Last Updated: November 2025
Contact: info@ihtimam.org
1. Vision and Purpose
At İhtimam, diversity is not simply about meeting numerical targets; it is about ensuring that every voice can resonate in decision-making processes. We believe that every person, regardless of their identity, background, abilities, caregiving responsibilities, or way of life, deserves equal respect and the opportunity for full participation.
As an organization, we strive to advance equity and inclusion not only within our team, but also throughout our programs, partnerships, supply chains, and community engagement. This policy outlines our intentions and accountability efforts regarding diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging through the lens of a care ethics perspective.
2. Our Core Principles
The following values serve as our compass when shaping our policies and practices:
Intersectionality
We recognize that discrimination is layered and interconnected. We seek to understand how identity, gender, race, age, disability, caregiving responsibilities, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, and neurodiversity interact to shape people’s experiences. We strive to consider not only what it means to be a woman, but also the distinct challenges that may arise from being, for example, a disabled woman or a young worker.
Care-Centered Approach
We prefer to measure success not by individual speed or performance, but by the depth of the relationships we build and the care we extend to one another. We reject the notion that human beings are entirely independent and self-sufficient, and instead recognize our mutual interdependence.
Accordingly, we do not view the responsibilities of colleagues who care for children, older adults, ill family members, grieving loved ones, or animals as a loss of productivity. Rather, we recognize this often overlooked labor as one of the most valuable forms of work that sustains life, and we strive to organize our ways of working in harmony with these realities.
Expanded Belonging
Our understanding of belonging extends beyond human-centered boundaries. Our goal is not only to create spaces where people can be themselves without wearing masks. We also view animals, plants, ecosystems, and even the objects we use not merely as resources, but as companions in shared existence.
We embrace an ecological and holistic understanding of belonging in which all beings can exist according to their own nature, free from exploitation and objectification.
LGBTQIA+ Inclusion
We recognize diversity in gender identity and sexual orientation as a source of richness and strength. We strive to use language that is free from heteronormative assumptions and that affirms the dignity of all people.
Continuous Learning
We acknowledge that we may make mistakes. Through feedback and reflection, we commit to regularly reviewing and improving our policies and practices.
3. Our Commitments and Ongoing Efforts
Rather than pursuing perfection, we actively strive to create fairer and more inclusive practices in the following areas:
A. Representation and Equal Opportunity
Recruitment and Partnerships
When selecting team members and collaborators, we aim to consider diversity across gender, age, ethnicity, disability, and other dimensions. We seek to avoid the tendency of reproducing sameness by favoring people who resemble ourselves.
Pay Equity
We strive to provide equal pay for work of equal value, equitable access to advancement opportunities, and transparency and fairness in our compensation practices.
B. Socioeconomic Inclusion
To reduce financial barriers to knowledge-sharing and participation, we seek to reserve spaces in paid events through initiatives such as suspended tickets, scholarship participation, or reduced-fee access programs.
C. Supply Chain and Partnerships
We care about where our resources go. When purchasing goods or services, we strive to prioritize women-owned businesses, entrepreneurs from marginalized communities, disabled entrepreneurs, social enterprises, and cooperatives whenever possible.
D. Hospitality Policy: Caring for the Planet and All Living Beings
The food we serve is one of the most visible expressions of our values. In alignment with our commitment to climate justice and anti-speciesist principles, we strive to follow these practices:
Plant-Based by Default
For events, meetings, and office hospitality funded by İhtimam, we prefer menus that are by default 100% plant-based (vegan) or, at minimum, vegetarian.
Food Justice
Whenever possible, we seek to source food from local producers, women’s cooperatives, and suppliers certified under fair trade principles, rather than relying on heavily industrialized food systems.
Zero-Waste Aspiration
We strive to reduce the use of single-use plastics such as disposable bottles and cutlery. We also aim to redistribute surplus food through sharing networks or food banks whenever feasible rather than allowing it to go to waste.
4. Feedback and Solidarity
This document reflects an ongoing commitment rather than a finished achievement. There may be barriers, blind spots, or perspectives that we have not yet recognized.
We welcome feedback, suggestions, and ideas about how we can become more inclusive and equitable.
Contact: info@ihtimam.org
We view feedback not as criticism, but as guidance that helps us grow. We aim to respond within 48 hours on business days and to work toward practical and meaningful solutions whenever possible.