Ersin Tek — Civil Society, Strategy & Public Change

About

Between the office and the street.

Ersin works where public pressure becomes an institutional question.

A campaign that needs direction. A humanitarian response that needs structure. A civil society organisation under pressure. A public debate that needs moral clarity. A funding system that needs to become usable. A new tool that must serve people rather than distract them.

His work brings together leadership, research, campaign experience, institutional strategy and public writing. He has worked across environmental movements, refugee response, human rights, climate justice, animal rights, civil society development and democratic space.

Today, he is the co-founder of SICI — Social Institute of Change and Impact — and develops work around organisational change, impact, funding intelligence, COP preparation and technology for civil society.

Working principle

Turn thoughts into plans, plans into actions, and actions into results.

Practice

What people come to me for.

Not a menu of services. More like the situations where my experience is useful: when the issue is messy, public, political, organisational or hard to move.

When things are unclear.

Some organisations know something needs to change, but the problem is scattered across people, pressure, politics, funding, strategy and daily work. I help make the situation readable and turn it into decisions people can act on.

Diagnosis Strategy Decision support Route maps

This can look likeStrategy review, organisational diagnosis, decision memos, change routes, leadership support or a practical plan for the next 90 days.

Useful whenThe team is stuck, the context has changed, the old plan no longer works or everyone sees a different problem.

When a campaign needs shape.

Campaigns need more than a message. They need timing, pressure, credible demands, public emotion, media logic and a sense of where the next move should be. I work on the architecture behind public action.

Campaign strategy Messaging Public pressure Mobilisation

This can look likeCampaign framing, public narrative, escalation logic, stakeholder mapping, media angles or action planning.

Useful whenAn issue matters but is not yet moving, or when public attention exists but the campaign lacks direction.

When civil society needs systems.

Good civil society work often suffers from weak internal systems: scattered evidence, rushed proposals, unclear learning, fragile funding routines or overloaded teams. I help build practical structures without killing the purpose of the work.

NGO capacity Funding systems MEL Evidence

This can look likeFunding readiness, grant workflows, evidence packs, MEL redesign, internal templates or proposal preparation systems.

Useful whenThe organisation is doing valuable work but loses time, confidence or opportunities because the system behind it is weak.

When public voice matters.

Sometimes the work is not only internal. It is about saying the right thing clearly, understanding public responsibility, reading the political moment and finding language that can carry the issue without flattening it.

Public voice Commentary Civic space Institutional responsibility

This can look likePositioning notes, public statements, commentary, speaking preparation, narrative review or civic conversation design.

Useful whenThe issue is sensitive, contested or morally important, and the organisation needs clarity rather than noise.

Selected experienceField → Institution

Leadership shaped by real pressure.

Ersin’s experience moves across activism, humanitarian response, environmental campaigns, rights-based work, public commentary and organisational leadership.

The pattern is not a single sector. It is a repeated ability to work where the stakes are public, the pressure is real and the route forward is not obvious.

Greenpeace Mediterranean

Regional Executive Director, 2020–2023. Led work across Turkey, Israel and Malta, with public engagement on climate justice, biodiversity, coal, environmental protection, Mediterranean pollution, COP and institutional responsibility.

Children of One World

Country Director for Turkey and Northern Syria. Worked on humanitarian response, refugee issues, education, child protection, local government engagement, institutional development and inclusive programme design.

Amnesty International & ALİKEV

Earlier work across human rights, refugee advocacy, international conference work, youth programming, civic memory, scholarships and organisational structuring.

Public advocacy & civic work

Public-facing work across animal rights, anti-discrimination, civic space, democratic participation, social forums, public statements, panels and media appearances.

SICI

Co-founder of Social Institute of Change and Impact, developing advisory work, tools and initiatives for organisations working on social, environmental and institutional change.

Built work

Platforms and tools he is building now.

These are current professional initiatives: platforms, tools and knowledge products designed to make civil society work more strategic, prepared and usable.

Platform

SICI

Social Institute of Change and Impact — a platform for strategy, organisational change, social impact, preparation and practical support for organisations working on complex social and environmental issues.

Visit SICI

Tool

Grantise

Funding intelligence and grant workflow for civil society organisations: opportunity mapping, fit assessment, institutional evidence and stronger proposal preparation.

Learn more

Intelligence brief

COP31 Radar

A weekly update brief by SICI for organisations following climate negotiations, COP31 preparations and the practical implications of the road to Antalya.

Read the brief

Public work

Public voice, civic engagement and solidarity.

Alongside professional work, Ersin has taken part in public conversations, civic mobilisation and rights-based advocacy. This part of the site brings together podcasts, public statements, animal rights work and civic interventions that belong to public life rather than consultancy.

Podcast / civic conversation

Sivil Çatlaklar

“Ofis ile Sokak Arasında: Sivil Çatlaklar” is a podcast and conversation space with Rümeysa Çamdereli, reflecting on the distance between organised civil society and street movements.

Listen

Advocacy

Animal Rights

Public advocacy and civic engagement around the social mobilisation against Law No. 7527 and its consequences for street animals, animal welfare and local policy.

View archive

Public accountability

Institutional Voice

Public commentary on how large civil society institutions respond when rights, justice and public responsibility are tested — including climate justice, Palestine and the political meaning of institutional silence.

Read interview

A public record, organised.

A concrete archive of interviews, campaign records, programme links, public statements and media appearances — organised by issue, institution and public context.

Greenpeace / Palestine

Climate justice, Palestine and institutional responsibility

Interviews and public commentary on Greenpeace, Palestine, silence and climate justice.

Open

InterviewT24 interview InterviewSerbestiyet interview

Greenpeace / 50th year

Biodiversity, climate crisis and inequality

Greenpeace 50th year coverage and Mediterranean energy politics letter.

Open

News coverageAnka Haber — Greenpeace 50th year News coverageGazete Kolektif — Greenpeace 50th year StatementLetter to Union for the Mediterranean — signatory

Climate / public commentary

Climate crisis in media, panels and public debate

Radio, video and international commentary on climate crisis, forest fires, coal and pollution.

Open

RadioAçık Radyo — Greenpeace Climate Meeting VideoYeşil Gazete video — Greenpeace Climate Meeting VideoMarksist.org video — How will we stop the climate crisis? CommentaryPolitico — Forest fires and climate policy VideoKanal B — Akdeniz Kirleniyor VideoArtı TV — Turkey can exit coal by 2030

COP27 / climate target

Civil society’s call for stronger climate ambition

Coverage of civil society’s call for stronger 2030 climate targets before COP27.

Open

StatementDiken — NGOs warn before COP27 News coverageYeşil Ekonomi — Turkey should set an absolute reduction target StatementWWF Türkiye — 2030 climate target StatementTemiz Enerji — Renewable-centred emission reduction

Children of One World

Education, bullying and local government

Public materials connected to Children of One World, education and local government discussion.

Open

News coverageGaziantep Sabah — Peer bullying VideoYADA Meydan — Local governments and education

Talks / panels / conferences

Panels, forums, talks and conference papers

Panels, talks, conference papers and older civic/academic contributions.

Open

PanelKastamonu University — Climate, environment and ecology panel PanelBeykent University — Another world is possible? ProgrammeTurkish Medical Students Association ProgrammeTürkiye Sosyal Forumu 2006 ProgrammeAnkara University — Nationalism and racism symposium PaperKaraburun 2015 — Hate speech and discrimination paper

Human rights / civic accountability

Rights-based public accountability

International conference work and public accountability items related to rights and discrimination.

Open

News coverageEvrensel — Criminal complaint about Tanju Özcan News coverageGazete Duvar — Criminal complaint about Tanju Özcan ConferenceAmnesty International Turkey — International Conference Refugees book

Animal Rights

Animal rights and the 2024 mobilisation

A full archive of radio, reports, protests, rallies and public statements from the mobilisation against Law No. 7527 and its consequences.

Open

RadioAçık Radyo / Spotify — Hayvan, Yaşam, Özgürlük ReportArtı Gerçek — Animal Protection Day special report PressT24 — Yaşatacağız Platformu press conference Campaign recordArtı Gerçek — 11 July, Süreyya Opera House News coverageArtDog İstanbul — Street dogs proposal Campaign recordMedyatava — Kadıköy action for animal life Campaign recordArtı Gerçek — 13 July, Şişhane Campaign recordT24 — İstanbul protest against the law proposal Campaign recordKRT TV — İstanbul protest Campaign recordFlash Haber TV — İstanbul protest Campaign recordPİRHA — 17 July Kadıköy Life Chain Campaign recordArtı Gerçek — Animal rights advocates address the commission Campaign recordArtı Gerçek — 22 July, Yoğurtçu Campaign recordMedyascope — 27 July protest Campaign recordCumhuriyet — 9 August, AKP building Campaign recordGazete Pencere — 22 August, Fatih Municipality RallyAnka Haber — 1 September, Yenikapı rally RallyKısa Dalga — 1 September rally RallyAgos — Yenikapı rally RallyEpoch Times TR — 30 September Yaşatacağız rally RallyBianet — 30 September rally RallyArtı Gerçek — 30 September march RallyYeşil Gazete — “Biz bitti demeden bitmez”

Coal / energy transition

Against the clean coal fiction

National and international coverage of the clean coal protest and Turkey’s coal policy debate.

Open

News coverageIl Fatto Quotidiano — Italy coverage Campaign recordAnka Haber — Clean coal protest Campaign recordYeşil Gazete — Clean coal technologies summit protest CommentaryEkoIQ — Not condemned to dirty and deadly coal News coverageYakınÇağ — Clean coal technologies summit News coverageHaberler.com — Clean coal protest Social recordGreenpeace International — Instagram reel Social recordGreenpeace International — X post News coverageDW — Turkey should reduce emissions by 35% by 2030

Contact

Let’s talk about change.

For commentary, speaking, collaboration or a focused conversation on strategy, campaigns, civil society, climate, technology, writing or social change, you can get in touch directly.

Send an email Book a conversation