The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program

The Journey

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program, which accepts students on full scholarship, guides young adults who are determined to help nature and the planet in becoming influential leaders with advanced intellectual, emotional, and behavioral competencies.

If you recognize our planet’s delicate balance amidst the growing challenges…

If you feel compelled to answer nature’s call for support…

If you’re asking yourself, “Change is needed—where do I begin?”…

… this Program promises to provide you with the intellectual, emotional, and behavioral competencies you need on your journey to achieve the change and projects you dream of.

…this Program invites you on a transformative journey where you can learn by doing, challenge what you’ve learned, rediscover the significance of systems thinking and connecting with nature, create your own project, meet with genuine field projects, and collaborate on solutions together, discover the impact of remaining calm and optimistic in the face of adversity, explore your inner compass and establish your path as a change agent while gaining a new family, cooperate with like-minded young adults while not giving up on those who are not like you, inspire others while making sense of your own story, and receive the tools to create an opportunity for your projects and make a change in the business world, as well as discover opportunities like internship and volunteering abroad that will help you achieve your career goals.

We want to help our fellows become successful decision-makers and influential leaders by providing learning environments where they can imagine, create, experience, question, and act together.

Who are Focus Leaders?

Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders are graduates of the year-long Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program. Their bond to the planet is strong, their ecological literacy is advanced, and they continue to constantly learn, think, and transform. They internalize their passion for saving the planet, integrating it into their own story and identity, and they are able to perceive and express their aims in an authentic and realistic manner. They can identify and seek out concrete opportunities, collaborations, resources, and institutions to help them achieve their goals both inside and outside of Focus Foundation, and they have the intellectual, creative, and entrepreneurial competencies to engage with and mobilize them in realizing their dreams.

Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders are young adults who can manage a sustainability project creatively in the face of uncertainty and complexity and care about creating meaningful change in the organization they are involved in. They are the ones who are equipped with the necessary emotional competencies and eager to sustain hope for a better tomorrow, in addition to their critical thinking and proper decision-making abilities in project management, process leadership, and business development.

Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders have the determination and expertise to realize their goal of helping the planet with their love of nature by focusing on this area throughout their careers, indirectly or directly. They are visionary leaders and change agents, preferred by leading companies and NGOs, and they are ready to act.

What are included in the program?

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program concentrates on five main areas: learning from nature, designing your project, designing collaboration, designing your business, and being a leader. Each field provides complementary value to each other and to the individual’s holistic development in the journey of becoming a Focus Nature-Friendly Leader.

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program consists of three semesters: Autumn, Winter, and Spring, and focuses on the themes & competency sets that bring these major areas to life, accompanied by expert instructors and facilitators.

During these three semesters,

In-class learning sessions to take place in Istanbul
Online learning modules
Weekend education & nature camps in Istanbul
Weekend education & nature camps outside of Istanbul
Mentoring program
Optional trips, workshops, and activities
Field trips to visit executed sustainability projects are waiting for you.

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program is entirely free for participants, and the Focus Foundation will cover camp programs, accommodation, and travel expenses as part of the scholarship.

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program offers online and face-to-face learning modules that will prepare you for the experiential learning experience before the camp sessions, case studies that will reinforce your knowledge afterward, experiences in nature, where you will get to know each other as a community and mentoring program that will accompany you on your leadership journey.

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program is created to provide the necessary competencies and opportunities to bring your own ideas to life by including field trips to observe, be inspired, and learn from the sustainability projects that are being executed.

Who can apply?

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program is designed for university students who are

passionate about nature and eager to learn how to live in harmony with nature,
motivated to become change agents, decision-makers, and sustainability leaders for saving the planet,
ready to equip themselves with the necessary competencies to act and take the lead to transform the world into a sustainable future,
willing to focus on sustainability and environmental issues in their careers directly or indirectly.

Qualified candidates with the described motivation and capabilities should

reside in Istanbul,
have sufficient skills in reading and comprehending English,
be competent in academic and non-academic pursuits,
be committed enough to devote the necessary dedication, time, and energy to this program.

What Are Nature and Education Camps?

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program is inspired by nature and designed within and for nature. Within this framework, our experiential learning modules are created as nature camps in and outside Istanbul.

Although the program also includes in-class and online sessions, optional workshops, trips, and activities in addition to the education and nature camps, the overall structure and flow of our camp program are presented below for preliminary information.

Note: The instructors, venues, and dates for our online training sessions, camps, and field trips will be defined according to the universities’ academic calendars, and they will be announced accordingly. Our program is designed with our students’ best interests in mind.

Camp program

Autumn-Build The Foundation

We aim to gain competencies to critically question our connection with nature, read the Earth as an interconnected system, and know & listen to ourselves and others. While focusing on these competencies, we also aim to create awareness of being a team, act as a team, and consciously process the sense of belonging.

A Call to Adventure

İstanbul - September

We’re about to embark on a long journey together. We will get to know each other and learn the most from our fellows over time. Along with this, we’ll focus on sustainable development goals and the systems thinking perspective that’ll accompany us in this journey.

EcoAgenda Unveiled & Presentation Skills

İstanbul - November

Join us for a unique learning experience! This program dives into prosumer economy and biodiversity, exploring their impact through engaging discussions and hands-on activities. The following day, we’ll focus on presentation skills, equipping you to share your insights effectively.

Connect with Nature

Bolu - October

You are invited on a camping adventure in the woods! Our camp is created with the philosophy of understanding nature within nature. We will learn by doing with experiential activities such as trekking, movement in nature, life in nature, and body awareness circle at this camp.

Navigate from Within

İstanbul - December

This time, we will embark on an inner journey in our camp, featuring training modules such as sustainable leadership, self-awareness, understanding different leadership styles, and exploring methods of communication by getting to know others. Through these modules, we’ll deepen our understanding of ourselves and enhance our ability to connect with those around us.

Winter-Focus on Value and Impact

We aim to gain deep knowledge about ecological issues like climate change, biodiversity, eco-justice, and ecological citizenship. While improving our knowledge through theoretical and practical aspects, we equip ourselves with the collaboration, communication, and conflict resolution competencies necessary for effective sustainability solutions. We become conscious of our life goals by questioning our role within the system, and we purposefully create our story and begin to take action.

Delve into Climate Action

İstanbul - January

What is happening on our planet? Together, we’ll explore and discuss the complexities of climate, climate change, and eco-justice from diverse perspectives. Using systems thinking, we’ll examine how these challenges impact ecosystems, communities, and future generations, and consider our roles in fostering a more sustainable world.

Collaboration for Good

Bolu - February

We will explore the meaning and significance of creative collaboration and teamwork in addressing environmental issues, understanding how collective efforts can drive impactful change. While developing intellectual skills, we will also have the chance to put what we learn into action during our igloo-making team activity, working together to build and problem-solve in a hands-on, immersive experience.

Claim Your Story

İstanbul - March

In this camp, we will delve into the meaning of collaboration and self-expression, examining how these concepts influence our personal and professional lives. Our focus will be on building essential competencies, including relationship management, effective communication, negotiation skills, impactful presentations, storytelling techniques, and advocacy. Through interactive activities and discussions, we’ll learn how these skills can enhance our ability to connect with others and drive positive change.

Spring-Lead to Transform

In the last semester, we put everything we’ve learned so far into practice and focus on rebuilding our future with our awareness. Our students will be capable of living in nature by themselves, have high ecological awareness & ecological literacy, be able to design, present and execute a sustainability project, and be ready to take the next step in their eco-career.

Reunite in Awe

Kazdağları - April

When we pay attention to nature and its teachings, we discover that many solutions are concealed within these teachings. We will explore nature and ourselves more deeply to achieve this consciousness and become one with nature.

Embrace Your Journey

İstanbul - June

This special program offers a chance to reflect on the path we’ve traveled throughout the year, examining our personal transformations and the community we’ve built together. Who were we, and who have we become? By exploring these questions, we’ll trace the growth and insights gained along the way. The program will culminate in a graduation ceremony, celebrating our journey and honoring the strength of the bonds we’ve created, connections that will carry forward into the future.

The Road Not Taken

Lycian Way & Köyceğiz - May

Join us on an unforgettable journey along the Lycian Way, where we’ll push past our physical and mental limits while discovering the unique landscapes of Turkey. Our adventure includes bird-watching in Köyceğiz and exploring the rich ecosystem of storied sweetgum forests. Together, we’ll discuss pressing ecological challenges, gaining a deeper understanding of the natural world and our role within it. This program combines adventure, learning, and reflection in a setting that inspires growth and a profound connection with nature.

Optional Trips, Courses, and Workshops

In addition to the core camps that constitute the program’s foundational framework, we also provide our students with optional field trips, camps, workshops, and courses.

Below, you will see some highlights from our previous program.

Köroğlu Summit

Rock Climbing

Winter Camping

Key Competencies and Skills

The Focus Nature-Friendly Leaders Program graduates…

can incorporate and express personal values, motivations, and life goals with universal values and objectives for the sake of the planet.
have advanced ecological and sustainability literacy. They can embrace an eco-friendly and sustainable lifestyle as an authentic part of their own identity, preferences, and practices.
can identify and act on concrete opportunities, collaborations, resources, and institutions that they can successfully execute in their careers, in accordance with their talents and competencies, to help the planet.
are capable of taking the initiative, thinking critically, and making the right decisions at the individual, community, and business levels.
can develop, implement, and deliver sustainability initiatives of varying scales and complexity and evaluate the effect and change they bring about.
can identify and create long-term sustainable business models and think like entrepreneurs.
can understand the dynamics of transformative change and contribute to the outcomes of this process at the individual, stakeholder, community, organization, and system levels.
can establish and sustain fulfilling, efficient, and effective communication, relationships, and collaborations in their environment, community, and professional life.
can maintain their resilience, patience, and active hope in the face of uncertainty and challenges and move on.

Our Students Say...

The most unique feature of this program is the way of connecting with nature and the program’s participants. You can deeply feel the hard work behind the preparation of the program and the selection of participants. Firstly, our mentors are the most supportive, experienced, and calm people I have ever met. You can share your ideas and needs whenever you want to reveal them. In Focus, you can feel that you are a member of this family, not just a guest. Secondly, you have opportunities to meet experienced academicians from different fields. You will probably like a research topic that is totally different from your field after lessons. Thanks to our lessons and camps, I love to learn about birds. Additionally, your friends will be influential people. The harmony of people enables us to plan, learn and have fun together. The final and key point is the founder of this foundation. You can directly talk and share your feeling and ideas with the founder. There are no walls between us, and Focus is friendly and open like nature.

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