Policies Of Turkish Green Crescent Society
• Since 1920, the Turkish Green Crescent has functioned as a community-based civil society organization engaged in addiction prevention and advocacy. Its scope of work encompasses tobacco, alcohol, psychoactive substances, gambling, and technology- and internet-related behavioral addictions.
• For the Turkish Green Crescent, addiction prevention constitutes not only a service delivery function but a core institutional commitment grounded in social responsibility. The principles governing its work, the values that guide it, and its non-negotiable commitments are integral to its mission.
• The Turkish Green Crescent addresses emerging addiction-related issues that are not yet well established in the literature but are currently being examined in relation to addiction risks. In this context, it works to establish scientific working groups and to develop prevention and intervention programs.
• In its operations, the Turkish Green Crescent draws on scientific data, research findings, and effective practices from Türkiye and worldwide. It analyzes cultural, social, and political contexts and develops its policies accordingly.
• The organization’s policy framework is grounded in the principles of human dignity, public health, and the best interests of children and young people.
• The Turkish Green Crescent aligns its work with the United Nations international drug control conventions; the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC); the global framework for the prevention and control of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs); Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target 3.5; and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). At the national level, its work is informed by the relevant constitutional and legislative framework, including Article 58 and Articles 5, 41, and 56 of the Constitution; Article 5 of the Child Protection Law No. 5395; Law No. 4207 on the Prevention and Control of the Hazards of Tobacco Products; Law No. 4250 on the State Monopoly over Spirits and Spirituous Liquors and related secondary legislation; and Law No. 7258 on the Regulation of Betting and Games of Chance in Football and Other Sports Competitions.
• Drawing on these foundations, the Turkish Green Crescent pursues its activities at both national and international levels through a zero-tolerance approach to addiction prevention.
• The organization assigns equal weight to tobacco, alcohol, psychoactive substances, gambling, and technology- and internet-related behavioral addictions, and periodically reviews its strategic focus in light of national priorities, emerging trends, and global developments.
• The Turkish Green Crescent conducts its work in accordance with the principles of institutional independence and ethical financing. It refrains from accepting financial support that may give rise to direct or indirect conflicts of interest with the addiction industry. The transparent, accountable, and effective use of public resources and donations is regarded as a fundamental institutional responsibility. Within this framework, its free-of-charge rehabilitation, counseling, and comprehensive educational programs are monitored by relevant public authorities - particularly the Directorate General for Relations with Civil Society - and are further supported through independent external audit and evaluation mechanisms.
• Financial resources are assessed not only in terms of legal compliance but also with regard to ethical consistency and the principles of public trust. Institutional independence is considered a determining factor in the credibility of the organization’s advocacy activities.
• The Turkish Green Crescent’s addiction prevention framework comprises primordial prevention (preventing the emergence of risk factors), primary prevention (reducing risk factors and promoting healthy lifestyles prior to the onset of addiction), secondary prevention (screening and early intervention to identify and address emerging problematic behaviors), and tertiary prevention (rehabilitation processes aimed at supporting recovery, preventing relapse, and minimizing harms associated with addiction).
• In addressing addiction, the Turkish Green Crescent does not confine itself to the role of a “good implementer”; rather, it seeks to function as a civil society actor that develops exemplary practices and contributes to setting standards in the field.
Advocacy and scientific research activities conducted at the primordial prevention level guide the Turkish Green Crescent’s work. To this end, the organization undertakes early warning initiatives, including wastewater analysis projects, surveys of youth and the general population, and the monitoring of marketing practices and exposure patterns in the field of addiction. It contributes to policy processes through the preparation of evidence-based policy briefs and reports, ensuring that research findings are reflected in decision-making.
At the primary prevention level, the Green Crescent Addiction Prevention Training Program (TBM) is an educational program designed to promote healthy living among children and young people and to strengthen protective knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to tobacco, alcohol, psychoactive substances, technology, gambling, and healthy living. The Green Crescent Life Skills Training Program (YYBE) is also implemented at the primary prevention level and focuses on enhancing students’ healthy decision-making, problem-solving abilities, emotional resilience, and social skills. Key activities in this area further include the Healthy Generation Healthy Future Project, cartoon and debating contests, and sports club activities. These programs are regularly updated on the basis of participant feedback and impact assessment indicators.
At the secondary prevention level, the School-Based Addiction Intervention Program (OBM) is implemented by school guidance counselors and provides individualized, counseling-based early interventions for students identified as being at risk.
Within the scope of tertiary prevention, the Turkish Green Crescent delivers outpatient and inpatient psychosocial support through Green Crescent Counseling Centers (YEDAM) and Green Crescent Rehabilitation Centers (REHAB).
Through YEDAM, individuals experiencing challenges across five areas of addiction are able to access free-of-charge outpatient psychosocial support services. Support is also extended to family members and close relatives, with the objective of restoring disrupted daily routines and sustaining healthy interpersonal relationships. YEDAM services are monitored through application profiles, intervention processes, and recovery indicators, and service quality is subject to continuous improvement.
Through REHAB centers, free inpatient treatment services are provided with the aim of supporting the social reintegration of individuals who have achieved abstinence from alcohol and substance addictions. By means of vocational training and support for continuing education, the Turkish Green Crescent addresses the steps required for individuals to return to their families and communities as healthy and productive members of society. Rehabilitation processes are also evaluated using indicators such as relapse rates and levels of social adjustment.
Across all prevention, counseling, and rehabilitation initiatives, the Turkish Green Crescent applies a systematic approach to monitoring, measurement, and evaluation. Educational programs, large-scale prevention activities, and services delivered through YEDAM and REHAB are regularly monitored and evaluated in terms of accessibility, continuity, service quality, and recovery outcomes. Both quantitative and qualitative data are used to strengthen program design, ensure the efficient use of resources, and inform policy recommendations.
• Through YEDAM, the Turkish Green Crescent regards the provision of free-of-charge, voluntary, and non-stigmatizing psychosocial support - delivered with due respect for confidentiality - as a core intervention mechanism. Through its rehabilitation services, it prioritizes reducing post-treatment relapse and strengthening social reintegration by supporting continuity in education and employment.
• The Turkish Green Crescent does not endorse the societal normalization of concepts such as “safe” or “controlled” use, nor does it adopt “harm reduction” as a policy approach, due to concerns regarding the potential normalization of addictive substances and behaviors. Within the framework of medical necessity, however, it recognizes clinically indicated interventions, including physician-supervised medication-assisted treatment, as components of the recovery process and assesses such interventions outside the scope of its prevention policy stance.
• While advocating for state-led regulations in the field of addiction that emphasize legislation, enforcement, and monitoring, the Turkish Green Crescent opposes regulatory approaches that may pave the way for the legalization or normalization of substances and behaviors associated with addiction risk.
• Recognizing that laws, regulations, or initiatives lacking public support are unlikely to be sustainable, the Turkish Green Crescent pursues community-based advocacy alongside, and in a complementary manner to, state-oriented advocacy conducted with decision-makers.
• The Turkish Green Crescent calls for the development and practical implementation of effective tools to counter the expansion strategies of the addiction industry, including those deployed through new media, aggressive advertising practices, the use of influencers, and the direct targeting of children and young people.
• The organization underscores the importance of addressing both core pillars of addiction policy: demand reduction and supply reduction. While its primary role lies in demand reduction, it also cooperates with institutions and approaches that address supply reduction, and draws on the resulting experience and data to strengthen its own work. In this context, the Turkish Green Crescent seeks to further enhance evidence- and experience-based policy development and advocacy in addiction prevention.
• The Turkish Green Crescent supports regulatory measures aimed at restricting children’s and adolescents’ access to online gambling, in-game betting, and the marketing and promotion of addictive products. It also advocates for limitations on design and algorithmic features of digital platforms that may steer users toward addictive patterns of use.
• The organization supports the strengthening of early application, counseling, treatment, and referral mechanisms to rehabilitation services for individuals who have developed addictions, as well as for their family members and close relatives.
• Across all its initiatives, the Turkish Green Crescent upholds the principles of accessibility, equality, and inclusivity. It delivers targeted and accessible services for at-risk groups, including children, young people, women, individuals in situations of economic disadvantage, and persons with disabilities.
• The organization prioritizes reducing geographic, linguistic, and economic barriers to accessing services, while establishing safe and reliable channels for seeking support.
• The Turkish Green Crescent adopts a rights-based language and approach that places respect for human dignity at its core.
• In its partnerships with media and press organizations, as well as in its own communication, prevention, and intervention activities, the Turkish Green Crescent acts with due sensitivity to prevent public backlash against individuals with addictions, their social exclusion, and the emergence of stigma and discrimination.
• By combining its long-standing advocacy experience with contemporary scientific standards, the Turkish Green Crescent continues to advance its policy development, prevention programs, and recovery support with the aim of contributing to a healthy society free from addiction.
• The Turkish Green Crescent actively engages in international policy dialogues on addiction prevention. Through its participation in initiatives led by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and other global and regional cooperation platforms, it contributes to the strengthening of international standards and integrates the scientific knowledge and technical expertise gained through these processes into national policy development.
• By sharing its knowledge and experience, the Turkish Green Crescent supports 65 Country Green Crescents operating under the umbrella of the International Federation of Green Crescent, thereby strengthening addiction prevention efforts worldwide from a prevention perspective.
• As a core institutional priority, the Turkish Green Crescent seeks to translate the data and knowledge generated through its prevention, intervention, and recovery activities into stronger, measurable, and targeted policy guidance for the future.