Our Team

Director

Metehan joined AFAS as a volunteer in 2016. In 2022, he became the General Director of the AFAS Association.

Metehan graduated from Çukurova University's Department of Economics in 2018, and has years of experience in foreign trade.  As a young director, he brings his energy and fresh ideas to manage our rapidly expanding programs.

Children's Services Project Manager

Neslihan is the Children’s Services Project Manager for AFAS since 2021. Prior to this, she worked as a volunteer with AFAS projects since 2011.

Neslihan is a graduate of Çukurova University, Department of International Relations, and worked for the Turkish Ministry of Agriculture for five years. She is a successful author of a book addressing the rights of children.

Refugee Project Coordinator

Mahmood oversees our two medical homes in Adana, Turkey, which provide temporary lodging for refugee children undergoing medical treatment in Turkey and their caregivers. He also manages our Food Security and Immediate Aid Programs.

Mahmood has a Master's degree in English Language and Literature. He previously worked for UNICEF as an English teacher at several Syrian schools and has been working with AFAS since 2018.

Founding Member

John is one of the founders of AFAS Association in Turkey in 2006, and the co-director of the Adana Deaf Center from 2011 to 2017. He has worked in the field of Social Development for the past three decades.

John has a wealth of experience working with refugees, starting in Palestinian refugee camps in several countries during 1994, with Syrian refugees in Turkey since 2014, and refugees in Africa since 2020. He manages our medical aid programs and distribution programs in sub-Saharan Africa.

Board Member

Cananur is a member of the AFAS Board of Directors. She has been an active volunteer and coordinator for the AFAS weekly Joy Therapy Program for children at various hospitals wards for over 15 years.

Cananur works at the Adana Mayor's Office in the Environmental Department.  She is a sociologist with a Master’s in Environmental Engineering.

Founding Member

Dr. Can Eren has spearheaded AFAS medical missions to Africa, on the Ugandan - South Sudan border and in the Uganda-Congo border region.

Dr. Eren is a medical doctor in Adana, Turkey, and was one of the founders of Anything for a Smile Association in 2006. He previously worked with the Adana Street Children’s Association.