NEVGUL BILSEL SAFKAN
General Manager
Sabancı Foundation
Türkiye
My organisation
About me
Nevgül Bilsel Safkan, who graduated from Austria High School in 1989 and Istanbul University Faculty of Business Administration, English Business Department in 1993, completed her Executive MBA master's degree at Bogazici University in 2003.
In 1993, she started her professional journey as an auditor at Arthur Andersen, where she played various roles in financial management during the rapid growth phases of industry-leading companies. Serving as the CFO at Superonline from 1999 to 2004, Nevgül Bilsel Safkan joined Sabancı Group in 2005, initially serving as CFO at Marsa for 16 years. She assumed the CFO role at Teknosa from 2006 to 2013, managing the company's IPO process and investor relations. In 2013, she was appointed as the General Manager of Kliksa.com, an e-commerce company established within the Teknosa umbrella, and held this position until 2016. Subsequently, she served as the General Manager at Hotelspro and Dyson/Hakman Companies from 2016 to 2018.
Returning to Sabancı Group in September 2018, Nevgül Bilsel Safkan took on the role of General Manager at Sabancı Foundation. Additionally, she has held the position of Vice President of the Third Sector Foundation of Turkey (TÜSEV) since 2019, served on the Board of Directors of the Education Reform Initiative (ERG) since 2020, and has been a member of the Advisory Board of Sabancı University Gender and Women's Studies Excellence Center (SU GENDER) since 2020. Since 2022, she has also been an Independent Board Member of Teknosa.
In the international arena, Nevgül Bilsel Safkan was honored with the title of Zero Project Ambassador for four years by the Austria-based Essl Foundation in 2021 for her valuable contributions to disability rights. In 2023, she was elected as a member of the Advisory Board of the European Philanthropy Association (Philea) for a three-year term.
Nevgül Bilsel Safkan is married and the mother of one child.
My organisation
Sabancı Foundation is a philanthropic organization based in Turkey with a history spanning over 50 years. Established by the Sabancı family, it is dedicated to making positive contributions to various areas, including education, social change, culture, and the arts. The Foundation focuses particularly on women, young people, and people with disabilities within these activities.
Over the past 50 years, the Foundation has built more than 120 institutions in 78 districts throughout Türkiye, including schools, student dormitories, healthcare facilities, cultural centers, sports facilities, libraries, teachers’ centers, social facilities as well as Sabancı University – one of the most significant investments undertaken by the Sabancı Foundation.
The Sabancı Foundation supports projects carried out by leading civil society organizations with grants to seek solutions to today’s complex social issues and that have a lasting impact. The Foundation engages in long term, institutional partnerships to expand the scope and extent of its impact. During its 17-year history, the Grants Program has extended support to 238 projects and initiatives, directly impacting nearly 300 thousand persons, and indirectly reaching over 4.6 million people nationwide.
The Foundation continues to participate and contribute to the work in remains actively engaged in advancing disability rights and gender networks at Philanthropy Europe Association (Philea).
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Speaker sessions (2)
Wednesday, 21 February 2024
11:00 - 12:00
Philea's Disability Thematic Network: Good practices from foundations
- Focus: Low- income countries
- Education in Emergencies
- English captions | International Sign
- Graphic facilitation
Foundations from Philea (Philanthropy Europe Association) share good practices from their programs that promote accessible and inclusive education in various countries.
16:00 - 17:20
Educational and support strategies during humanitarian crises
- Focus: Low- income countries
- Education in Emergencies
- English captions | International Sign
Encounter this year’s Zero Project Awardees that have developed strategies for early childhood intervention, inclusive care, and resilient education to support refugees and internally displaced people with hearing loss and other disabilities.