Grandpa Earth and Grandpa Leaf Commemorated with Longing on the Anniversary of Their Deaths

TEMA Foundation organised a commemoration week between 20 - 25 January on the 4th anniversary of the death of TEMA Foundation Founding Honorary Presidents Hayrettin Karaca and the 1st anniversary of the death of A. Nihat Gökyiğit, who devoted their lives to the protection of natural assets. While TEMA Foundation volunteers commemorated the two nature sages with great longing with various activities throughout the week, they visited the graves of Grandpa Earth and Grandpa Leaf in İstanbul.

They were commemorated at their graves

On the 4th anniversary of his death, a ceremony was held for Hayrettin Karaca, Grandpa Earth, who passed away on January 20, 2020 at his grave in İstanbul Edirnekapı Cemetery. A wreath with the inscription "Our Grandpa Earth, we will always remember you, we follow the footsteps of our founders" was laid on Karaca's grave, and then prayers were said.

A. Nihat Gökyiğit, Granpa Leaf, who passed away on January 25, 2023, was also commemorated at his grave on the anniversary of his death. Prayers were said after a wreath was placed on Gökyiğit's grave with the words "Our Grandpa Leaf, we will always remember you, we follow the footsteps of our founders."

TEMA Foundation managers, volunteers and headquarters employees, as well as family members, attended both ceremonies.

“We will continue to follow their footsteps”

Stating that they commemorate the deceased Hayrettin Karaca and A. Nihat Gökyiğit with great gratitude and mercy, Ms. Deniz Ataç, Chairperson of TEMA Foundation, said, “We deeply feel the pain of the absence of our two Founding Honorary Presidents. When Mr. Hayrettin Karaca and Mr. A. Nihat Gökyiğit founded the TEMA Foundation, dedicating their hearts to protecting nature, they were 70 and 67 years of respectively. They taught us that it is never too late to take action to protect our nature. They worked hard throughout their lives to formulate solutions that protect water, air, forest, biodiversity and all our natural assets, especially to protect soil against erosion and desertification. Because they worked wholeheartedly and paved the way for us, they became not only our Founding Honorary Presidents, but also our Grandpa Earth and Grandpa Leaf. We would like to express our gratitude once again to our Founding Honorary Presidents, the deceased Hayrettin Karaca and the deceased A. Nihat Gökyiğit. Without their light, we would not be able to find our way. We will never forget their teachings and we will continue to follow their footsteps."

“The key to this popular movement they created was volunteerism”

Başak Yalvaç Özçağdaş, General Manager of TEMA Foundation, said, “When Mr. Hayrettin Karaca and Mr. A. Nihat Gökyiğit set out, they dreamed of TEMA Foundation becoming a public movement to which young and old alike could contribute. They believed that the key to this popular movement was volunteerism. They always paid great attention to coming together especially with young people. Today, just as they imagined when they set out, TEMA Foundation is a people's movement with more than 1 million volunteers. We see their love of nature, their ideas and their lifestyle, which we take as an example, as a trust they left with us."

Their memories are kept alive in two important projects of the Foundation

TEMA Foundation initiated the "Hayrettin Karaca Old Growth Forests Project" in 2021 to protect the old growth forests, which are of great value in Türkiye and which Grandpa Earth Hayrettin Karaca also attaches importance to.

As a result of the work carried out by the TEMA Foundation, 19 forest areas in Artvin, 2,795 hectares in size, or 4000 football pitches, were registered as "old growth forest", also with the contributions of the General Directorate of Forestry, Department of Forestry Administration and Planning.

In the provinces of Ordu and Giresun, 27 forest areas, 3,754 hectares in size, or approximately 5,000 football pitches, were registered as “old growth forest."

Due to the importance the Foundation attaches to biodiversity, which is among the most pressing problems facing the planet, in 2021, Grandpa Leaf A. Nihat Gökyiğit initiated the "A. Nihat Gökyiğit Biological Diversity Project" named after him.

Within the scope of the project, in order to raise awareness, a promotional movie posing the question "Are We Aware?" as well as movies with the themes of "Healing", "Climate", "Food" and "Heritage" were produced and shared with the public. To date, 3,670,250 people have been reached through the movies.

In the project, representative presentations were made for pre-primary, primary, secondary and high schools and adults in order to popularise the concept of biodiversity starting from 2022. Approximately 36,000 children and young people were reached through presentations. More than 2,500 people were reached with awareness presentations developed for young people and adults.

Hayrettin Karaca and A. Nihat Gökyiğit Volunteerism Awards

Following the deaths of Hayrettin Karaca and A. Nihat Gökyiğit, TEMA Foundation organises an award ceremony to keep their memories alive.

While 86 volunteers received awards within the scope of the "Hayrettin Karaca Volunteerism Awards" held between 2020 and 2022, the name of the award program was changed to "Hayrettin Karaca and Ali Nihat Gökyiğit Volunteerism Awards" as of 2023. In 2023, 50 TEMA Foundation volunteers were awarded.

“Hayrettin Karaca and Ali Nihat Gökyiğit Volunteerism Awards” are awarded in 5 different categories: Recruitment of Volunteers, Productivity, Educational Studies, Hope Growers and Advocacy.

We are raising hope!                                                             TEMA Foundation