Supporter Spotlight: Medeni Sungur

Freedom’s Champion: How did you get involved in the liberty movement?

Medeni Sungur: In 2008, I was a freshman in college and really interested in theoretical ideas. I was a bit of a nerd at the time, and I stumbled into this other group of young people from elite universities in Istanbul who were coming together in different cafes to talk about things that I could not find discussed at my own university or in my own political theory classes—like Mises and Hayek. We were really deeply discussing Austrian economics, spontaneous order, Popper’s epistemology—all the ideas that we couldn't find, especially in our freshman year, in our universities.

So I started going to these discussions, and from there I came across an event called Liberty School, put together by what at the time was probably the only classical liberal organization in Turkey. It was a small event, with maybe 50 or 60 students like me who wanted to talk about the history of political thought. The organization was based in Ankara, but they were organizing this event to draw in young and ambitious students and introduce them to the ideas of classical liberalism.

I met another student there who I became friends with, then I figured out there was a small, independent group of students that were coming together in Istanbul to discuss these ideas. I joined them, and from time to time we would use the Friedrich Naumann Foundation office to organize small events. It sounds like an underground club for non-mainstream economics, but we weren’t secretive; there just were very few people like us who were deeply interested in ideas. We had a group of about ten people, and we called ourselves the “3H Movement,” each “H” representing one of the Turkish words for “liberty,” “rule of law,” and “tolerance.”

FC: How were you introduced to Atlas Network?

Medeni: The secretary-general of the organization that put together the Liberty Schools introduced me to Tom Palmer. Tom has become one of the primary impacts and drivers in my life—early on as someone who is in the freedom movement and later as a mentor and a friend. Both his intellectual grasp and his humility have had a huge influence on me.

About a year later, in 2009, Tom invited me to attend Liberty Forum, back when it was held in Washington, D.C. It was actually my first transatlantic flight. I met more people in the freedom movement from around the world and became friends with many of them.

After a time, I graduated both from university and from the 3H Movement and went into the startup world, but I kept my foot in the liberty movement, and I kept attending Liberty Forums as a young business owner.

Eventually, I found my way back to the movement. I wanted to be involved in changing the course of my country, so I became one of the co-founders of Turkey’s first classical liberal policy think tank. Atlas Network Academy’s Think Tank MBA was a huge part of making that possible.

FC: How did Atlas Network Academy impact your role in the freedom movement?

Medeni: Think Tank MBA is the single best training I’ve ever taken, and it changed the course of my life early on. I was in the 2013 cohort, and since then I have founded two liberty organizations in Turkey, thanks to the know-how I gained in that program. I am still actively using that know-how to run my organization, contribute to the organizations I'm on the board of, and design effective liberty-advancing programs. I still retain the amazing friendships I made there. I can think of few other worthy contributions that would personally satisfy me so much. Atlas Network Academy is a force that needs to keep on advancing.

FC: Why did you decide to donate to Atlas Network and become an Atlas Club member?

Medeni: I'm part of a lot of different networks right now, all around the world, but none of them ever feel remotely like Atlas Network. The connection I have with people from so many countries, from Indonesia to Brazil, is something unique.

I always joke that I don't get my inspiration from people like Steve Jobs but rather from my peers who are trying to do what I do, but in much worse conditions, such as Khalid Ramizy from Afghanistan.

The overwhelming majority of my giving goes to support the victims of the recent earthquake in Turkey, but when I had the opportunity to support Atlas Network, I knew I had to take it. Giving back to Atlas Network Academy is the giving that makes me the happiest.

Medeni Sungur is CEO of the Atlas Network partner organization Digital Media and Research Institute (DIGIMAR Institute), which focuses on reaching Turkey’s youth with the ideas of liberty and free markets through engaging content. Medeni is a graduate of Think Tank MBA, a program previously offered by Atlas Network Academy. He credits this training with revolutionizing his approach to being involved in the liberty movement and his decision to give back by becoming an Atlas Network donor.