2018 Event

Participants

• Atatürkçü Düşünce Derneği
• Eurasia Special Children Association
• Bahçeşehir University Turkish Straits Research and Application Center
• Bebekliler Association Working Group
• Bebekliler Association
• Beşiktaş Municipality
• Bebek Tevfik Fikret Primary School
• Documentarist Savaş Karakaş
• Bosphorus Association Platform
• an NGO Organization for Search and Rescue in the Istanbul Seas
• Naval Museum Command
• Naval Academy
• World Wildlife Foundation/WWF- Turkey
• Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality
• Koç University Marine Activities Forum
• Ortaköy Yatch Club
• The Marmara Sea and the Turkish Straits Coast Guard Command
• Sarıyer Marine Development Center
• Şile Water Sports Club
• Turkish Sailing Federation
• Tuzla Yacht Club
• Otism Foundation
• Turkish Marine Environment Protection Association
• Edding Türkiye
• Lego
• Eti Balık Kraker
• Uludağ limonata
• Gruppo Gimoka
• Paul Dwyer
• Beysun Gökçin
• Beygü Gökçin
• Dolunay Obruk
• Ayşegül Dinçkök

April 23, 2018 ‘National Sovereignity and Children’s Day’ Celebrated With Marine Activites at Bebek Bay in Istanbul

We believe it is very important for the future of Turkey to introduce our children in early childhood, to life by the seas and to transform their fear of the seas into a passion for life at sea.

We know that it is in our hands to bring together our beautiful ‘blue country’ with ‘blue civilization’. When the two are united we can be more independent, more democratic, more rational, more scientific, more productive, more hardworking, more courageous and more environmentally cautious. In the end, we shall be more prosperous and happier.

With such awareness, as we did in previous years, we celebrated this year’s ‘National Sovereignity and Children’s Day’ together with children and their families, embracing the sea with marine activities.

As Bebekliler Association and Bebek Citizens’ Initiative (Bebek Semt Girişimi – BSG) we organised our third event together with Koç University Maritime Forum (Koç Üniversitesi Denizcilik Forumu – KUDENFOR) and Sarıyer Municipality’s Center for Maritime Affairs (Sarıyer Denizcileşme Merkezi), the two organisations that had initially inspired us. We planned the day together with Bahçeşehir University Turkish Straits Research Center (Bahçeşehir Üniversitesi Türk Boğazları Uygulama ve Araştırma Merkezi – BAU TURBAM), Ortaköy Yacht Club, DAK-SAR Search and Rescue at Istanbul Seas (NGO DAK-SAR Gönüllü Deniz Arama ve Kurtarma Örgütü) and the Platform of Bosphorus Associations (Boğaziçi Dernekleri Platformu – BODEP).

In the background of this annual event lies Bebekliler Association and Bebek Citizens’ Initiative’s dream of “developing a center, a focal point in Bebek for sea sports. Our aim is to provide free lessons and training in swimming, sailing, rowing, and other marine activities for the young.”