Disaster Relief

Solidarity heals! If you ever feel hopeless, remember solidarity…

In 2003, right after TOG was founded, Community Volunteer Youth rushed to support the Bingöl earthquake, saying: “We are from Bingöl, we are a thousand volunteers.” Since that day, they have always been there—during fires, floods, every disaster. In aid warehouses, in the field, right beside those affected…

Community Volunteer Youth across Türkiye revive hope not only during disasters, but also through awareness trainings before disasters and recovery efforts afterward.

They share the same message every time: “Solidarity heals!” If you ever feel hopeless, remember solidarity…

You too can support one young person’s volunteer work in a disaster area and help strengthen solidarity.
Text TOG to 4555.

Young people have taken action—now it’s your turn!

3 July 2025 İzmir Fire

As the Community Volunteers Foundation (TOG), we supported Community Volunteer youth in participating in volunteer efforts in the disaster areas following the fires that began in İzmir.

TOG Disaster Volunteers, together with officials from the Disaster Platform—of which we are a founding member—visited Buca, Çeşme, and Ödemiş, the areas affected by the fire in İzmir, on July 3.

On July 7, a Humanitarian Aid Warehouse was established in İzmir, and as the Community Volunteers Foundation Disaster Response Unit, a “Stand By” message was sent to 785 young Disaster Volunteers who had participated in Local Disaster Volunteering Dissemination Training, along with 25 trainers who are Disaster Volunteers. With this message and call, the coordination of young people who wished to volunteer at the İzmir Humanitarian Aid Warehouse was organized.

Between July 8–21, different volunteer groups visited four different regions/villages in the Seferihisar district that had been damaged by forest fires and held meetings with local leaders and residents.

Additionally, from July 18–21, psychosocial support kits were distributed to children and hygiene kits to women in Köseler Village in the Ödemiş district, which was affected by forest fires. Fun workshops were also held with the children during this time.

6 February 2023 Pazarcık Earthquake

On 6 February, the earthquake that affected 10 provinces in the Southeastern Anatolia Region deeply impacted all of us. Following the earthquake, which resulted in the destruction of many buildings and tragic losses, hundreds of Community Volunteers mobilized to help heal the wounds of the disaster. Within just a few hours of opening our volunteer application together with the Disaster Platform, nearly 60,000 people applied, saying, “I volunteer to help erase the marks of the disaster.”

Since the day of the earthquake, more than 4,000 volunteers in total have supported unloading, sorting, and packaging efforts in Hatay, Kahramanmaraş, Adıyaman, and Gaziantep—locations where aid trucks were arriving.

Community Volunteers not only took responsibility in the disaster zone but also supported aid centers in their own local areas, helping ensure that aid boxes were prepared correctly. We also directed volunteers to aid collection centers run by many municipalities and private organizations.

Our Support Reaches the Earthquake Zone

To prepare for implementing sustainable projects in the post-disaster recovery period, TOG—acting in line with its principle of transparency—lists the aid sent to the region with the support of its corporate and individual donors as follows: container toilets, showers, generators and generator fuel, industrial stoves, thermal tents, camp beds, sleeping bags, textile materials, and health and hygiene supplies. In addition, two pickup trucks were allocated to the warehouse in Hatay for the distribution of materials.

Local Disaster Volunteering Dissemination Trainings

As of February 16, 2025, the “Local Disaster Volunteering Dissemination Trainings,” conducted by Disaster Volunteer trainers, began across seven different regions of Türkiye and in all provinces. These trainings were held between February 16 and May 18 in 25 cities across Türkiye, consisting of 37 sessions with the participation of 785 young Disaster Volunteers.

Young people who participate in and volunteer for these Local Dissemination Trainings are among the first teams to respond in the event of an emergency or disaster. The Local Dissemination Trainings will continue until December 2025. The training request form can be accessed via this link: Training Request Form.

Detailed information about the Local Dissemination Trainings:

The trainings are implemented under the “Supporting the Capacity of Civil Society Organizations in Disaster Risk Management Project,” carried out in partnership with four founding member NGOs of the Disaster Platform, including TOG. Within the scope of the project, TOG—the most widespread youth foundation in Türkiye—conducts Disaster Volunteering Trainings to raise young people’s awareness about disasters and encourage their participation in volunteer activities.

They are organizing workshops with children and giving lessons to high school students

We have begun establishing TOG Support Centers in the earthquake-affected region to contribute to the social and psychological recovery of children and young people. The first Support Center started as a tent in Elbistan, Kahramanmaraş, and we aim to move it into a prefabricated structure soon through partnerships.

At the tent center, the youth-led “Will You Be My Student?” project team provides lessons to high school and university exam preparation students in the subjects they need. The “Bayer Young Science Ambassadors” project team conducts experiments to help children develop a love for science, while the “Play as Vast as the Sky” team plays games with children to support their healing process. Since last week, young volunteers have carried out workshops with more than 150 children.