Ms. Umit Nazlı Boyner, President
Ümit Boyner holds a degree in Economics and Political Science from the University of Rochester (USA) and has also completed the Financial Management Program of Columbia University Graduate School of Business (USA). She began her career in credit analysis in banking, before moving to financial management. In 1994, she joined Boyner Holding A.S (“Boyner Holding”) as Vice-President in charge of finance and has served as Executive Board member since 2002.
Ms. Boyner chaired the Board of Directors of the TÜSIAD (Turkish Business and Industry Association) from 2010 to 2013, having led its EU Affairs Committee since 2005. In 2013, she was appointed as International Advisory Board member of UniCredit SpA.
Current offices: – Member of the Board of Directors of Boyner Holding. – Member of the Board of Directors of BYN Gayrimenkul Gelistirme A.S. – Member of the Board of Directors of Beymen Magazacilik A.S. – Member of the Board of Directors of Boyner Buyuk Magazacilik A.S. – Member of the Board of Directors of Altinyildiz Tekstil ve Konfeksiyon A.S. – Member of the Board of Directors of Anka Magazacilik A.S. – Member of the Board of Directors of Beymen Ic ve Dis Ticaret A.S. – Member of the Board of Directors of Boyner Perakende ve Tekstil Yatirimlari A.S. – Co-Chair of the Scientific Committee of L’Institut du Bosphore – Member of the International Advisory Board of CHUBB. Other legal entities: – Member of President Council of TUSIAD (Turkish Business and Industry Association), Turkey – Member of the Advisory Board (Turkey Program) of TUSIAD-Brookings Institute – Member of the Advisory Board of Carnegie Endowment for Peace, Middle East Institute until 2013. – Member of the Executive Board of YKM Giyim ve Ihtiyac Maddeleri Tic. San. A.S, Turkey until 2015. – Member of the Scientific Committee of L’Institut du Bosphore, France until 2015.
Furthermore, she is a founding member of Women Entrepreneurs Association (KAGİDER) and in the board of Turkish Underwater Archeology Foundation, Turkish Education Volunteers Foundation and Tohum Autism Foundation.
She was born in 1963 in Istanbul and married to Cem Boyner and has two children.
Mr. Batu Aksoy, TUSIAD
Batu Aksoy, who has started his career in start-up US telecommunications firm in 1998, is the CEO & Vice Chairman of Aksoy Holding, a diversified conglomerate with subsidiaries in the Oil & Energy, Tourism & Real Estate, and International Trade sectors, since 1999. Flagship subsidiaries of Aksoy Holding are Turcas Petrol, Conrad Istanbul Bosphorus Hotel and the Epique Island Bodrum investment.
Batu Aksoy is also the CEO & Board Member of Turcas Petrol (BIST:TRCAS), an Oil & Energy focused investment company, and its controlled subsidiaries since 2006. Flagship subsidiaries of Turcas are Shell & Turcas Petrol (Fortune 500 Turkey List, #10), RWE & Turcas South Power Generation (ISO 500 List, #130), and Turcas Kuyucak Geothermal Power Generation.
Batu Aksoy is at the same time:
– the Honorary Consul of Chile in Istanbul,
– a Board Member of TUSIAD (Turkish Industry & Business Association) and Leader of its Regional Development Roundtable,
– a Board Member of TURKONFED (Turkish Enterprise and Business Confederation),
– a Board Member of the Turkish-US Business Council (TAIK) and Turkish-Chile Business Council of DEIK (Foreign Economic Relations Board of Turkey),
– a Member of ETD (Energy Traders Association) which he Chaired during 2013-14,
– a Member of PETFORM (Petroleum Platform Association) which he Chaired during 2006-08, and
– a Member of Dean’s Advisory Council at The Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School.
Batu Aksoy, born in 1977, is married with two children. He is fluent in English and has graduated from The Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, USA), Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty in 1998.
Ms. Gamze Dinçkök Yücaoğlu, TUSIAD
Born in Istanbul in 1981, Gamze Dinçkök Yücaoğlu started her business career in AKENERJİ Power Generation Inc. after completing her education at Harvard University Departments of Economy and Psychology in 2004. She served in Finance, Accounting and Budget departments between the years 2004-2006. She served as Deputy General Director responsible for Finance and Accounting between 2006 and 2009 and after 2009 she served as Financial Auditing and Risk Management Director and as Executive Board Member in AKKÖK Group Companies.
Gamze Dinçkök Yücaoğlu is currently working as an Assistant Director-Research at HBS MENA Research Center of Harvard Business School.
Mr. Emre Eczacıbaşı, TUSIAD
Emre Eczacıbaşı completed her undergraduate degree at Harvard University in 2006, and received a Business Administration Diploma degree from Colombia Business School. His career started at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) as a financial advisor. He was then appointed as Group President for Strategic Marketing and Finance at Eczacıbaşı Holding in 2008. During the period of 2011-2013, he realized microfinance and social entrepreneurship projects in the USA and in 2013-2014 he worked in the strategic marketing department of Yapı Products Group. In January 2015, Eczacıbaşı became the General Manager of the Construction Products Group’s culinary business area and launched İntema Yaşam company.
Mr. Şükrü Ünlütürk, TURKONFED
He was born in Isparta Eğirdir in 1956. After completing his secondary education at Buca High School in Izmir, he graduated from Middle East Technical University (METU) Department of Mining Engineering in 1979.
He started his working life as a labour inspector within the Ministry of labour and continued his work until 1982, and then worked in various private sector organizations in the fields of mining, textile and apparel. In 1987, He founded Sun Tekstil A.Ş. with his wife Günseli Ünlütürk and his brother Sabri Ünlütürk. He currently serves as the chairman of the Board of Directors of Ekoten A.Ş that is one of The Sun Group companies.
Between 1995 and 1998 he served as Chairman of the Board of Aegean Exporters’ Association (EİB) Apparel and Apparel Exporters’ Association and Chairman of the Board of Presidents of the Aegean Exporters’ Union. He has been the founding member of the foundations and associations such as Textile Research and Development Foundation (TARGEV), Family Business Association (TAIDER), Our City Association, which was founded by Historical Kemeraltı Construction Investment Trade A.Ş. (TARKEM), Neighborhood Disaster Volunteers Foundation (MAG), and Turkish Marine Environment Protection Association (TURMEPA).He is also a member of the “Better Judgment “and Greenpeace Association.
Ünlütürk served as a member of the board of directors and vice-chairman of business organizations such as Turkish Industry and Business Association (TÜSIAD), Turkish Confederation of Enterprise and Business (TÜRKONFED) and The Federation of Industrial Associations (SEDEFED), and the DEIK Foreign Economic Relations Board. He is currently a member of TÜRKONFED and KALDER advisory board and as chairman of EGIAD Advisory Board. He is married and has two children.
Prof. Dr. Yasemin Açık, TURKONFED
Prof. Dr. Yasemin Açık was born in Elazığ. She completed her primary, secondary and high school education in the same city andreceived her BA degree from Hacettepe University. She has an MA degree from Fırat University where she gave lectures. In 1999, shereceived the title of Associate Professor, and in 2005 she receivedthe title of Professor of Public Health. She served as the Head of Department of Public Health, at Fırat University Faculty of Medicine, between 1998 and 2011.
In 1997, she worked in department of Public Health andEpidemiology at Nottingham University Medical Faculty in the UK. Prof. Dr. Açık, who has more than 400 scientific essays, is interested in maternal and infant health, social status of women, violence against women, women in business, child abuse, healthycities, environmental health, tobacco, alcohol and addictivesubstances. Açık, who is also a founding member of the Associationfor Health Improving and Struggle against Smoking (1991), is currently the chairwoman.
Prof. Dr. Açık is a shareholder of companies in many sectors such as construction, tourism, energy, cement, oil fuel, media, sports andhealth.
Prof. Dr. Açık is currently President of Elazığ BusinesswomenAssociation and Vice President of FIRATSİFED (Fırat Federation of Industry and Business). She is also taking part in activities at manynon-governmental organizations and is the President of HealthImproving and Struggle against Smoking, board member at Fırat Development Agency, member of Ministry of Health NationalTobacco Control Committee, President of ETSO (Elazığ Chamberof Commerce and Industry) board member of Elazığ Sports Club Football Club (Three Period), vice president of Elazığ Tennis Specialization Club.
Açık was the Vice President of TÜRKONFED and Chairwoman of TÜRKONFED’s Women in Business World Commission between2015 – 2018. In this period, she organized “Role of Women in Sustainable Economy” Summit in 2016 and “The Role of Women in Sustainable Development Goals” Summit in 2017 in cooperationwith TÜRKONFED-UNDP-UN Women. She contributed to the UN Women Conference in New York. She supported publication of theThird TÜRKONFED Women in the Business World Report. Shecurrently serves as High Advisory Board Member at TÜRKONFED.
In 2018, she retired from her post at the university, focusing her attention on business and NGO work. In 2016 she made the largestprivate sector investment in Eastern Anatolia Region during theRepublican History of Turkey by establishing Seza Cement INC. She is currently the Chairwomen of the company’s board of directors.
Dr. Açık, is married with two children and speaks English.
Mr. Ozan Diren, TURKONFED
Ozan Diren leads Turkey’s first local-capital fruit juice and a one of Turkey’s leading beverage brands, DİMES.
Diren started working for DİMES in university years, taking responsibilities at every level and in every corporate department. Meanwhile he pursued his academic training, graduating from İTÜ as an Industrial Engineer, prior to receiving a post graduate Marketing diploma from the University of Hartford. Later, he completed Finance advanced specialization program at İstanbul University’s Institute of Corporate Economics.
Parallel to the corporate vision and the development competitive environment, Ozan Diren spearheaded the formation of Nobel Pazarlama Ltd. within the DİMES group, and he has become the company’s first General Manager. In 2011, Diren is appointed as DİMES CEO.
Apart from TÜRKONFED, Ozan Diren is a Board Member in MEYED and he is involved at ŞÜD, TGDF, TÜSİAD, ASÜD and SETBİR.
Ozan Diren is married and he has three children.
Ms. Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, UNDP
Ms. Mirjana Spoljaric Egger previously served as the Head of United Nations and International Organizations Division of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, where she has been instrumental in shaping Swiss UN policies and priorities in support the achievement of the 2030 Agenda.
Ms. Mirjana Spoljaric Egger combines a strong policy background with field experience and has had several assignments in the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, in New York, Cairo, and with the Office of UNRWA Commissioner-General.
Ms. Mirjana Spoljaric Egger holds a Master’s Degree in Philosophy, Economics and International Law from the University of Basel and the University of Geneva.
Ms. Irena Vojáčková-Sollorano, UN
Ms. Irena Vojáčková-Sollorano has been appointed as the UN Resident Coordinator to Turkey as of 1st of January 2019.
She held both the positions of the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative to the Republic of Turkey sinceDecember 2016. Previously she was the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative to the Republic of Serbia as of October 2013. In this capacity, she led the UN country team’s response to the historic floods in 2014 and to the refugee/migrant crisis in 2015/16.
Prior to this appointment, she has worked in different capacities for 28 years for the International Organization for Migration (IOM) as Director of the Department for Migration Management in IOM Headquarters, Regional Director in Asia and Central Europe. She has gained global migration expertize in Migration and Development, Labor Migration, Refugee Resettlement, Border Management, Smuggling, Integration, Trafficking and Emergency Response. Over the years, she was a member ofseveral internal change–management teams, was a boardmember of regional research institutions and has developed strong collaboration with think tanks.
She holds a Diploma of the Asian Institute of Management, Manilla, Philippines; Diploma of the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna, Austria; M.A. in History, Geography, and International Law from the University of Vienna, Austria and a B.A. in History and Political Science from the University of Heidelberg, Germany.
Mr. Claudio Tomasi, UNDP
Claudio Tomasi is currently Resident Representative a.i. of UNDP in Turkey, where he held the post of Country Director for the period August 2016 to November 2018.
Before his current assignment, he served as UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Cuba (2012-2016), in Nicaragua (2008-12), and in the Dominican Republic (2003-2007). With UNDP, he also worked in Panama as Assistant Resident Representative (2002) and in India as Governance Programme Officer (2001).
Previous to his engagement with UNDP, Claudio Tomasi worked for the European Union and as a United Nation Volunteer (UNV) in India where he started his international career. Mr. Tomasi has collaborated with several NGOs, development research institutes, local based organisations and cooperatives.
Claudio Tomasi has 20 years of experience in development work in three continents in a variety of capacities, mainly in management, partnership building, policy advise, programme design, project implementation, advocacy and research.
Claudio Tomasi is a sociologist of Italian nationality. He graduated in Sociology and Social Planning at the University of Sociology in Trento (Italy) and holds a Master’s degree in Development Studies from SOAS (School of Oriental and African Studies), University of London (UK). He was also a visiting graduate student at the Department of Political Sciences at CUNY, City University of New York (USA).
President
Ümit Nazlı Boyner
Members
TÜSİAD
Batu Aksoy
Gamze Dinçkok Yücaoğlu
Emre Eczacıbaşı
TÜRKONFED
Şükrü Ünlütürk
Yasemin Açık
Ozan Diren
UNDP
Mirjana Spoljaric Egger
Irena Vojackova-Sollorano
Claudio Tomasi