"This is not only a programme, but also a space of solidarity"

Our General Coordinator Tezcan Eralp Abay reminded that the vital importance of civil society is once again seen especially in crisis situations, and said that the project of Supporting the Capacity of CSOs in Disaster Risk Management is an area of solidarity rather than grant support.

Akif Türkel, who attended the meeting on behalf of the European Union, gave information about the content of the civil protection programme developed for crisis situations and explained that the title of strengthening civil society organisations living under disaster risk was on the agenda of the European Union, but they changed their course of action due to the unexpected impact of the 6 February Earthquakes. 

Who will do what?

Within the scope of Supporting the Capacity of CSOs in Disaster Risk Management project, 20 civil society organisations receiving sub-grant support will carry out a wide range of projects in the earthquake region, from gender equality to children's rights, from disaster preparedness to empowerment of disadvantaged groups. Each project aims to increase solidarity in its own field of expertise and to increase the capacity of disaster risk management. The projects are as follows

• Lotus Women's Solidarity and Life Association will carry out a study on couriers who play very important roles in earthquakes. Working with a focus on gender equality, the association will enable couriers and women to establish a common network and support their mobilisation. 
• Rural Schools Transformation Network, which works with teachers, teacher candidates and parents to provide a better education for children in villages, plans to support teachers working in disaster zones and train teachers ready for disasters.
• The Play Movement Association will remember the healing aspect of play and share the healing experience of flexible playgrounds with both teachers and civil society.
• Diyarbakır-based Children First Association will work with organisations working in the field of children's rights and municipalities in Diyarbakır and Adıyaman to strengthen their capacities in the field of disaster risk management.
• Ankara-based Child Rights Centre will work with civil society organisations and democratic mass organisations working for children in Adıyaman to strengthen the disaster risk management capacity of these local communities. 
• Muamma LGBTI+ Association in Mersin will work on an LGBTI+ inclusive disaster response model. It will work together with local administrations in the cities where LGBTI+ associations are located and NGOs working in the field of disaster and humanitarian aid. 
• Freedom and Equality Association for Women will work with volunteers and CSOs who want to strengthen their capacity in disaster risk management in Adana and Yüreğir district. The association will also endeavour to create a local protective preventive disaster risk management model from a gender equality perspective. 
• With the aim of raising awareness on the possible Marmara earthquake, the Association of Love Volunteers will work with village schools and teachers in villages and schools in Bilecik, Sakarya and Yalova, which will be affected by the Marmara earthquake. 
• Down Syndrome Association of Turkey, which operates in Istanbul, will work to increase the capacity of CSOs in the field of disability in disasters and emergencies.
• Founded after the 6 February earthquakes in Adıyaman, Çember Civil Initiative Association will work with CSOs working on women's work in Adıyaman, women civil society workers and Adıyaman Municipality with a gender equality perspective and strengthen the disaster crisis management experiences of women in the city. 
• The Neighbourhood Disaster Volunteers Emergency Response Association, which works in Istanbul and was established after the 99 earthquake, will support volunteer organisations in Hatay and implement neighbourhood disaster volunteers. 
• Earthquake Solidarity Association, which was established after the Kahramanmaraş earthquakes and works in the fields of post-disaster development and youth, will carry out a project in Hatay to strengthen community-based work.
• The Solidarity People's Association, which operates in Adıyaman, will work with young people in the same city and with organisations working with young people, especially in the earthquake region, to increase local solidarity. 
• Roma Memory Studies Association I Romani Godi will carry out the Access to the Right to the City project for Roma, Abdallar and Dom in Malatya and help these communities to have their say in the reconstruction of the city.
• Ali İsmail Korkmaz Foundation will work with young people and civil society organisations and initiatives working in Hatay with the project Youth Empowerment and Building Resilience Together in Hatay.
• Samandağ Women's Solidarity Association will work on neighbourhood assemblies with a gender equality perspective. The Association, which will work in Hatay, will work with Samandağ Municipality, mukhtars, Samandağ neighbourhood residents.
• Women's Human Rights Association will carry out capacity strengthening work for women's and LGBTI+ organisations resilient to disasters in Çanakkale, Erzincan, Istanbul and Izmir.
• Tohum Autism Foundation will focus on disaster preparedness for individuals with autism and will work with CSOs working in the field of autism, CSOs in the Disaster Platform and search and rescue personnel, firefighters and volunteers of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. 
• The Association for Young Approaches in Health will work with Turkish and refugee youth living in Hatay to strengthen youth participation in disaster risk management. 
• Women's Solidarity Foundation will carry out a workshop in Balıkesir with the title ‘Disaster and Women's Assembly Preparation Workshop: women as restorers, not victims of disasters’ from the perspective of gender equality.