Impact Hub Istanbul
What do you mean by ‘space and platform that unites all impact-driven individuals’ in Istanbul’?
When we describe Impact Hub Istanbul, we always put emphasis on three elements that are at the core of its existence; community, content and space. We see our “space" as a tool to create and curate “ content" at a physical space as well as bringing people with multi-disciplinary backgrounds, who share an incomparable passion for life and an unstoppable urge to create, together. We have a membership process to make sure this vibrant and creative community grows with its spirit intact and continues to create value within and for the society at large. We are also constantly looking for open-minded, creative, supportive and impact-driven individuals and organisations for content. We see “content” as a key to build new stories, form partnerships, develop capabilities and start new mutually-beneficial relationships.
What is unique about Impact Hub Istanbul?
Through the above mentioned three ingredients and their perfect harmony, we create an Impact Hub experience that is impossible to experience anywhere else really. We always say “Impact cannot happen in isolation, it requires collective action”. When we combine the Impact Hub experience with the power of collective action, that is where our uniqueness comes from. Our internal community and external ecosystem accumulates so much so much know-how, so much inspiration and so much will to do good that you can almost feel the all-powerful Impact Hub spirit that makes everything possible for us and our community. Not to mention the amplification of this spirit and energy through our relations with other Impact Hubs around the globe.
Could you describe a day at Impact Hub Istanbul?
Everyday starts with a warm "Good morning” at Impact Hub. As Impact Hub takes pride in bringing people and ideas together, everyday you are exposed to something new. Everyday you hear some exciting project or meet an interesting and passionate person. When you take a break from your work, it is time to enjoy a cup of coffee with other hubbers or relax on a comfortable corner with interesting books from Hub library. The most common sentence that echoes throughout the day at Impact Hub Istanbul is "Wouldn't it be so nice to have/do....in the Hub” and suddenly you find yourself planning an event/a project or even a business together with a fellow hubber. Not to mention the incredible support you feel at all times from Impact Hub Istanbul team.
Which areas do you currently focus on?
Our current focus is on encouraging impact investing in Turkey and highlighting the market opportunities for investors. We continuously and restlessly work on community building and content creation. Sustainable practices and social impact is at the core of everything we do. We also assume a leading position in creating awareness, making room and building capacity for impact driven entrepreneurship in Turkey. In the past year since we opened Impact Hub Istanbul we have designed and organised more than five accelerator programs and consulted or sat as a jury in many more.
What is next for Impact Hub Istanbul?
The number of start-ups is growing in Turkey but there is still more to do in transforming the market into an impact-driven industry. So there is still much to do to influence the current mindset. The other issue is, today everything seems to be focused in big cities. We would like to change that. In the past year we visited different cities in Anatolia to talk about impact-driven entrepreneurship and social impact at large. Moving forward we would like to continue to do so as much as we can. And we continuously explore opportunities to open up new Impact Hubs in Turkey.
