13/08/2025
In October and November 2024, Founder and Owner Lena Marija Velrey visited her Turkish friend in Suadiye, Kadıköy, to discuss workplace policy adjustments and strategies for worker replacements aimed at fostering diversity and inclusion. As part of our initiatives, we implemented a framework that exclusively places women in leadership roles while ensuring mixed teams handle daily operational tasks across various locations, including Kadıköy, Beşiktaş, Şişli, Sarıyer, and Ataşehir. We also explored plans for our advocacy efforts in Turkey at the end of 2024, emphasizing the importance of adopting and respecting local customs.
We created a local task force in Kadıköy, Beşiktaş, and Şişli to monitor and report companies, institutions, and media outlets perpetuating gender inequality or portraying women in submissive roles.
We collaborated with local advocates to influence Turkish policymakers and push for: Stricter penalties for workplace discrimination, gender quotas in leadership across industries, equal pay legislation enforcement.
We will host sessions in Kadıköy, Beşiktaş, and Şişli focusing on dismantling patriarchal norms, challenging traditional gender roles, and promoting equality at home and work.
We will hold individuals and organizations accountable through public pressure systems: We will publicize businesses or institutions perpetuating inequality (e.g., lack of women in leadership, discriminatory ads) via social media and local news. We will also celebrate and promote companies, individuals, or institutions championing gender equality, creating positive competition.
We have partnered with local sports clubs in Kadıköy, Şişli, and Beşiktaş to find talented female athletes in underserved communities. We will establish mentorship systems pairing young female athletes with professional role models to guide their careers. We will also push for gender equality policies within Turkish sports organizations, ensuring equal funding, media representation, and opportunities for women.
We formed councils composed of local feminists, activists, and community leaders to hold businesses, schools, and government offices accountable for equality commitments. We will create a yearly report on the state of gender equality in Kadıköy, Beşiktaş, and Şişli, based on metrics like leadership representation, wage gaps, and harassment reports.
We will analyze local media and advertising for harmful portrayals of women. We will work with regulators to enforce positive representation. We will also partner with schools to introduce gender studies courses that challenge stereotypes and promote equality from a young age.
We will offer fellowships for aspiring women leaders in business, politics, and arts in Kadıköy, Beşiktaş, and Şişli. We will also establish coalitions of feminist professionals to mentor young women and prepare them for leadership.
We will create programs targeting intersectional challenges faced by Kurdish women, refugees, and LGBTQ+ individuals in Istanbul. We will work with local universities to collect data on the unique experiences of marginalized women in these districts, using findings to drive targeted actions.
We will introduce a "Gender Equality Index" ranking local businesses and communities in Kadıköy, Beşiktaş, and Şişli based on their commitment to equality. We will also publish annual impact reports documenting our advocacy achievements and areas for improvement.
We will organize regular meetings for feminists in Kadıköy, Beşiktaş, and Şişli to strategize, share resources, and coordinate actions. We will also connect local feminist groups with our network of 36,000 radical feminists globally to share best practices and amplify impact.'
We will sponsor feminist themes in major events like the Kadıköy Street Festival or Şişli Art Days. We will also host debates on gender roles and equality during such festivals, featuring prominent local feminists.
