Mustafa Kemal Abadan, Zeynep Oya Yeğen, Nermin Abadan-Unat (left to right)
Mustafa Kemal Abadan, Feyzan Özbay, Nermin Abadan-Unat (left to right)
Zeynep Oya Yeğen of Boston University and Feyzan Özbay of Istanbul Medeniyet University Receive the Inaugural Abadan Awards
New York, NY (June 16, 2015) – The first-ever Abadan Awards were presented today at a ceremony held at Rumeli Feneri campus of Koç University inİstanbul. Zeynep Oya Yeğen of Boston University and Feyzan Özbay of İstanbul Medeniyet University shared the inaugural Dr. Yavuz Abadan Constitutional Law Award. Zeynep Oya Yeğen received the award for her study on ‘The Politics of Constitutional Reform Process: A comparison of Chile and Turkey.’ Yeğen is a PhD candidate in Comparative Politics at Boston University. The award is shared by Feyzan Özbay for her study entitled ‘A Comparative Assessment on the Protection of Individual Rights and Privacy in face of Counter-Terrorism Related State Surveillance.’ Özbay is a doctoral student at İstanbul Medeniyet University. Yeğen and Özbay were recognized by the jury for the timeliness and originality of their research. The winners each received $10,000 towards the advancement of their research efforts.
“These research topics are very relevant to contemporary Turkey, and could potentially have an impact on the future of law and policy-making. Our distinguished jury was equally impressed by the two, so has decided to award both instead of choosing one study over another. We are very happy with the results and have full confidence in our young academics” said Mustafa Kemal Abadan, Vice-Chair and a Founding Partner at Turkish Philanthropy Funds (TPF).
The Abadan Awards are made possible by a recurring annual gift from the Abadan Donor Advised Fund at Turkish Philanthropy Funds. Donor Advised Funds at TPF are charitable accounts that allow individuals to personalize gifts according to their philanthropic goals. Mustafa Kemal Abadan named the awards after his parents, Dr. Yavuz Abadan and Dr. Nermin Abadan-Unat. The late Dr. Yavuz Abadan was a pioneering constitutional law professor and wore many hats during his very successful career from being the Dean of the Political Science Faculty at Ankara University to serving in the Parliament of Turkey. Dr. Nermin Abadan-Unat, a social sciences professor whose activism pushed the boundaries on women in law and in politics, is Turkey’s first woman to launch an academic career as a political scientist and was among the first woman to serve in Turkey’s Senate.
The purpose of the Abadan Awards is to encourage early-career scholars who are pursuing and/or completed their post-graduate studies in Turkey or abroad, to further their research. The awards alternate each year between the following: Dr. Yavuz Abadan Constitutional Law Award (2015) are granted towards studies in constitutional law around government theory, legislative, executive, and judiciary, and in human rights; and Dr. Nermin Abadan-Unat Social Science Award (2016) is given in the area of social studies with a particular focus on women’s research. The competition is open only to Turkish citizens, between the ages of 25-38.
For more information on donor-advised funds at Turkish Philanthropy Funds, call: 1-646-530-8988
For information on application and eligibility on Abadan Awards, contact:
Koç University Law School – [email protected] – +90-212-338-1885
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Turkish Philanthropy Funds is a New York based community foundation that enables donors to realize their philanthropic passions for Turkey. With the plethora of NGOs, knowing where to invest your charitable dollars is a challenge. TPF funds the most effective programs, and partners with them to maximize results. TPF does this by strengthening individual giving and by providing knowledge and solutions for the community in the areas of education, gender equality, development and disaster relief. Turkish Philanthropy Funds is a tax-exempt organization described in Section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code and gifts are tax-deductible to the full extent provided by law. Tax ID: 20-8392006.
