One of the biggest firms in the sector of air suspension systems and directly exporting to more than 100 countries, Aktaş Holding has founded Aktaş Education Foundation with the purpose of contributing to society and realize nature-friendly and sustainable social responsibility projects. And now, Aktaş Education Foundation has accomplished another one of their exemplary projects.

The photography contest organized by Aktaş Education Foundation with the goal of providing an opportunity for the children and young people living in villages in Orhaneli district to explore their photography skills and encourage them to photograph the colors of their villages in imaginative ways, was concluded.

There was a lot of interest in the photography contest for participants aged 12-17 launched by Aktaş Education Foundation in collaboration with Municipality of Orhaneli and Orhaneli City Council on July 6, 2015. The theme of the contest, which is expected to be popularized among all mountain districts and become an annual tradition, was "The Colors of My Village".

The Best Shots Were Put On An Exhibit

The best photographs among the hundreds of beautiful images chosen by the 'Selection Committee' put together by Aktaş Education Foundation were displayed at the award ceremony held in İbrahim Hüsniye Çağlayan Middle School. Aktaş Education Foundation Chair of the Executive Board İlknur Aktaş, Orhaneli District Director of Education Mehmet Tayır, Orhaneli Deputy Mayor Salim Aktürk, Orhaneli Garrison Commander Yunus Şahan were among the attendees as well as many students, their families and members of the Aktaş Holding Photography Club.

"A Source Of Joy For Our District’s Children"

At the award ceremony that began with Orhaneli Municipality Social Works and Education Advisor, Secretary General of Orhaneli City Council Cavit Zırtlan's presentation, Zırtlan recalled that no such contest was ever held in the district, and in addition to wholeheartedly thanking Aktaş Education Foundation for organizing such a wonderful event, he said that the young people in the district will be talking all year about the photographs they took thanks to the contest, and added that he believed there would be significant outcomes in regards to the personal and social development of these children growing up in rural areas.

" As A District, We Thank Aktaş Education Foundation"

Orhaneli Deputy Mayor Salim Aktürk who later took the stand recalled Atatürk's statements about art, and said: "Like the Great Leader Atatürk said: 'A nation devoid of art and artists cannot have a full existence.'  For these children's daily lives, art of photography, one of the easiest to implement and easily accessed in daily life, is no doubt a wonderful choice. However, non-governmental organizations and non-profit foundations have a lot of responsibility for artistic activities to continue and prosper. For reminding us of that, I thank Aktaş Education Foundation on behalf of the district’s people. We are looking forward to hosting the 2nd, the 12th or maybe even the 22nd of this event in our district."

"Our Social Responsibility Projects Will Increasingly Continue"

Moreover, remarking that they have realized many projects aimed at contributing to education and social progress as a foundation, Aktaş Education Foundation Chair of the Executive Board İlknur Aktaş addressed the attendees at the event and stated: "As Aktaş Education Foundation, we have realized many projects to this day. This youth-oriented photography contest has an important place among the projects we have realized. Here today, we are celebrating the conclusion of a wonderful occasion. We will have more projects like this one in the future. I would like to thank all those who contributed to our project, and wholeheartedly congratulate the winners of the contest for their successful work."

The Happiness Of The Winning Students Was A Sight To See

Kağan Baysal won 1st place, İsmail Arman won 2nd place and Arif Mıngın won 3rd place; and, after the speeches, all the winning photographers in the first five places received their awards from the members of the protocol. At the ceremony, awards were also given in the categories of Aktaş Education Foundation Honorable Mention and Aktaş Education Foundation Excellence Award.

At the end of the ceremony, all award winners and members of the protocol had a group photograph taken, and then all attendees had a chance to visit the photography exhibit.