Yunus Emre Institute (YEI) organized an "Advisory Board Meeting" to discuss the activities that can be carried out within the scope of the promotion of Turkish language and culture in different geographies of the world on the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Turkey.

Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, Yunus Emre Foundation Advisory Board Chairman, Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Dr. Serdar Çam, Yunus Emre Institute President Prof. Dr. Ateş, O3 Media Founder Saner Ayar and many academics, writers and artists attended the meeting held in Istanbul on October 6, 2022.

Speaking at the opening of the board meeting, Ateş said that Yunus Emre Foundation consists of organs such as the board of trustees, board of directors, supervisory board, and advisory board and that these boards work efficiently under the chairmanship of Minister Ersoy.

"WE ARE TRYING TO DEVELOP STRATEGIES THAT WILL ESTABLISH TURKEY'S TIES WITH THE WORLD"

Prof. Dr. Ateş stated that they are trying to develop strategies that will reflect Turkey's awareness, recognition, and reputation in the best way and establish Turkey's ties with the world and that they are implementing programs suitable for each country in this direction.

Ateş said, "I would like to take this opportunity to thank our Minister for the most active work of all organs of Yunus Emre Foundation since the day he took office and for his decisive attitude in solving all the problems of the foundation."

Noting that they gathered to hold the meeting of the Advisory Board, one of the most important and most comprehensive organs of Yunus Emre Foundation, Ateş stated the following:

Yunus Emre Vakfının en önemli ve en kapsamlı organlarından Danışma Kurulunun toplantısını yapmak üzere toplandıklarını kaydeden Ateş, şunları ifade etti:

"All of your views and opinions to be expressed at the Advisory Board will be recorded. These views and opinions will be evaluated at the Board of Directors and Board of Trustees meetings as much as possible and will be reflected in the action plans for 2023. Your views and opinions that you cannot fully express here today due to time constraints will definitely be evaluated when you submit them in writing to our Institute."

Ateş stated that their subtitle for 2023 is "The Centennial of our Republic" and their slogans are "Turkey growing with the Republic" and "We weave the world with cultural networks".

"THE TURKISH NATION HAS SET A NEW PATH FOR ITSELF IN THIS CENTURY"

Emphasizing that the Turkish nation has set a new path for itself in this century, Ateş used the following expressions:

"The Turkish nation wrote a painful but hopeful future in history, where it drew a new map, and in the end, not content with the mission we once boldly claimed; we opened the Republic to new universes with new doors. We have changed and modified."

Ateş said that the most important common action of the human adventure is to get acquainted, so they continue on their way with Yunus Emre's principle of "Come and Let’s Meet’’.

Stating that Turkey has come to a historical turning point, Ateş said:

"As important as it was in 1923 to promote and explain the Republic of Turkey all over the world, it is just as important today, on its 100th anniversary. As we witness the centenary of our Republic, we can look to the future much more fearlessly and decisively because the unique wind we have at our back opens our horizons and gives us strength and hope. Anatolian wisdom, in which hundreds of years of wisdom have been distilled and got in, guides us. Now we need to prepare for the next century and do bigger things."

Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy commented on cultural diplomacy activities and Turkish TV series.

"LOOKING AT SEVENTY-TWO NATIONS WITH ONE EYE"

Speaking at the Yunus Emre Institute ( YEI) Advisory Board Meeting held at CVK Park Bosphorus Hotel within the framework of the "2023 Vision of Yunus Emre Institute", Ersoy thanked the members of the advisory board for their contributions to shaping Turkey's cultural diplomacy policies.

Minister Ersoy said that Yunus Emre, the mystic and poet who gave his name to the institute, was the voice of a timeless call that put human beings at its center and added: "His approach and advice of 'looking at seventy-two nations with one eye' is the road map of a world full of peace and tranquility that we long for in today's world and the cure for the human tragedies that bleed our conscience and racist approaches that are a great shame. That is why the teachings of Yunus, a monument of our civilization's approach to humanity, have always been our guide in Turkey's 'People-Oriented Public and Cultural Diplomacy' practices. Yunus Emre Institute is the door to transform this guidance into action and work."

Stating that this door opens from history to culture, language to art, Ersoy said, "We are the interlocutor of those who enters the door. The more accurately we explain ourselves, the greater the benefit we will achieve and the more effective the benefit we will add to the life of our interlocutor will be."

"WE WILL CONTINUE TO USE DIPLOMACY AS THE KEY TO PEACEFUL TOMORROW"

Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy pointed out that the fates of nations are becoming increasingly interconnected and said:

"The experience of our age has shown us that the destinies of nations have become more interdependent than ever before. While timely humanitarian interventions in the prevention of regional and global crises and conflicts turn this dependency into a major, positive factor, policies and interest approaches pursued in the opposite direction unfortunately deepen the problems. As always, we will continue our solution-oriented work and use diplomacy as the key to a peaceful tomorrow. At this point, it should be emphasized. Countries that do not strengthen traditional diplomatic practices with alternative diplomatic means, such as 'Public Diplomacy', 'Cultural Diplomacy', 'Strategic Communication', 'Digital Diplomacy', 'Science Diplomacy', 'Sports Diplomacy' and 'Gastro Diplomacy', that cannot use them in coordination and that do not prepare their young for the future with the principle of ‘citizen diplomat’ will face hard times in the future. Our plenary session topic is a reflection of this reality. We're putting out a goal, not a conversation title."

Underlining the need to reach people who enrich the world with their diversity by transcending geographical, social, cultural, economic, political, ethnic, and religious differences through innovative tools in the natural flow of life, touching their lives and thus enabling them to establish a bond with Turkey, Ersoy said: "In order to achieve this goal, we have to determine a roadmap and produce projects in line with our traditional intercultural communication and interaction methods as well as new life practices that are digitalized and virtualized. We must keep up with the new and even put forward the new one ourselves."

Ersoy emphasized the importance of being able to meet people in their own lives and preferences in order to catch up with the speed of the digital world and to stand out from the enormous size and variety of content offered by social media, and said, "We should be able to be their choice and reach them in their own comfort zone. So we have to be part of the flow of life, as we have said. Otherwise, as you can appreciate, we will have problems in reaching our goals and target audience and in sustainability."

"ALTHOUGH THE BOND OF HEART STARTS WITH CULTURAL INTERACTION, IT AFFECTS MANY AREAS"

Stating that the research conducted by Dr. Melih Barut from Hacettepe University was carried out by Yunus Emre Institute on approximately 5 thousand people from 125 countries learning Turkish in different parts of the world in the first half of the year, Ersoy gave the following information:

"This study demonstrated with numbers the incredible impact of Turkish TV series on intercultural interaction. This field study has shown that our TV series have turned into cultural ambassadors that directly contribute to intercultural interaction, meeting viewers regularly in the most comfortable corners of their homes. As in the cases of Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Chile, Turkish TV series in Latin America have played, and are still playing, an accelerating role in building bridges of the heart between the citizens of these countries and Turkey in an unprecedented way. In line with the goal we have set, the lives of the audience are touched, regardless of their geographical location and the sociocultural realities in which they live. Although this bond starts with cultural interaction, it affects many areas such as foreign trade, tourism, education, health, defense, and international security, and paves the way for building new ties."

Minister Ersoy stated that it has become a necessity to expand intercultural communication areas through Turkish TV series, feature-length visual works, short films, digital games, and various contents of the virtual universe, in addition to traditional interaction tools, and said, "O3 Medya Founder Saner Ayar, who shared his evaluations with us as a special speaker today, revealed from a much broader and deeper perspective how the sector can be a stakeholder in intercultural interaction with more than 30 years of experience."

Ersoy also thanked Prof. Dr. Şeref Ateş, the President of Yunus Emre Institute, for organizing the meeting, which will shed light on the determination of innovative intercultural interaction strategies to be implemented by Yunus Emre Institute in the field and the new expansions of Turkey's cultural diplomacy policies, and culture, art, science and business people, representatives of institutions and organizations who attended the meeting.