Doğan Science and Arts Center is an independent, private educational institution established to enable gifted elementary school students to maximize their talents and abilities. Trained teachers use dedicated tools, materials, and programs to educate children who cannot, or can only partially, benefit from regular classes. In addition, the Foundation has been supporting the Afyonkarahisar Classical Music Festival and Jazz Festival for the last 10 years to ensure that interviews, concerts, and workshops are conducted in the elementary schools in the districts and villages of Afyonkarahisar. Consequently, children from Afyon have the opportunity to meet national and global leading figures from music, culture, and art.
London School of Economics
The Aydın Doğan Foundation is one of the supporters of the Chair in Contemporary Turkish Studies, based in the European Institute at the London School of Economics (LSE), one of the most respected educational institutions in the world. The Chair is expected to contribute significantly to the promotion of Turkey. The Advisory Committee of the Chair in Contemporary Turkish Studies held its meetings in London in January 18, 2010 and in Turkey in June 28, 2010.
Educational Reform Initiative (ERI)
The Aydın Doğan Foundation works toward the goal of achieving quality education for all. In collaboration with Turkey’s leading foundations, the Aydın Doğan Foundation extends support to realize education reform that will further Turkey’s social and economic development. The activities supporting this goal include conducting research, performing advocacy and monitoring results. The Foundation serves as an active member on the Board of Directors of this platform, called the Education Reform Initiative (ERI). The Educational Reform Initiative publicly disclosed the results of the “Education Follow-up Report 2009,” drawn in coordination with the Sabancı University Istanbul Policy Center, on Thursday, June 17, 2010, in the Sabancı University Communications Center in Karaköy.
Organic Husbandry Conference
Held in Kelkit on July 1-4, 2010, the “1st Organic Husbandry Conference of Turkey” was hosted by the Kelkit Aydın Doğan Vocational High School of Gümüşhane University, with contributions from the Aydın Doğan Foundation under the Honorary Co-Chairmanship of Aydın Doğan, the Doğan Holding Honorary President and the Aydın Doğan Foundation Chairperson, and Prof. Dr. Ihsan Günaydın, Rector of Gümüşhane University. The Organic Husbandry Conference was attended by academicians expert in this field, representatives from the related unit of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, organic product manufacturers, control and certificate organizations, exporters, non-governmental organizations, national and regional media members, students, other institutions, and interested citizens.