Istanbul Medeniyet University Sustainability Club continues to develop social responsibility projects to reduce inequalities in education.
IMU Sustainability Club carried out a social responsibility project to eliminate inequalities in early childhood education and to ensure that all children have equal access to quality pre-school education. As an output of the social responsibility project “Material Support to Village Schools”, which focuses on both waste management and educational equality, finger puppets were presented to preschool education classrooms across Turkey as a gift for April 23rd National Sovereignty and Children’s Day.
The project, carried out by the IMU Sustainability Club, was realized in two phases. In the first phase, which focused on the reuse of resources and minimizing the consumption of new resources by upcycling waste, upcycling workshops were organized to design and produce puppets. In 3 workshops held on April 05, April 19 and April 23, participants made puppet designs with waste fabrics, felt and unused materials they brought from their homes. Previously collected waste paper was used to make the puppet molds. With these workshops, over 100 finger puppets were produced and 8 sets of puppets with different themes were prepared.
Following the preparation of the puppets, the IMU Sustainability Club (IMUSUS) made an announcement on social media to reach pre-school classes in need of materials, and schools in need were asked to fill out forms with the necessary information. IMUSUS board members evaluated these applications at a meeting held on May 02, 2024 and determined the schools to which the puppets would be sent. Furkan ERUÇAR, the club president, stated that in the selection of schools, regions with high socio-economic inequalities, earthquake zones and village schools were prioritized. After the evaluation of the applications, the IMUSUS team presented 8 sets containing a total of 100 puppets to 8 schools in Bitlis, Şanlıurfa, Hatay and Diyarbakır. The gifts, which were packaged with the work of the community members, were mailed to the schools.
The project team stated that recycling and upcycling activities will continue with different materials and concepts in order to reduce the amount of waste produced within the campus areas and to produce corporate responsibility projects that will support the zero waste policy of our University and informed that those interested can follow the workshops and activities on @surdurulebilir_imu Instagram account.
