EGET FOUNDATION: FITTING TEN YEARS INTO ONE DAY

NejatAltınsoy.com / September 19, 2025

To read the news: https://www.nejataltinsoy.com.tr

We knew of the EGET Foundation. However, we were unaware of the comprehensive and multifaceted work it had undertaken in its ten-year journey. This awareness emerged when we attended the meeting held to celebrate the foundation's 10th anniversary.

A Meeting with Intensive Content

At the meeting, which we attended at the invitation of Board Member Dr. Naki Bulut, the Foundation's Founder and Board Chairperson Özlem Uzman, along with the Anatolian Sage Safaî Özer, gave a comprehensive presentation to the press.

The Foundation's Unchangeable Purpose

The meeting was so packed with content that we quickly filled our notebooks. The initiatives undertaken in many areas, from education to ecotourism, geriatrics to agriculture, demonstrated that the foundation has gone beyond being merely a scholarship institution. The foundation's fundamental goal, defined as an unchangeable objective in its charter, is "to provide scholarships to students experiencing financial difficulties while studying, thus serving the cultural and scientific development of society."

Scholarships and Social Responsibility

Over the past ten years, scholarships have been awarded to 245 students selected from 39,960 applications. However, as Özlem Uzman emphasized in her speech, the EGET Foundation has gone beyond being merely a scholarship provider; it has built a sustainable structure that focuses on people and nature. In addition to receiving scholarships, students have participated in social responsibility projects and have ensured the continuity of the cycle by repaying their scholarships after graduation.

Connection with Nature

The connection with nature has become the foundation's second major focus. Turkey's largest truffle plantation, its first lavender field, award-winning olive oil production, ecotourism, and agrotourism projects have all attracted attention in this context.

International Expansion

In 2024, they joined the Good Market community, bringing their sustainable production approach to an international platform. The EU-supported HEEFTA project has further diversified its activities with ecology education for children and sports-based fundraising campaigns. Indeed, the 328,200 TL collected at the Eskişehir Half Marathon was enough to cover the annual scholarships of 15 students.

Production from Nature to Education

Work in the field of cosmetics and natural products has also been added to this picture. Productions carried out under the slogan "From Nature to You, From You to Education" range from lavender oil to sage, from St. John's wort to cold-pressed olive oil. Each product has also become a source of new scholarships.

Need for Visibility

At the end of the meeting, the journalists' common opinion was that the foundation's work needed to be made more visible. My personal opinion was as follows: "Life in Muğla is a struggle between those who want to do things and those who want to prevent them from being done. The EGET Foundation has done things, achieved important work. However, these kinds of informational meetings should be held more frequently."

An Inspiring Institution

EGET Foundation, having dedicated its ten-year journey to education, nature, and humanity, sets an inspiring example, extending from the local to the global. Despite the challenges facing the country, this foundation continues on its path without compromising its founding principles; its administrators and employees remind us of the transformative power of civil society. We extend our gratitude to EGET Foundation, its administrators, and all its dedicated employees for their exemplary work…