17.07.2026 17:00
Master artist Sezen Aksu donated 10 thousand saplings through the TEMA Foundation to keep alive the memory of her close friends Özkan Uğur and Sırrı Süreyya Önder, who passed away. With Aksu's long-standing tradition of memorial forests, the total number of saplings has reached 60 thousand.
Sezen Aksu, one of the legendary names of Turkish pop music, has added another to her meaningful tradition that she has been maintaining for years. The master artist, wishing to keep the memory of her close friends Özkan Uğur and Sırrı Süreyya Önder alive, donated a total of 10 thousand saplings in the name of the two through the TEMA Foundation.
Within the scope of the donation, 5 thousand saplings were planted in the Konya Soğucak Memorial Forest in the name of Özkan Uğur, the beloved member of the MFÖ group who passed away in 2023, and 5 thousand saplings were planted in the Gaziantep Yeniceli Memorial Forest in the name of Sırrı Süreyya Önder, the writer, director, and politician who passed away in 2025.
Sezen Aksu's friendship with Özkan Uğur spanned many years. The two artists, who left their mark during the same period, came together in many projects and organizations over the years, and Aksu was known to be by Uğur's side during his illness. The master artist had also expressed her great sorrow after Özkan Uğur's death through her posts.
Aksu also had a long-standing close friendship with Sırrı Süreyya Önder, another name she keeps alive. The duo, who came together in many common events, especially in art and literature, had their friendship immortalized through this meaningful donation after Önder's death.
Loyalty of 60 thousand saplings
This meaningful support of Sezen Aksu towards nature and her friends is not the first. The master artist had previously contributed to the creation of memorial forests in the names of Onno Tunç, Uzay Heparı, Aysel Gürel, Adile Naşit, Meral Oktay, Atilla Özdemiroğlu, Oğuz Aral, Şerif Yüzbaşıoğlu, Yaşar Gaga, Egemen Bostancı, and Pakize Sudan.