The Marmara Group Foundation EU and Human Rights Platform has published two separate books related to the successfully completed EU Project "Turkish Youth and Women for Democracy." You can also read the books titled "Final Report of Turkish Youth and Women for Democracy" and "Policy Guide for Turkish Youth and Women for Democracy" on the website http://demokrasiyolunda.com/.

We present below the foreword of our Final Report book.

It is a well-known fact in human history that many needs have been met through societies' own organizations. In modern societies, alongside representative governance structures, organizations aiming to voluntarily assume social responsibilities, whether as legal entities such as associations, foundations, professional chambers, or as initiatives like platforms and initiatives, all civil society organizations (CSOs) are increasingly gaining strength. In our country, the growing influence and weight of CSOs in daily life and governance structures are felt more each day. Developing better communication and closer cooperation among CSOs, as much as their empowerment, is indispensable for the establishment of participatory democracy in Turkey.

Despite the increasing role of CSOs in Turkey, synergy and effective teamwork have not yet reached the expected level due to the lack of healthy communication among them. The absence of a national-level CSO Center (excluding umbrella organizations like STGM, Sivil Düşün) that facilitates communication among CSOs and serves their development means that many CSOs in Turkey are not only unable to obtain information about the activities of other relevant CSOs but are sometimes unaware of their existence.

The prerequisite for CSOs to adequately fulfill their functions, successfully conduct their work, and increase the impact of the civil society sector depends on their democratic relations with each other. Various developments worldwide and in Turkey have led to significant changes in the CSO field, affecting CSOs accordingly.

Given the highly dynamic nature of the CSO sector globally, frequent changes in communication, information, and membership occur. Additionally, a series of political and economic crises specific to Turkey have reduced CSOs' opportunities to find sponsors from local and national sources, leading to significant changes in their structures. The financial resources of civil society organizations have not remained outside the funds of international institutions such as the European Union. Therefore, the need for training that enables CSOs to access these funds, which will enhance their financial capacities, is increasing. Although technological developments and the decrease in prices of digital equipment and services have led to widespread internet use among leading CSOs, a large portion of local CSOs do not have the same level of resources and information.

Many special networks have recently formed among CSOs operating in various sub-sectors such as women, environment, and human rights.

Starting from this need, we present as a comprehensive and up-to-date resource the information and data that civil and public organizations, youth, and women will require in project implementations encouraging democratic participation.

We hope that this information-sharing initiative will provide a foundation for cooperation, network formations, and teamwork. Through increasing communication dynamics among all relevant actors in society, the transfer of information, opinions, and experiences will contribute to the capacity development of CSOs.

Today, we are experiencing profound transformations in social life and intellectual world. Policies conducted by international corporations instead of modern nation-states cause us to endure the pains of transitioning to a global world, while postmodern winds in philosophy, politics, and art sweep everything away. The representative political style of classical liberal democracies no longer meets the needs and complex political life of the "new society."

Discussions in the social sphere revolve around the idea of "democratizing democracy," transforming participatory democracy into an interactive participatory state through civil networks and initiatives.

Efforts continue to transition from representative democracy, where "part-time" citizens feel themselves as such only every four or five years, to "full-time" active citizens who constantly seek and open channels to address their issues through civil networks and organizations.

In our country, civil society efforts aligned with this direction have been negatively affected by the transition from the parliamentary system to the presidential system, the unexpected July 15 coup attempt, and immediately thereafter the Covid-19 pandemic, which alienated the citizen intended to be participatory from the public sphere and confined them to freedom within their four walls.

While delivering this work to the hands of Civil Society Organizations, who are pioneers and devoted actors of the transition to full-time citizenship, we also dedicate it to them.

We thank Turkey and the European Union, and the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs EU Presidency for their financial support in preparing this book.

In her opening speech, Müjgan Suver, President of the Marmara Group Foundation EU and Human Rights Platform, said: "The European Anthem, adapted from the last movement of Beethoven's 9th Symphony, aims to celebrate the common values of EU countries: freedom, peace, and the success of unity in diversity. These values, dreamed of by the people of the world, can only be sustained within democracy. Therefore, the primary goal of civil society organizations in Turkey has been the strengthening of democracy. Democracy in Turkey will be strengthened by the participation of youth and women in democratic decision-making processes."

Sema Kendirci Uğurman, President of the Turkish Women's Union, summarized in her speech: "Being part of this project, producing together with the Marmara Foundation, and sharing in an important project aimed at realizing our goal of including women in democracy since our establishment brings me great happiness, which I want to convey to everyone. Thank you very much for these participations. The Turkish Women's Union, founded in 1924, is Turkey's first, sole, and largest women's organization fighting for equal rights. It is also one of the most faithful organizations in the history of the Republic of Turkey that believes democracy can only develop with women.

We continue our struggle with more than 80 branches across the country in talks with the government. I want to say that this project is very valuable to us because since our foundation, we have believed that democracy without women is flawed and incomplete and have loudly expressed this. Therefore, for us, democracy and women's rights are intertwined, and we invite everyone to embrace this understanding. Because we know that as democracy develops, women's rights will improve, and as women's rights develop, democracy will be institutionalized based on fundamental principles. We thank our project and founding partners and today's participants for standing with us in this understanding and for always standing shoulder to shoulder with us in this struggle, and we wish success to all participants."

Yusuf Kenan Kolat, President of the Turkish-German Education, Culture and Politics Institute, said: "In Germany, as the German Turkish Community, I was the president of an organization that introduced a gender quota in its bylaws for the first time among Turkish and German associations. One male friend won the vote thanks to the quota despite having fewer votes. So, the quota should not only be for women but for all genders. Therefore, we take the quota issue very seriously. Societal structures can only be achieved by giving voice—not just 'we pay attention to them'—but I believe this must be realized through strict legal regulations. This can only be achieved through legal arrangements. Today in Germany, we demand quota systems of 10%-20% for people of immigrant origin, i.e., non-German origin, in German state institutions. This is a demand. We have always advocated that if you want to identify with the society, institution, or organization you live in, you must be part of it."

Ambassador Başak Türkoğlu, Director General for EU Affairs, summarized in her speech: "Our civil society organizations have played an important role as actors who gauge public opinion in every field during our EU accession process and will continue to do so. Because one of the most important elements of democracy is the existence of civil society. As the EU Presidency, we have especially supported projects aiming to strengthen dialogue between our country's and the EU's civil society institutions and to develop civil society capacity. The EU harmonization process brings about multifaceted social change and transformation beyond technical regulations. In our country, which obtained women's right to vote and be elected before many countries, reforms carried out during the EU process have significantly consolidated and strengthened Turkish women's presence and status in economic, political, and social life."

Prof. Dr. Akile Reşide Gürsoy, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Beykent University, emphasized in her speech: "I congratulate Müjgan Suver, President of the Marmara Group Foundation's EU and Human Rights Platform, and her entire team, along with everyone involved in this project. It has truly been a comprehensive, multifaceted, and very valuable project that brought together two countries and integrated age groups. Here, I want to speak both as an academic and as a social anthropologist, considering all topics with their manifestations in societies worldwide as my academic tradition. Beyond this academic identity, I also speak as a member of a family that has dedicated its life to democracy in Turkey. From a young age, I grew up understanding how great a blessing democracy is and how human rights violations can arise in its absence. Despite all its difficulties and shortcomings, democracy remains the form of governance most befitting human dignity today. It is a very difficult form of governance, not easy, but the one most suitable for human dignity.

Of course, there are many practices that empty this concept of its meaning. We have witnessed interventions in countries under the pretext of bringing democracy. Also, within countries themselves, generally speaking, we see coups carried out under the claim of bringing democracy."

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mesut Eren from Marmara University European Studies Institute said in his speech: "Especially when we talk with young people, we see that they feel their voices are not heard and they are misunderstood. In a society like Turkey, where the rulers are very old and the ruled are very young, this creates a problem. The average age of politicians is probably between 65-70, while the young population in Turkey is much higher. It is very difficult for this age average to closely know the new generation. You may recall that during election campaigns, one of the things that most affected young people was the idea of giving each young person 10 GB of internet. The closest point to young people was the internet quota. This is a serious problem, in my opinion. To understand them, to understand what they think, and to ensure their participation, serious work is needed, of course. But unfortunately, the environment is not suitable for this. There is not much to say about women. We were also together with the Women's Association in Germany. The problems and statements they shared are so different that we are at a completely different level; this process cannot be compared with Europe. Turkey's cultural structure, the status of women determined by religion and culture, the perspective on women, is not very appropriate. These are problems that must be dealt with. I have painted a somewhat pessimistic picture by summarizing the situation, but I say that we cannot solve problems without seeing these, and I will not prolong the speech."

Danela Arsovska, President of the North Macedonia Chamber of Commerce, said in her speech: "It aims to continuously encourage and support entrepreneurship based on equality. Women entrepreneurship is a field we are particularly determined about because we believe it has the greatest potential for economic growth. We run an active campaign every year to ensure gender pay equality and to break the glass ceiling by closing the gender gap. This year, on the occasion of September 18 International Equal Pay Day, we also participated in the campaign of the United Nations, OECD, and International Labour Organization. By supporting women entrepreneurship and enabling women to have more economic independence, we strive to empower women economically."

Sabina Klimek, Consul of the Republic of Poland in Istanbul, presented: "I know that the number of women in business in Poland and Turkey is very similar. Currently, women entrepreneurs constitute about 31% in Poland. I know it is 28% in Turkey. So, 28% of all businesspeople in Turkey are women. And this is really not a small number. We know that there are Western European countries with fewer women entrepreneurs than Turkey. Therefore, 28% indicates that Turkish women entrepreneurs are doing really well and progressing in the right direction. Why are women in business, women in politics, and women everywhere so important? First of all, we discovered that many countries could fight poverty thanks to women owning their companies. This was the case in Latin America because there was help and support for women running businesses. The poverty of these countries decreased by 30%. So, it was enough to provide women with some tools so they could manage their companies, and suddenly it turned out that such activities had a great impact on women and the entire economy of countries. Therefore, I thank the Marmara Foundation and the President for all these initiatives to support women, especially since there is a special section about women in business in addition to the general focus on business life."

Lale Aytanç Nalbant, Executive Council Member of the Marmara Group Foundation, stated in her paper: "The participation of youth and women in democratic decision-making processes increases the democratic system, the effectiveness of the public, and the quality of decisions. The dissemination of knowledge accumulation to society and the public in the broadest way benefits the entire society over time. Especially, the participation of youth and women and their ability to express their ideas is only possible with increased interest, knowledge, and awareness levels. Programs and training processes to be implemented in this regard should complement each other. To achieve these goals, the Marmara Group Strategic and Social Research Foundation, together with project partners Turkish Women's Union from Ankara and Turkish-German Education, Culture and Politics Institute from Berlin, has been implementing the "Turkish Youth and Women for Democracy" project under the European Union Civil Support Program since April 1, 2019."

Semra Demirer, General Coordinator of UPS Sports and Culture Club, said in her presentation: "In this vital journey of life, we have three main options: to be a spectator, a passenger, or a driver. Spectators usually sit comfortably in their seats and only watch opportunities and possibilities. Passengers live a comfortable life offered to them, in a vehicle driven by others and on a route determined by them, sometimes cheerful, sometimes peaceful, sometimes full of gossip, but they place all responsibility on someone else. What do drivers do? They choose the model of the vehicle, evaluate the opportunities or impossibilities presented to them. Good drivers and good leaders can create opportunities out of impossibilities.

Atatürk's women will not stop. They are aware of why they started, take responsibility, and can lead themselves, their families, and ultimately humanity from one point to another with confidence and joy. Their most important qualities are that they start the journey spontaneously and can take responsibility and be courageous while moving towards the future. They are sure of who they are and what they are... In this way, they take the wheel, take risks, take responsibility, and while continuously keeping control of their lives, they become exemplary people to their surroundings."

Deniz Özdikmenli, EU Project Consultant and Trainer, said in her speech: "What I mean is that if we do not receive the demands of women and youth in democratic participation, I do not think this is directly due to governance here. I think this responsibility should be shared. We need to see if there is sufficient demand. Either they do not demand, or when demanded, why do managers at every level, from local government to higher management, perceive it as a place in city councils? I think this perspective should be individualized on all these sides. When we ask these questions, we usually have a classic logic in these projects: we make a problem tree and go down to root problems. I think to get to our root problem, we need to question individuals' demands and the perspectives of those who receive these unmet demands. In these projects, for the last ten years, I have been preparing and presenting designs entirely in this direction to both the European Union and domestic fund providers."