TESEV Staff
Executive Director
TESEV Staff
Dr. Özge Aktaş Mazman
Executive Director
ozge.aktas@tesev.org.trDr. Özge Aktaş Mazman, after graduating from Robert College has completed her BA at Bogazici University and MA at the University of Essex sociology departments. In 2010 she has completed her doctoral studies on internal migrants in Turkey at the University of Sussex, sociology department and Sussex Centre for Migration Studies (SCMR). During her studies she worked as a research assistant at the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU), University of Sussex in projects related to development and social networks. In 2010 she joined a team of researchers in founding the Center for Urban Studies, where she has worked as a senior researcher; leading projects on migration, urban studies, public space, demography and family. Özge Aktaş Mazman is currently lecturer at İstanbul Bilgi University. In April 2015 she has been appointed Executive Director of TESEV.
Research Director
TESEV Staff
Dr. Itır Akdoğan
Research Director
itir.akdogan@tesev.org.trAfter graduating from Notre Dame De Sion French lycée, she completed her BA in communication at Galatasaray University, MA in international politics at Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), and PhD in social sciences at Helsinki University. She is an international e-democracy consultant with projects she worked for in Northern Europe with the Ministry of Justice in Finland, and in Africa with German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ). She is the author of the book “Dijital Politik Fanteziler” (Digital Political Fantasies). She continues her academic work with publications in the field of e-democracy. Itır Akdoğan is the research director of TESEV since August 2015.
Project Manager
TESEV Staff
Gizem Fidan
Project Manager
Gizem received her bachelor’s degree from Istanbul Technical University, Department of Architecture in 2017 and her MA degree from Kadir Has University, Architecture and Urban Studies in 2019 with her study titled “History of Protest Spaces in Istanbul”. She worked as a researcher at Kadir Has University Istanbul Studies Center. She still continues her doctoral studies at Istanbul Technical University Department of Urban and Regional Planning. She joined TESEV in June 2020.
Project Manager
TESEV Staff
Tuğba Özsoy
Project Manager
Tuğba Özsoy graduated from Istanbul Technical University, Department of Economics in 2020. She received her master’s degree in Department of Social Projects and NGOs Management from Istanbul Bilgi University in 2024. She did an Erasmus+ internship at Berlin-based association Off-University Organisation für den Frieden e.V. and worked on various projects at Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and Hrant Dink Foundation.
Administrative Affairs and Accounting Officer
TESEV Staff
Aylin Uzun
Administrative Affairs and Accounting Officer
She graduated from Bahcesehir University Department of Business Administration. While studying at Bahcesehir University, she worked in Asanteks Textile as an accounting intern for 3 months. Consequently, she was employed as an Administrative Assistant at Mavi Consultants for 4 years. Currently she is working at TESEV as Administrative Affairs and Account Officer as of July 2015.