Q: What inspired the idea behind the Best Practices NGO Leadership Academy?
Haldun Tashman: The idea really comes from my own experience in business and from something I have believed for a long time: there is always a better way of doing things, and one of the best ways to improve is to learn from people who are already doing something exceptionally well.

We were in the medical device plastics business in the United States, in a very competitive industry. At one point, I attended a seminar with Dr. W. Edwards Deming, who became famous for his work on quality and management and for helping transform manufacturing practices in Japan. He was already in his 90s when I had the opportunity to hear him. That experience had a tremendous impact on me. It changed the way I thought about management, quality, leadership, and improvement.

Q: What did you take away from Deming’s philosophy?
Haldun Tashman: One of the most important lessons was that quality does not happen simply because people work harder. You have to design systems that help people succeed and that prevent mistakes from happening in the first place. He taught us to look continuously at the system: Where are the problems? Why are they happening? What can we change so they do not happen again?

The idea of continuous improvement stayed with me. You never reach a point where you say, “We are finished. We know everything.” You continue asking: How can we do this better? We brought many of those principles into our own company. In a very competitive industry, we were ultimately able to become one of the leading companies in our field, particularly when it came to quality.

Q: How did learning from others influence the way you ran your company?
Haldun Tashman: I was always looking outside our own company. Who is doing this better than we are? What are they doing differently? What can we learn from them? I would go to Germany, attend trade fairs, visit companies, talk to people, and observe how other organizations operated. Sometimes you discover very simple things that completely change the way you work.

For example, at one point we were operating our facilities five days a week while others in the industry were operating seven days. Simply changing the way we thought about our production schedule gave us the ability to significantly increase capacity. You cannot assume that because you have been doing something one way for many years, it is the best way. Knowledge often comes from outside. That has stayed with me throughout my life.

Q: Why do you think this idea is especially important for nonprofit leaders?
Haldun Tashman: Because the principle is exactly the same. Whether you are running a company, a nonprofit organization, or any institution, you should always be asking: How can we become better at what we do? There are best practices in governance. There are best practices in fundraising, finance, management, communications, transparency, hiring people, developing staff, building trust, and working with your board.

You do not have to discover all of these things yourself. Someone somewhere has already learned something that can help you. The purpose of this Academy is to open that door and give nonprofit leaders an opportunity to learn from experts, from organizations that have developed strong practices, and from one another. “Someone somewhere has already learned something that can help you.”

Q: Why should a nonprofit leader participate in the Academy if they are already experienced?
Haldun Tashman: Because learning has no age. It is a little like an athlete going to a training camp. Even the best athletes continue working with coaches. They continue practicing. They study what other great athletes are doing because they still want to improve. Leadership should be the same.You may already know some of the things your organization needs. Maybe you know you need to improve fundraising, governance, financial management, or communications.
But there are also things you do not yet know that you need to know.That is very important.There are things you are aware you need to learn, and there are things you have not yet discovered. A program like this gives you the opportunity to find both.

Q: What do you hope participants will gain from the Academy?
Haldun Tashman: I hope they leave asking better questions.
How do we gain people’s trust?
How do we become more transparent?
How do we fundraise more effectively?
How do we select and develop good people?
How do we work better with our board?
How do we create systems that allow our organization to grow?
How do we build quality into everything we do?

An organization is made up of many processes. Even something that seems very simple, such as thanking a donor, is part of a larger process. Hiring someone is a process. Training people is a process. Continuing education should be a process. When you start looking at an organization this way, you can begin designing better ways of working rather than simply reacting to problems. My hope is that participants will not only learn new ideas, but will go back to their organizations and put those ideas into practice.

Q: What does “best practices” mean to you?
Haldun Tashman: Best practices does not mean copying someone else.It means looking at people who are achieving excellent results and understanding the principles behind what they are doing. Then you ask: What can I learn from this? How can I apply it to my organization? How can we make it work for us? That is how organizations grow. You look outside. You learn. You adapt. You practice. And then you continue improving. There is always something more to learn and always a better way of doing something.

Q: Why is investing in leadership so important to you?
Haldun Tashman: Giving grants is important. Organizations need financial resources to do their work. But I believe giving people knowledge can be an even greater gift. Money can support a project. Knowledge can change the way someone leads an organization for many years.

If you can help a leader become better at managing people, raising funds, building trust, creating strong systems, or developing the organization, that knowledge continues to create value long after the original investment is made. That is what I hope this Academy can do. We are opening a door. We are bringing knowledge, experience, and people together. What participants do with that opportunity is up to them. But the goal is very simple: Learn from the best. Apply what you learn. And never stop asking, “How can we do better?”


About Haldun Tashman
Haldun Tashman is an entrepreneur, business leader, and philanthropist with a long-standing commitment to education, community building, and strengthening institutions. Born in Bolu, Türkiye, he graduated from Robert College in Istanbul in 1966 and came to the United States as a Fulbright Fellow to attend Columbia Business School. After completing his MBA, he began his career at Deloitte in New York before moving to Phoenix, Arizona, and embarking on his entrepreneurial career.

Tashman became co-owner and manager of The Tech Group, Inc., a plastics contract-manufacturing company serving the pharmaceutical, medical device, consumer products, and personal care industries. Together with his business partner, Steve Uhlmann, he grew the company into an international enterprise with approximately $200 million in annual sales and 12 manufacturing locations across three continents. The Tech Group was acquired by West Pharmaceutical Services in 2005.

Following his business career, Tashman increasingly turned his attention to philanthropy. His own experience with the Arizona Community Foundation introduced him to the potential of the community foundation model: bringing people together around shared needs, creating structures for effective giving, and building institutions that can serve communities over the long term. He and his wife, Nihal, also helped bring that model to Türkiye through the establishment of the Bolu Community Foundation, the country’s first community foundation.

In 2007, Tashman brought that same vision to the Turkish-American community as one of the founders and Founding Chairman of Turkish Philanthropy Funds (TPF). His goal was not simply to create another charitable organization, but to build a trusted platform through which people could come together, give strategically, and strengthen civil society in Türkiye. Today, he serves as Chairman Emeritus of TPF, continuing a relationship with the organization that has spanned nearly two decades.

The Best Practices NGO Leadership Academy reflects the next chapter of that philosophy. Drawing on lessons from a lifetime in business, philanthropy, and institution building, Tashman believes that financial resources alone are not enough to build strong organizations. Leaders also need access to knowledge, effective management practices, new perspectives, and opportunities to learn from those who are doing things well.

Through the Haldun Tashman Fund at TPF, his support of the Academy represents an investment not just in individual nonprofit leaders, but in the long-term strength and effectiveness of civil society in Türkiye.

About the Best Practices NGO Leadership Academy
The Best Practices NGO Leadership Academy is a nine-month leadership development program for nonprofit leaders in Türkiye, created in partnership by Turkish Philanthropy Funds (TPF) and Arizona State University’s Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation, with support from the Haldun Tashman Fund at TPF.

The Academy brings together a select cohort of nonprofit professionals to strengthen their leadership and organizational capabilities through executive education, peer learning, and practical application. Participants explore areas such as governance, financial management, fundraising, communications, organizational sustainability, and leadership, while applying what they learn to real challenges within their own organizations.

At its core, the Academy is designed around a simple idea: strong organizations are built by leaders who continue to learn, question, improve, and learn from others.


About W. Edwards Deming
W. Edwards Deming was an American statistician, professor, and management thinker whose ideas helped shape modern approaches to quality and organizational improvement. He became especially influential through his work with Japanese industry after World War II and later through his widely known 14 Points for Management. At the center of Deming’s philosophy was the belief that leaders should continually improve the systems in which people work, rather than simply focus on individual errors. His ideas on quality, learning, and continuous improvement influenced organizations around the world.

Strengthening teacher capacity is especially urgent. The latest PISA results place Türkiye 34th in mathematics and 33rd in science out of 81 countries, underscoring the need to equip teachers with the tools, training, and resilience required to prepare students for a rapidly changing world. By empowering teachers, we not only lift educational outcomes but also drive broader social and economic development—teachers are the catalysts for lifelong learning, civic participation, and innovation.

Through investments in professional development and mental health support for educators, we can improve classroom performance, enhance student well-being, and strengthen the very foundation of our communities. Together with our partners, we ensure that teachers are equipped to inspire, support, and rebuild, giving students the chance to learn, grow, and reach their fullest potential.

Join us at our upcoming Voices of Partners webinar on Wednesday, October 22nd, featuring ÖRAV (Öğretmen Akademisi Vakfı), Anadolu Vakfi, and Öğretmen Ağı. These organizations are shaping the future by reimagining teacher training, wellbeing, and professional development. From innovative classroom practices to building resilience in disaster-affected regions, their work demonstrates that supporting teachers is one of the most effective ways to advance educational goals and directly shape the future of entire communities.

Featured Speakers:
Arzu Atasoy, ÖRAV
Irmak Akıncı Canbaz, Öğretmen Ağı
Evrim Hizaler, Anadolu Vakfı

About ÖRAV (Öğretmen Akademisi Vakfı):

ÖRAV Vakfı is Türkiye’s first and only NGO dedicated to the professional and personal development of teachers. Through its innovative platforms and nationwide training programs, ÖRAV empowers educators to enhance their skills and adapt to modern teaching methods. By investing in teachers, ÖRAV strengthens the foundation of education, ensuring that every child has access to quality learning and the opportunity to thrive.

About Anadolu Vakfi:
Anadolu Vakfı is dedicated to supporting the social development of individuals and communities across Türkiye. Anadolu Vakfı has built and supported more than 50 educational institutions, dormitories, sports facilities, hospitals, and health centers, impacting countless lives. Through its initiatives, the foundation continues to invest in the future of Türkiye, fostering a brighter tomorrow for all.

About Öğretmen Ağı:
Öğretmen Ağı is a nationwide network that empowers teachers through collaboration, professional development, and peer support. With over 1,000 “Change Ambassadors” across 62 cities, the network fosters a culture of lifelong learning and collective impact. By connecting educators with diverse disciplines and resources, Öğretmen Ağı strengthens the teaching profession and drives educational transformation across Turkiye

GIVE NOW TO TPF SCHOLARSHIP FUND

SUPPORT THE TPF TURKIYE EARTHQUAKE FUND

As we approach the end of 2024, Turkish Philanthropy Funds (TPF) is here to assist with your year-end giving and grant-making, ensuring you meet tax deadlines. We encourage early planning to maximize benefits.

Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) and Bunching Strategy
If you’re uncertain about which causes to support, consider opening a donor-advised fund (DAF) at TPF. This allows you to receive a tax deduction now and decide on charities later. A popular strategy is “bunching,” where you combine multiple years of donations into one, maximizing your deduction in 2024 while distributing grants over time. New DAFs can be opened by noon on Monday, December 30.
Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD) from Your IRA
Donate Appreciated Stock

To take advantage of this, contact your broker and make sure the transfer is completed by Friday, December 20. Notify TPF, and we will provide stock transfer instructions.
Important Year-End Deadlines

• Check Gifts: Postmarked by December 31, 2024, or physically received by December 30 for express carriers.

• Stock Gifts: Transfer by Friday, December 20, 2024.

• Wire Transfers: Initiate by Friday, December 27, 2024, to be received by December 30.

• Online Contributions: May be made until midnight on December 31, 2024.

• Real Estate Gifts: Transfer title by December 20, 2024.

If you or your spouse are 70½ or older, each can direct up to $100,000 from your traditional IRA to TPF through a QCD. Starting at age 73, QCDs can offset required minimum distributions (RMD), lowering your taxable income. Remember, QCDs must go directly from your IRA to TPF and cannot be used for donor-advised funds. 

In 2024, since you can now only claim a deduction up to 60% of your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) if you itemize, the value of making a QCD has increased as the tax savings on the gifted funds can offset the lost deductions. QCDs are another area that require careful planning and should involve your advisors.

For more information, contact Pinar Ozyurek at 646.530.8988 or pinar@tpfund.org.

Consider donating appreciated stock for year-end gifts. You avoid capital gains tax and can claim a deduction for the stock’s full market value. By donating long-term appreciated securities, you can increase your gift’s value and your tax deduction. An illustration of the value you would realize if you donated your appreciated stock to TPF appears below. (Note: To bypass long-term capital gains, you need to have owned the stock you select for gifting at least 366 days)

The original cost of the stock: $50,000

Potential federal long-term capital gains rate: 20%

The current value of the stock:  $150,000

The additional amount dedicated to the nonprofit organization is an average of $20K (the value of the capital gains tax). The value to you is a higher tax deduction and a greater charitable gift.

For donor-advised fund holders, grant recommendations should be made by Friday, December 6, 2024, to ensure nonprofits receive grants this year. Donor-advised grant recommendations could be made by logging into your account online.

For further assistance, please contact TPF Philanthropy Director, Pinar Ozyurek at 646.530.8988 or pinar@tpfund.org.

Note: This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to be legal or financial advice. Please contact your own professional advisor for individual financial and legal advice.

In February 2023, two massive earthquakes in Southern Türkiye caused thousands of people to perish and left many more homeless, injured, and traumatized. As the earthquake relief efforts shift to the longer-lasting rebuild phase, medical doctors both in the US and Türkiye have worked together to establish Turkiye’s first rehabilitation center, Child Wellness Center, to provide a long-lasting medical support system for the children who were left without limbs.

This center will provide prosthetics and physical therapy, in the long run, to amputee children, ensuring they receive age-appropriate orthopedic aids, physical therapy, and psychological support. www.cocukiyilikmerkezi.org has been created for medical doctors of amputee children to register their patients to receive medical treatment.

Your donation will go towards providing orthopedic aids, physical therapy, and psychological support to these children and funding the operation of this center, providing the necessary resources to help amputee children receive the care they need to move forward. Your support can help provide the necessary resources to ensure that these children receive the care they deserve.

By joining the Child Wellness Center Giving Circle, you can provide hope and healing to those affected by these devastating earthquakes.

Prof. Dr. Metin Karaböcüoğlu
Prof. Dr. Yonca Bulut
Prof Dr. Pelin Cengiz
Prof. Dr. Aclan Doğan
Prof. Dr. Hayri Levent Yılmaz
Dr. Nilüfer Esen Bilgin
Prof. Dr. Haluk Çokuğraş
Prof. Dr. Dinçer Yıldıztaş
Prof. Dr. Meryem Tuncel
Prof. Dr. Gökhan Hotamışlıgil

Çocuk İyilik Merkezi Bağış Halkası’na hoş geldiniz!

2023 Şubat ayında Türkiye’nin güneyindeki iki büyük deprem on binlerce insanın hayatını kaybetmesine ve birçok insanin evsiz, yaralı ve travmatize olmasina neden oldu . Deprem yardım çabaları daha uzun süreli yeniden yapılanma aşamasına geçerken Amerika Birleşik Devletleri ve Türkiye’deki tıp doktorları, uzuvlarını kaybetmiş çocuklar için uzun vadeli bir tıbbi destek sistemi sağlamak amacıyla Türkiye’nin ilk rehabilitasyon merkezi olan Çocuk İyilik Merkezi Projesi’ni kurmak için birlikte çalıştılar.

Bu merkez, protez ve fizik tedavi sağlayarak uzuvlarını kaybetmiş çocuklara uzun vadede yaşlarına uygun ortopedik yardımlar, fizik tedavi ve psikolojik destek sağlayacak. www.cocukiyilikmerkezi.org ampute çocukların tıbbi tedavi almak için kaydolabileceği bir platform olarak oluşturuldu.

Bağışınız, bu çocuklara ortopedik yardım, fizik tedavi ve psikolojik destek sağlamak ve bu merkezin faaliyetlerini finanse etmek için kullanılacak, böylece uzuvlarını kaybetmiş çocukların gelecege yonelik  ihtiyaç duydukları bakımı almalarını sağlamak için gerekli kaynaklar sağlayacaktir. Boylelikle, sizlerin desteği ile bu çocukların hak ettikleri bakımı alabilmeleri için gerekli kaynakları sağlamaya yardımcı olabilecegiz.

Çocuk İyilik Merkezi Bağış Halkası’na katılarak, bu yıkıcı depremlerden etkilenenlere umut ve şifa sağlayabilirsiniz.

Support Now – Children Wellness Center

As we celebrate our 16th year, we would like to honor all those who have made this journey possible, starting with the six visionaries who founded Turkish Philanthropy Funds and the incredible legacy they have created. Through their vision, we have built a community around giving with over 10,000 donors and 70+ partners and granted over $28M in support of 300+ projects in 180+ cities. TPF is truly a community foundation, and we couldn’t do what we do without each of YOU!

We honor our 10,000+ donors for giving back to our communities and making every day at TPF an opportunity to advocate for others. We are amazed and humbled by how many have committed to giving and getting involved with TPF. They are our sole purpose and drive our passion and continuous striving for excellence as a community foundation.

We honor our 70+ partners who support, enhance, and contribute to the work we do each day. They are relentless in their pursuit of excellence to provide for our communities in need every day on the ground. We are grateful for the partnerships we have built with a dedicated and experienced community of organizations over the years and are excited to continue to grow our support to them, especially in key areas of need. Their passion, hard work, and dedication have enabled us to make a positive, lasting impact on the lives of over ONE MILLION people.

We honor all the leaders of TPF, from our current and past board members and advisory board members to committee members. We are deeply grateful for their time, talent, and treasure gifts. In their leadership, each day, we strive to live our values and incorporate them into our work by delivering high-impact philanthropy, promoting a culture of collaboration, ensuring traceable accountability, and power-charging our community’s legacy around giving. We are so grateful to each of them who have made TPF what it is today.

At the end of the day, it will always be people who believe in philanthropy and coming together to make a difference that will show how much we can achieve when we achieve it together. Our community gives us the power to imagine, the power to dream, and the power to see how working together creates a better community for everyone. We are humbled by the community we have built around giving together and are excited to see what the next 16 years will bring.

With immense gratitude,

Team TPF

In 2018 a small group of professionals at Microsoft came together to discuss the idea of creating a Giving Circle among the Turkish-American community. They wanted to establish a collaborative effort in which they could work together, gather contributions, educate members about the power of collective philanthropy, and provide opportunities for hands-on involvement in awarding grants and making social investments. Seattle Giving Circle, a Fund of TPF, was formed with this mission in mind. Over the years, the circle has grown into a group where members share ideas and bond over similar interests. Their driving force is the same: using their good fortune to benefit thousands of others who are not as fortunate and establishing a habit of giving among Turkish-Americans.

Circle members have different motivations for joining. For some, it is a culture they have learned from their families. In many of their homes, they watched their parents and grandparents offer what they could, whether material or emotional support, to others in need. Irem Aydin always felt fortunate for the love and support she and her siblings received and the values they were taught. “My parents provided me with the roots and fundamental base to give more and be more open. Practicing love is very important, and they taught us to have a strong work ethic and drive. Personally, I believe working hard and giving go hand in hand. If you don’t have the work ethic and drive to do more, you can’t give. There is a strong bond between work ethic and giving, in my opinion.” But it was not until she moved to the U.S. for her master’s degree at Michigan State University that she learned the word “philanthropy” and how she can give back. Burcu Nemutlu has the same kind of upbringing, where her parents – both teachers – were very involved in charity events. As she watched them give back to the community and the students in need, she held onto the hope that she would, in turn, be able to give back and help others in the future. Her desires came true with her introduction to the Seattle Giving Circle.

Circle members’ drive to give back comes from their personal experiences. In her final year at MSU, Irem Aydin couldn’t secure a graduate assistantship role and faced financial hardship until she landed a scholarship after several applications. Since then, Irem knew she wanted to help others who have come to the U.S. with an assistantship or a scholarship. She notes, “sometimes those funds are not enough, and then you struggle to make ends meet and lose focus on your studies. I don’t want students to be deterred because of finances… I want them to have the support they need to rise up.” For Burcu Nemutlu, her desire to give back amplified once she became a mother. “I want to help the children who are less fortunate succeed and reach their goals in life.” The importance of education was always something Burcu was aware of. “My passion for giving is education, especially for girls education and girls in STEM. I would like to see more students, especially girls, complete their education. Perhaps, this is because my parents were teachers; that is even more important to me because I have seen what quality education can do for the development of a child.” Sehribani Oktay was also driven by her personal experience growing up. “The experience when you’re a kid is the most influential. Whatever you learn and are provided as a kid sets you up for your life. Coming from a low-income family, my life changed when I had success on an exam and was able to go to a better school. The connections I made changed my perspective and outlook for life.” And now, as a mother, she sees a chance to not only give these opportunities to her own children but to as many children as possible in Turkey. Microsoft’s giving culture definitely influenced many of the circle members. TPF’s open platform, combined with the encouraging philanthropic culture at Microsoft along with the matching gifts, turned Seattle Circle into a big success. “I am grateful to TPF for the guidance and support they provided during the partnership onboarding, which in turn made it possible for me to collect more with Seattle Circle’s match and invest in kids’ education in Turkey. TPF connects people to the causes that they care about and provides a great bridge that gives us the ability to give to areas that are meaningful for us back home in Turkey,” notes Burcu Nemutlu.

This network of eager philanthropists came together to give back to their homeland and built a philanthropic bond not only with each other but also with Turkish Philanthropy Funds. They aim to leverage collective resources to encourage philanthropy and community service among Turkish-Americans in Seattle. Many of the members came to know one another by working at Microsoft and asking where and how others give, which introduced them to TPF. Via the power of cooperative giving, members can pool their financial contributions to support meaningful and lasting solutions in Turkey. The group welcomes and encourages anyone to support the collective effort. Irem Aydin says, “TPF is open to different ideas. There are so many organizations to support, and I feel accepted with my ideas of where I want to support and how to go about it.” The community’s fabric is diverse, and the giving circle enables giving to various programs to drive solutions.