Issue: 109
The magazine’s title for December issue became ‘Vulnerabilities: New homework for companies’. In light of 2014 Human Development Report, definition of vulnerabilities and recent statistics on vulnerabilities were elaborated in the first part of the dossier. A quote from Eva Jespersen, Deputy Director of Human Development Report Office was also featured in this part.
Second part was involved important interviews on important topics to engage private sector companies in sustainable development discussions. There was an interview with Dr. Yılmaz Argüden on Global Compact, with Hansın Doğan on UNDP’s private sector partnerships, with Cengiz Cihan on where we are on sustainability and with Bülent Açıkgöz on local development.
UNDP’s private sector partners Coca-Cola, Efes, Microsoft, Mudo, Visa Europe and Vodafone also supported the content from their perspectives.
Startup Weekend in Antalya was particularly special because, for the first time in the world, a Startup Weekend event called their participants to focus their business ideas on social good.
More than 60 social activists, youth leaders, social entrepreneurs, developers and designers came together to find solutions for eradicating poverty, creating new educational models, promoting gender equality and empowering women, combating diseases and ensuring environmental sustainability.
Nur Emeksiz, a participant from Ordu, province in Black Sea Region of Turkey, says ‘These three days were a great experience for me. I made new friends and develop my capacity by learning from them. Thanks a lot for this joyful weekend, full of brain storming about business canvas and social good. Especially special thanks to mentor team whom always supported and helped us to develop innovative and creative business models.’
Participants were encouraged to create technology-based and innovative business models besides they were supported with social entrepreneurship, project management and mobile technologies trainings.
The event was organized in collaboration with the Co-working Camp.
What is a Startup Weekend?
54-hour Start-up Weekends help developers, designers, marketers, product managers and startup enthusiasts come together and share their ideas, form teams, build products, and test their business ideas.
Startup Weekends are weekend-long, hands-on experiences where entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs can find out if startup ideas are viable.
On average, half of Startup Weekends’ attendees have technical or design backgrounds, the other half have business backgrounds. Beginning with open mic pitches on Friday, attendees bring their best ideas and inspire others to join their team.
Over Saturday and Sunday teams focus on customer development, validating their ideas, practicing Lean Startup Methodologies and building a minimal viable product. On Sunday evening teams demo their prototypes and receive valuable feedback from a panel of experts.
Habitat and UNDP in Turkey organize Startup Weekends all around Turkey partnering with Ministry of Development, Vodafone and Microsoft within the framework of International Entrepreneurship Initiative and Design Your Future projects.
Startup Weekends reached 205 potential entrepreneurs and 29 business ideas with the sincere support of Viveka, 23 mentors and 11 investors from the heart of the Turkish entrepreneurship ecosystem.
www.uluslararasigirisimmerkezi.org Twitter: @GirisimMerkezi
The new organic olive oil facility officially started production last month by the Kilis Organic Olive Producers’ Union to help relieve the impact of the Syrian crises on the hosting region to support local development.
Now more than ever, the olive oil facility will be a vital means to foster marketability of Kilis olives for local economic development.
With the financial support of Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) Regional Development Administration, UNHCR and UNDP, the Union established the olive oil facility, which will process, package, and store the olives collected by local growers from their fields. Members of the Union will bring their olives to the facility in which 80 tonnes of organic olive oil can be produced per day.
The Kilis olives that are processed in this facility will go to market under the ‘Kilizi’ brand which aims to be competitive in both Turkish and international markets.
Hüseyin Polat, the President of Kilis Organic Olive Producers’ Union, says that in the past, people were producing olive oil through incorrect methods.
“Farmers received a series of trainings and realized their methods were wrong. We bought carrying crates, and now olives are collected daily, and they are brought to our facility that very same day. We process these olives immediately afterwards, and as a result, we get a really good quality olive oil which has rich flavour and minerals,” said Mr. Polat.
There are 15 workers currently in the new facility. The number of workers will double when the facility is at full capacity, and employees are expected to include refugees from Syria. Approximately 300 local producers are registered to the Union and they will continue to bring their olives to the facility and get their share of revenue from the olive oil sales.
Hüseyin Polat says that this facility is a perfect opportunity for sustaining local socio-economic development in Kilis and for making Kilis olives more competitive in the market. He adds that their aim is to increase the number of their Union members so that everyone in Kilis can benefit from this facility and the olives of Kilis will find its place with the ‘Kilizi’ brand in world markets.
Photo: Prashanth Vishwanathan/UNDP India
“We are on the cusp of creating a new era of action on climate change—here in Lima and with the vital adoption of a new climate agreement in Paris next year. Moreover, a Post 2015 sustainable development agenda is imminent,” Helen Clark said. “We can achieve our goals by nurturing partnerships which promote a low-emission and climate-resilient future.”
During COP20, Helen Clark also visited a UNDP-managed Global Environment Facility/Small Grants Programme fair with over 40 people – mostly women— from the highlands, from the Amazon forest and coastal areas who sold eco-friendly products such as alpaca wool garments, quinoa, beans and honey. The UNDP Administrator stressed the importance of empowering women while conserving biodiversity, boosting climate resilience and encouraging entrepreneurship.
Wrapping up her third day at the COP the UNDP Administrator spoke on how large-scale public-private collaboration can enhance climate progress and sustainable development.
“One of the most exciting and dynamic advances in the forests space over the past year has been the substantial commitments made by major companies on eliminating deforestation from commodity supply chains.” In the palm oil sector, for example, businesses representing over 75 per cent of the global trade in the commodity have adopted zero-deforestation policies in the past year.
At the UN Climate Summit, hosted by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in September 2014, UNDP also facilitated the endorsement by more than 170 governments, companies, civil society organisations and indigenous peoples’ representatives of the New York Declaration on Forests aiming to cut the loss of natural forests in half by 2020, and to end it a decade later. Agribusiness giants such as Cargill and Wilmar adopted zero deforestation policies, and the consumer goods industry pledged to eliminate deforestation by 2020.
Helen Clark highlighted the importance of countries’ nationally determined mitigation contributions including ambitious goals and policies to reduce forest loss and increase reforestation. She urged advanced economies to deliver large scale economic incentives for forest protection and restoration in the context of the new climate agreement, particularly through REDD+ – a mechanism which supports the reduction of emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.
With the largest climate change portfolio in the United Nations – US$1.3 billion covering adaptation and mitigation – UNDP has been supporting over 140 countries, including more than 40 Least Developed Countries, to access climate finance and mechanisms and implement climate change initiatives. This includes access to nearly all UNFCCC mechanisms. UNDP also provides assistance to countries in their climate change negotiations and has supported the Government of Peru in hosting the COP20.
During meetings with Helen Clark, President Ollanta Humala of Peru and the Minister of Environment and COP President Manuel Pulgar-Vidal praised UNDP’s support to set up the country’s biggest international event.
To read Helen Clark’s remarks during COP20, please click here.
‘I can manage my Money’ project, which works to increase financial awareness, was selected one of the best three corporate social responsibility projects in Turkey by the jury at Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Marketplace.
The Project, which started in 2009 with participation of Ministry of Development, UNDP, Habitat Development and Governance Association, Visa Europe Turkey and its member banks, granted the Great Award for the best Corporate Social Responsibility Solution of the year.
With ‘I can manage my Money’ project, Public institutions, private sector companies and NGOs came together for the first time in Turkey to raise financial awareness among young people.
The Project offers trainings to young people between 15-30 years old to support them on budgeting their personal financial resources and efficient use of financial services.
Budgeting, financial planning, managing and combatting with informal economy, contribution of financial awareness to sustainable development trainings are given with the support of volunteer peer trainers and City Council Youth Assembly.
50,000 young people were reached with the Project until now and online trainings, which can be found at http://paramiyonetebiliyorum.net, are completed by 26,000 people.
Embed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20DfNoMaXqg#t=111
Photo: Dreams Academy
International Design for All Foundation Good Practices Awards recognize achievements in the field of design for all, great and small, by governments, businesses, not-for-profit organizations and professionals from all over the world. Each year an international jury selects the 5 "Best Practices" out of all the Good Practices submitted to be presented with the International Design for All Foundation Award.
For 2015 Awards, Dreams Academy has become one of the good practices in 2014.
Since 2008, Dreams Academy has created and implemented tens of thousands of social life solutions and opportunities by “Diving is Freedom”, “Alternative Camp”and “Reha İstanbul” projects with support from the AYDER (Alternative Life Association), UNDP (United Nations Development Program), Ministry of Development and Turkey Vodafone Foundation.
Photo: UNHCR
The appeal includes two main elements: support for over 12 million displaced and conflict-affected people inside Syria, and addressing the needs of the millions of Syrian refugees in the region and the countries and communities hosting them.
Presented to donors at a meeting in Berlin, the 2015 appeal incorporates, for the first time, significant development aspects in addition to the life-saving humanitarian needs of the largest number of displaced people in the world.
The Syria Strategic Response Plan 2015 (SRP) addresses acute humanitarian needs inside Syria, aiming to provide 12.2 million people with protection, life-saving assistance and livelihoods support. It requires $2.9 billion in funding and brings together humanitarian organizations working inside Syria and in neighbouring countries.
“Conflict has devastated millions of Syrians’ lives, trapping them in conflict areas and denying them access to basic provisions and healthcare. Many live in fear, children can’t go to school and parents can’t go out to work,” said Valerie Amos, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. “This plan, if fully funded, can help us provide food and medicine for children, shelter families from the cold, and support those who are desperate and traumatized. Syria is a very difficult and dangerous place to work but the humanitarian community remains committed to helping the most vulnerable people caught in this crisis.”
The Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP), represents a strategic shift in the approach to delivering aid for the region. It brings together emergency humanitarian operations and host community support with longer-term programmes aimed at boosting resilience. Requiring $5.5 billion in funding to directly support almost 6 million people, it is based on planning projections of up to 4.27 million refugees in countries neighbouring Syria by the end of 2015 (representing a slight decline in the rate of outflow from Syria seen in 2014) and help to over a million vulnerable people in host communities.
“Syria’s war is still escalating and the humanitarian situation is becoming protracted. Refugees and internally displaced people have exhausted their savings and resources, and host countries are at breaking point,” said UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres. “We need a new aid architecture that links support to the refugees with what is being done to stabilize the communities who host them.”
The refugee component of the 3RP includes food aid, shelter, relief items and cash to meet basic household needs as well as registration services. The resilience component is about helping more than a million vulnerable people in communities who will benefit from assistance programmes and an enhanced focus on livelihoods and the creation of economic opportunities.
Beyond those receiving direct support, an additional 20.6 million people in Jordan, Lebanon and Egypt will benefit from upgrades to local infrastructure and services in areas such as health, education, water and sewage, training and capacity building of service providers, and policy and administrative support to local and national authorities.
"The countries hosting Syrian refugees are struggling with the massive impact on their economies, societies, and infrastructure threatening not only their stability but the stability of the entire region," said Gina Casar, Under-Secretary-General and UNDP Associate Administrator. "A traditional humanitarian response is no longer enough. The task ahead requires a comprehensive response to the crisis that builds the resilience of these communities and government institutions.”
“For too long we have failed the Syrian people in the midst of the worst war of our generation,” said Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council, one of the key implementing partners. “2015 should be the year when we finally provide protection and relief for those caught in the cross-fire.”
The Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan is available on www.3rpsyriacrisis.org
Information on the Syria Strategic Response Plan is available on www.humanitarianresponse.info/appeals
This demo public building was designed following the principles of Integrated Building Design Approach (IBDA) under the “Promoting Energy Efficiency in Buildings in Turkey” project.
The Ministry of Environment and Urbanisation has carried out the construction works tender process for the demo public building and the process has been completed. The contract for the construction works has been signed by the Ministry of Environment and Urbanisation and the construction site has been delivered to the contractor.
In order to use and to implement the general principles of integrated building design approach in this project, all architectural, statical, mechanical and electrical designs as well as renewable energy solutions, equipment and material selections and all other special systems have been assessed in terms of life cycle approach and life cycle cost analysis methods.
Building information modelling and building energy modelling works have been done in an iterative approach during the design period. This helped to decrease the overall energy consumption in buildings and associated greenhouse gas emissions while keeping the project cost effective.
Starting from the first phase of the project, planning studies on energy, waste, material and water use for the building design were done and all usages were continuously optimized. Besides, in order to decrease the energy consumption originating from the fossil fuels, the designs were improved by implementing passive solutions and techniques.
On-site renewable energy solutions (solar energy, etc.) and other HVAC (heating, ventilating, and air conditioning) technics and technologies with high energy efficiency ratios (heat recovery air-conditioning power plants, ground source heat pump, etc.) were included in the design. Detailed analyses for building programmes and usage requirements were carried out and optimum operation regime for the building was developed.
Sincan-Etimesgut Departments of Land Registry and Cadastre Office Building has a total enclosed area of 8.950 m2. The incremental cost to transform this building into sustainable, green and energy efficient building is calculated to have a payback time less than 6 years.
The overall design process of the project was supported with life-cycle cost analysis studies. It is calculated that the operation and maintenance-repair costs of this building will be 70% lower than a similar public building, designed and built with conventional approaches, materials and systems. The energy costs are envisaged to decrease by 80% compared with the traditional buildings. Water consumption is also expected to decrease by 65%.
Sincan-Etimesgut Departments of Land Registry and Cadastre Office Building shows how effective the “Integrated Building Design Approach” philosophy can be for the designing of new buildings. Moreover, this demo building is an important model that shows why new buildings should be designed as sustainable, green and energy efficient buildings.
Promoting Energy Efficiency in Buildings Project is being executed by General Directorate of Renewable Energy (YEGM) of Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources in cooperation with UNDP with the financial support of Global Environment Facility (GEF). The Ministry of Environment and Urbanization, and Ministry of National Education are other partners of the project.
Energy Efficiency Consultancy Incubation Center is established within the scope of "Utilization of Renewable Energy Resources and Increasing Energy Efficiency in Southeastern Anatolia Region" project.
The incubation center will also include a laboratory with a set of calibrated test and measurement devices that are required to conduct energy efficiency applications in industrial facilities and buildings.
Devoted to the engineers, who will act as consultants of the incubation center, the second theoretical training program, including the "how-to-use" details of such devices as electronic thermometer and temperature measurement probes, infrared thermometer, tachometer, and lux meter, was performed at Gaziantep Chamber of Industry on December 20th 2014.
The practical training phase is planned to be realized at an industrial facility in January 2015.
Within the scope of "Utilization of Renewable Energy Resources and Increasing Energy Efficiency in Southeastern Anatolia Region" project, field studies on biomass-to-energy conversion were performed.
A facility, located in Bismil (Diyarbakır), that produces pellets from corn and cotton residues and timber powder, was visited on 12 December.
Very first applications have been started at ovens of bakeries and boilers of apartment buildings in the region.
It is possible to burn pellets, instead of coal, via a "stocker", an apparatus that could easily be installed on an existing boiler.
December 13th was the second day of the site visits, on which information about cotton powder, a residue of ginneries, was collected at Şanlıurfa Organized Industrial Zone. The second phase of the study will include the investigation of the utilization potential of cotton powder in pellet production.
To see all vacancies, click here.
Editor: Faik Uyanık
Assistant: Nazife Ece
Intern: Damla Deniz Haykır
Contributors to this issue: Başak Saral, Berna Bayazıt, Bülent Açıkgöz, Deniz Tapan, Hansın Doğan, İdil Şerifoğlu
Cover photo: Dreams Academy
© 2014 UNDP Turkey
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