Digital Empowerment and STGM’s Approach
STGM, which has been carrying out activities to strengthen the rights-based CSOs in Turkey since 2004 has adopted the principle of increasing the self-capability capacities of CSOs The first digital empowerment studies that started within the scope of capacity strengthening works coincide with the first years of STGM. With the computer literacy and office programs training conducted with Microsoft in 2005, practical training was provided to the representatives of CSOs in Turkey in a computer lab. With the technological transformation, especially with the emergence of social media, the strengthening efforts that were added to communication training turned into a separate empowerment topic in 2014.
Digital Empowerment Axis Grew with TechSoup Software Donation
STGM, which brought the software donation program carried out by TechSoup in more than 65 countries over the world to Turkey, has opened the way for CSOs to benefit from both global software donations and started to act as a bridge between large technology companies and civil society. Today CSOs in Turkey can get free or seriously discounted software and services provided by donor companies. In this way, many worldwide known software such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, BitDefender, Zoom can reach to CSOs. You can visit the Turkish website of TechSoup here.
Digital Empowerment Exercises
In addition to making software and web services more accessible to CSOs, STGM has expanded this area with the Resource Center Project while carrying out activities in the fields of training and corporate support for digital enhancement. In this context, it started to organize training activities for CSOs with different needs and transformed the capacity building activities into a digital empowerment program which were previously carried out on the digital communication axis. Along with this program, different projects and works carried out by STGM included the digital empowerment axis and enabled the integration of digital with many fields. It supports civil society in many areas from advocacy to fundraising, from web management to digital communication strategy and data literacy. You can access the training within the scope of the CSO Resource Center Project here.
Moreover, strengthening the relations with the technology partners of TechSoup Turkey such as Google and Microsoft, continued to produce content, provide training and consultancy in works with civil society and public institutions.
