The WE ACT Project, supported by the European Union Delegation to Türkiye, reached a significant milestone on June 30, 2025, with the launch of its final publication handbook titled “We Made it Together: WE ACT Project Results and Good Practices” during a dedicated webinar that brought together key stakeholders, project partners, and civil society representatives.
The virtual launch event featured opening remarks from distinguished speakers including Monia El Djendoubi, Programme Manager at the EU Delegation; Zuhal Önal, ALDA Country Representative to Türkiye; and Prof. Dr. Burak Bilgehan Özpek, Board Chair of Daktilo1984.
Prof. Dr. Özpek emphasised “Despite existing polarisations in Türkiye, women’s political participation has become an issue that transcends parties and divisions. Women’s increased political visibility changes how people view politics.” Their participation underscored the project’s significance in advancing gender equality and women’s political participation in Türkiye.
The newly launched handbook serves as a comprehensive guide documenting the project’s journey, impact, and proven strategies for supporting women in politics. The publication covers project foundation and implementation, financial support programme and its impact, measurable success stories, media and communication strategies.
The WE ACT Project distinguished itself through creative capacity-building approaches documented in the handbook. Activities like participatory democracy training across six cities (Van, Ankara, Istanbul, Adana, Izmir, and Gaziantep), politics and media training program, networking event with journalists, and distance coaching sessions were developed and implemented successfully during the 30 months of the project.
The publication showcases three primary categories of successful interventions from the subgranting scheme across 21 projects that were implemented for 10 months with a budget up to 4.000€. These are Innovation for Women Empowerment, Capacity Building for Gender Equality, and Social Impact and Inclusion.
The handbook concludes with practical policy recommendations for the EU and national institutions, aiming to support systemic change and continued empowerment of women in politics.
Looking Forward
The “We Made it Together” handbook represents more than a project conclusion; it serves as a roadmap for organisations, policymakers, and advocates committed to advancing gender equality in political participation. By documenting both successes and lessons learned, the publication provides practical guidance for scaling similar initiatives across different contexts and communities.The complete handbook “We Made it Together: WE ACT Project Results and Good Practices” is now available online: https://bit.ly/WAHandbookEng
