Our Group, in accordance with the reason for the existence of the Sabancı Foundation, which is “Creating a difference in the lives of people by creating unique, innovative and permanent values for the purpose of ensuring the development of social potential and conveying the social sensitivity awareness to the next generations,” presents enduring works such as schools, dormitories and libraries to the service of our society and contributes to the development of our society with educational scholarships, conferences, seminars and training programs.
Educational Institutions
The Sabancı Foundation, in the 39 years that passed since its establishment, established 39 Educational Institutions, 20 Dormitories, 4 Libraries, 17 Teacher’s Houses and its most glorious investment the Sabancı University and presented such to the service of the society.
The Sabancı Foundation, in order to ensure that better service can be provided, Türkan Sabancı Primary and Vocational School for the Blind continued the cooperation it established with the Perkins School for the Blind in 2013 as well. Following the earthquake in Van, the Hacı Ömer Sabancı Primary School and Middle School which was rebuilt taking into consideration the restructuring in the city and the Mardin Sabancı Dormitory for Girls which was established in Mardin have been added among the durable works of the Foundation in 2013.
Sabancı University
The Sabancı Group decided to establish a “world university” led by the Sabancı Foundation in 1994. Instead of choosing a university as a template or replicating existing examples and institutions, a new, unique university was designed during its foundation. It opened its doors to students in 1999 and has since set an example for many other universities.
In October 2012, for the first time in Turkey, the Ministry of Science, Industry and Technology produced a University Entrepreneurship and Innovation Index; Sabancı University ranks first among the most entrepreneurial and innovative universities in Turkey. In 2013, Sabancı University increased its score from 84 in 2012 to 85.8 and became the most entrepreneurial and innovative foundation university in Turkey. The University Entrepreneurship and Innovation Index includes five aspects: scientific and technological research competence; intellectual property pool; cooperation and interaction; culture of entrepreneurship and innovation; and economic contribution and commercialization.
Scholarships
The number of students that benefit from the non-refundable grants of the Sabancı Foundation, which provided more than 40 thousand scholarships to university students since 1974, the year in which it was founded, is more than 1.300 annually.
The Sabancı Foundation, as well as the “University Entrance Scholarship” that is ensured to the students that display a supreme success in the Undergraduate Placement Exam each year, also provides scholarships for “Students Graduating from High Schools in Development Priority Provinces” and “Disabled Students” and supports the providing of opportunity equality in education. The scholarships of the students who successfully continue their education, continue for the normal educational period in the educational program they are registered to as of the date they begun to receive the scholarships.
Also, the educations of the Tourism Vocational School students is supported with the “Sabancı Foundation-Vista Scholarship” initiated with the challenge grant of the VİSTA Turizm ve Seyahat A.Ş.
Seminars, Conferences and Programs
The Sabancı Foundation provides support with grant programs, partnerships, seminars and other activities for the purpose of “contributing to the creation of equal opportunities for women, youth and the disabled and developing of environments that support the active participation of such in the society.”
The Sabancı Foundation, which supports the women, youth and the disabled to have equal opportunities and the active participation of such in the society, supports the projects of the civil society organizations that perform works regarding this matter within the scope of the Social Development Grant Program. The 37 projects that have been supported with a total of 7 million TL in grants up to today within the scope of the program, have been applied in 72 provinces and created highly significant effects on the national level.
The Sabancı Foundation, since 2006, has been a supporter of long term programs for the purpose of ensuring gender equality in the Turkish society with multiple partnership works. The Sabancı Foundation, within the scope of the “Joint Program for the Protection and Development of the Human Rights of Women and Girls” carried out with the partnership of all United Nations Institutions, Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Sabancı University, has provided 1,6 million dollars worth of support in 6 provinces (İzmir, Kars, Nevşehir, Şanlıurfa, Trabzon and Van) between 2006-2010.
The second one of the programs that are carried into effect with the support of the Sabancı Foundation, the “Joint Program for the Development of Women’s Human Rights”, will be carried out with the cooperation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of National Education, the Ministry of Family and Social Policies, United Nations Development Program, UN Women, the Sabancı Foundation, Sabancı University and the Turkish Association of Municipalities. Within the scope of the new BMOP, 2 million dollars worth of support will be provided in 11 provinces (Aydın, Çanakkale, Edirne, Erzincan, Eskişehir, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaraş, Kastamonu, Kayseri, Kocaeli, Ordu) between 2012-2015.
The Sabancı Foundation, with the Changemakers Program, has the goal of creating awareness in people by making the stories and works of those that contribute to the social development in Turkey more visible and to inspire people by encouraging them to be more sensitive and active citizens. The Foundation, with the Changemakers Program, focuses on ensuring the development of social potential by sharing the extraordinary effects of unique individuals with Turkey and creating unique, innovative and durable values for the purpose of conveying the social sensitivity awareness to the next generations.
The Sabancı Foundation Philanthropy Seminars realized since 2007, brings the representatives of civil society, foundation, private sector and public institutions together with international experts and allows for the sharing of information concerning the new approaches in the field of foundations and civil society.
The Sabancı Foundation also makes contributions for different social needs. Among these contributions are School Leadership Training Program, Best Examples in Education Conference, Civil Society Index Project, Nutrition Project, Support for Education Campaign, Hakkari Society Services Bus, Participative Local Development Conference and the Disabled Youth Festival.
Fire and Earthquake Training Center
Aksigorta, for the purpose of providing trainings for the primary school children for the purpose of protection from disasters such as fire and earthquakes and to give an awareness concerning the benefits of insurance, opened the first Fire and Earthquake Training Center (YADEM) to service in 1996 and then donated it to the Şişli Municipality Science Center Foundation in 2006.
Aksigorta, which adopts increasing the insurance awareness in Turkey as a mission, aims to inform the society as to what needs to be done before and during earthquakes, floods and other natural disasters with the “Keep Living Turkey” social responsibility project carried into effect as a result of the synergy created with AKUT (Research and Rescue Association). Within the scope of the project, the fourth phase of which was completed in 2013, 55 provinces and 174 districts were visited and 5,4 million people were reached.