On the threshold of the day when we began to feel a great interest in International Relations we’ve made significant progress toward making up for the shortages of our academy and organization, as well as putting together the synergies of eager and self-confident people, notably candidate academicians and experts of international relations, about “self-expression” of which Turkish society lacks.
Carrying out 5 workshops since September 2008 we have worked hard so as to determinate our problems before all. As a result of our negotiations to solve the problems we have tried to provide well-attended conferences within the context of “Anatolian Universities” mostly, rich with young people’s active contributions. For this purpose we have created an environment of interaction by bringing together young people with expert academicians, politicians, diplomats, journalists and NGO administrators in 11 congresses held at several universities
We have proceeded by stages to encourage the young people to give presentations on various topics and to organize the meetings throughout their own efforts crediting them with the ability of organization and with more self-reliance. Furthermore thanks to these conferences young people have had the chance to visit lots of universities, helping them make comparisons and analyse goals and risks with their friends that stay in a rival position actually. Through the encouraging and motivating socialization process, a model of solidarity with positive acceleration which completes the missing parts with another thing has been formed with the help of these conferences.
During the performance of the above-mentioned studies, the TUİÇ Platform succeds to advance step by step, always acting with a roadmap and strategic planning in order to reach its chief objects. One of the most significant examples is that the structure of the “IRST ACADEMY”, as dreamed from the beginning of the road, has now been completed and activated. The TUİÇ Platform was at the primary stage while we were just thinking about the structure of “IRST ACADEMY”.
Our target point is to incite our candidate expert friends in various universities to write analysis, reports, articles and interviews related to the topics of the regions in which they are interested, by institutionalizing a web publishing so as to compose an immortal space that will value all those studies.
Today “IRST ACADEMY” does not only serve in Turkish language, but also in English within “Anatolia Daily” and it contains many precious academicians of Turkey’s eminent strategic thought centers. The TUİÇ Platform is placing at the central point the context of “Public diplomacy”, expected to be resorted frequently by the Turkish Foreign Policy in the coming period. The platform proves its seriousness including Mr İbrahim KALIN, Public Diplomacy Coordinator within the Prime Ministry of Turkey. Another important point is the embodiment inside the “IRST ACADEMY” of the support given by precious representatives of think tanks and by the Public Diplomacy Coordination Agency towards the candidate academicians and experts in undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degree. This embodied panorama is the first in Turkey and besides will contribute a great dynamism to the studies of International Relations.
By the time each individual explores the studies of “IRST ACADEMY”, whether interested in International Relations or not, he may realize a structuring that contains diversity of ideas and respect for this diversity where coexist theory and practise and which the transfer of knowledge from the experts to the young people prepares them to professionalism.
“IRST ACADEMY” structuring will contribute by effectuating internet publishing at “tuicakademi.org” and “anatoliadaily.com” also by contributing academically to arrange some practical work such as “brain-storming”, “round table”, “congresses” and “symposiums” all together with the cooperated think tanks.
Starting with an amateur spirit “IRST ACADEMY” team, which will be institutionalized more precisely in the process of forming the organizational outline as “region”, “topic” and even “country” specialities, will give weight to the field analysis as well as the local and regional languages in the phase of expertise.
Now that “IRST ACADEMY” has swung into action, there are two major objects to follow; promoting to printed publication and making an active contribution to the Turkish foreign policy making process. Pratically we’ve determinated the studies on “Public Diplomacy” in our focus of attention. Believing that in this activity field the energy and dynamism of the youth are of the first order of importance, under all these circumstances we repeat our “cooperation” call on institutions, organizations and individuals who could really “shoulder responsibility”.
We are heavily indebted to members of Public Diplomacy Coordination Agency, USAK, BİLGESAM, TASAM, ORSAM, BASAM and 21. Yüzyıl Enstitüsü for their incouragement on starting this work and for their help in running our web site on active duty for “IRST ACADEMY”.
As the IRST General Coordinator, I would like to Express my gratitude to all of our volunteers taking part in the process of formation of “IRST ACADEMY”, especially to our colleagues having worked day and night for the preparation of the web sites. All that we made real for IRST Platform was only a dream yesterday. So I beg all the IRST volunteers keeping on dreaming, may “IRST ACADEMY” be auspicious for the International Relations community.
BURAK YALIM
IRST GENERAL COORDINATOR
(Translated by Gökçe Hubar, TUİÇ member)
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