Mevlude Sahillioglu - Global Education Coordinator, Turkey
“We can only breathe out what we have breathed in, caring for ourselves helps us care for our children.”
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Mevlude’s Story.
Mevlude describes herself as someone who wants to contribute to people’s lives, whether through something small or through her work. Community matters to her. She is curious about people and stories and she is drawn to collective work where people create, reflect and learn together.
Her path into this world began with a simple invitation. A university mentor encouraged her to volunteer with an NGO. At the time, others questioned why she would work without pay, but for Mevlude it was a turning point. It opened a field she wanted to stay in, even when the expected route was government or the private sector.
Another shift came through working in international settings and learning different working styles. She speaks about being influenced by leaders who modelled a more wellbeing aware culture at work and about how being around different perspectives shaped her own way of showing up, collaborative, compassionate and focused on what helps people move forward together.
Today, Mevlude is based in Turkey’s capital and works as a Global Education Coordinator at the Youth Services Centre. Her entry point is practical. She works with youth workers who work with young people and she tries to empower the people supporting them. She brings international examples so young people can see what is possible and she connects self care with advocacy, reminding them they have value.
The Triple WellBeing Fellowship arrived at the right time. Mevlude says it helped her experience wellbeing, not just understand it. The structure felt supportive and the cohort made her feel safe on a road that was unfamiliar. She did not feel alone. She also found new ways to bring wellbeing into her professional work, including weaving it into youth worker competency training and rethinking how she would teach wellbeing in future.
When she talks about what she hopes for young people, her answer is simple. Hope. Hope about the earth, society and themselves.
Listen to the full conversation with Mevlude.
“For me, best teaching isn’t about facts. It’s about collaboration, creativity, communication and independence, the things that prepare children for life.”
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