Opet Rebuilds Villages Damaged by Fire

Opet rebuilds villages affected by forest fires that occurred in Muğla last year under its newly launched 'Respect for Nature' project. Under its new 'Respect for Nature' project, Opet is rebuilding villages damaged in the forest fires that occurred last year. Planning work in the areas of rehabilitation, education and economy in villages within Muğla Province, Opet aims to support sustainable development of the villages through the project. The project was first implemented in Marmaris Bayır Village, which has undergone a complete transformation.

Bayır Village Restored Under 'Respect for Nature Project'

Opet stated that through the 'Respect for Nature Project' restoration, rehabilitation and education work will be carried out in Osmaniye and Bayır villages within Marmaris, Çökertme, Gökbel and Bozalan within Milas, Pınarlıbelen (Etrim), İrmene and Çamlık within Bodrum, and Otmanlar within Köyceğiz, all affected by forest fires. Work conducted under the project is being pursued under Opet's coordination through cooperation with institutions and organizations including Muğla Governorate, Marmaris Municipality, District Governorate, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Highways Directorate, Nature Protection and National Parks Directorate, Culture and Tourism Directorate, Environment and Urban Planning Directorate, National Property Directorate, Forest Regional Directorate, AFAD and Mufti's Office. Work in the villages is not limited to physical renovation and rehabilitation; alongside these works, education programs are being organized for local residents, with the aim of contributing to economic and socio-cultural development. Educational activities are also being conducted to raise awareness among the population regarding forest fires, climate change and other natural disasters.

Historical Elements Emphasized

Within the framework of work beginning in Marmaris Bayır Village, the village with 235 households and a population of 639 was renovated. In the work undertaken, consultancy was obtained from academics at Muğla Sıtkı Koçman University on scientific, architectural, archaeological and economic matters. In renovating Bayır Village, emphasis was placed on historical elements. Two ancient plane trees located in the village center, believed to be over 2,000 years old, the 'Girls' Fountain' which holds an important place in the village's local history, and the 'Old Oil Press' established in 1960 and preserved in its full tradition were comprehensively addressed as a whole. Bayır Village, which contains the ancient city of Syrna with archaeological value, also sheds light on centuries of history through its archaeological farming terraces.

Women's Cooperative Established

A women's cooperative was simultaneously opened in the village, with stands set up in the cooperative building where locally produced items could be sold. Courses were started in cooperation with Marmaris Public Education Center. Within the scope of courses, it was stated that 592 hours of training were planned covering English, rural tourism activities, tourist and gift item production, jewelry making, hand care and hygiene training. It was also stated that applications related to bee product production and home guesthouse courses supported by the Ministry of Culture would be provided in the village.

Muğla Governor Orhan Tavlı Expressed His Gratitude to the Opet Family

Muğla Governor Orhan Tavlı made remarks at a meeting held in Bayır Village. Tavlı stated: "Opet, our country's national fuel brand, has worked with the vision of contributing to the formation of a conscious society by caring for education, health, environment and historical values since its establishment, and has undertaken unparalleled work for our country beyond its area of operations. With the Opet Respect for Nature Project carried out in cooperation with our governorate, Bayır has acquired a new appearance." Tavlı expressed his gratitude to the Opet family, Opet Board of Directors Founding Chairman Fikret Öztürk and Board of Directors Founding Member Nurten Öztürk for their sensitivity.

"We Develop Living Projects with Continuity"

Opet Board of Directors Founding Member Nurten Öztürk stated that as Opet they place great importance on corporate social responsibility projects and said: "At Opet, conducting detailed research into what society's needs are through a social responsibility perspective and developing projects accordingly is our most important priority. We develop projects that are living and have continuity, each focused on the community's priority needs. In these projects, which we describe as conscious society projects, we aim to provide permanent solutions to problems by being directly involved in all implementation steps."

"We Contribute to Economic and Socio-Cultural Development of Regions"

Referring to work conducted since 2005 in villages with historical texture, natural beauty and tourism potential through the Model Village Project, Öztürk said: "We contribute to economic and socio-cultural development of regions. Within the framework of the 'Model Village' project, which is a change and development initiative, we have carried out restoration, rehabilitation and education work in 6 villages to date, and outside our Arkeo-village and Ethno-village concept villages in Çanakkale, we rehabilitated 8 villages and gave them a completely different appearance. With the Respect for Nature Project, we once again joined hands with local administrations, local residents and other stakeholders for our villages that have suffered great material and spiritual losses in forest fires."