The Ministry for Family and Social Policies is the beneficiary and the European Union finances the Program for the Integration of Disabled Persons under which the Give Way to My Independence Program was run. As part of the project which we are jointly running with the Foundation for the Nurture and Protection of Mentally Disabled Children (“ZİÇEV”) we are preparing the teaching materials which are essential to individuals with developmental difficulties (whether mentally disabled or autistic) gaining basic pedestrians skills and to raise awareness with the general public of the types of different individuals they have to share traffic with.
As part of this project Tohum Autism Foundation specialist teaching professionals have developed pedestrian skills teaching syllabus designed for autistic and mentally disabled individuals. This includes videos and applied teaching REHBER on skills needed for using the pedestrian pavement, awareness of traffic lights, and how to cross the street in the absence of any helpful structures and how to use UST GEÇIT. Prepared in the form of a DVD, the teaching video and the teaching materials have been sent to all the National Council Education Departments throughout Turkey; at the same time it has been sent to all the integrated schools in Istanbul. As a result, a resource on teaching pedestrian skills which is easy to reach, to disseminate and to replicate has been created.
One other extra aspect of the projects teaching efforts has been a campaign to raise awareness in those who drive in traffic. This awareness campaign aims to contribute to an awareness among individuals who are in traffic intensively -particularly about the fact that they as drivers are sharing roads with those who are different to them.  Car stickers were also prepared as part of the campaign to be distributed to vehicles. During the campaign, 1 press meeting, 2 NGO meetings, 3 campaign meetings and 1 closing meeting was completed. Different stakeholders came together to join in these meetings and contributed to disseminating the campaign. Also, a radio infomercial was created with the contribution of actor Burçin Terzioğlu, radio traffic announcement Broadcasting Manager Cezyir Doğan, 2 Tohum Autism Foundation School students in order to spread the campaign wider.

Please click on this link to download the Basic Pedestrian Skills Teaching Application .
Please click on this link to watch the Basic Pedestrian Skills Teaching Application
Raising Awareness Radio Infomercial;
Burçin Terzioğlu;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCz7JCUeamU&list=UUq5SG7DTyo4qphbQWrk1IuQ
Cezyir Doğan;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEwVLjqFUxQ&list=UUq5SG7DTyo4qphbQWrk1IuQ

Tohum Autism Foundation School Student Ezgi;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6W0gbkzUFLk&list=UUq5SG7DTyo4qphbQWrk1IuQ

Tohum Autism Foundation School Student Ali İhsan;

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elZxucuHPck&list=UUq5SG7DTyo4qphbQWrk1IuQ
17 April 2014 “Give Way to My Independence” Project Raising Awareness Press Meeting
During her assessment of the importance of autistic and mentally disabled individuals gaining pedestrian skills and the teaching materials that were produced for this, the Tohum Autism Foundation Board Member Aylin Sezgin noted; “I believe that this “Give Way to My Independence” Project will have a profound impact on the ability of our autistic children to live independent lives as individuals in our community. On behalf of our children, I would like to thank Burçin Terzioğlu for being the face and voice of this campaign to help our children and their families to more easily travel and those institutions who were our partners as well. Burçin Terzioğlu, underscoring the fact that more needs to be done to increase awareness in the general public that there are people with differing abilities in traffic, said “Let us all join together to lessen the problems that autistic and mentally disabled children have in traffic and let us all be more aware. I support the “Give Way to My Independence” Project so that everyone can have equal rights and be safe in when in traffic.” The Tohum Autism Foundation School student Ezgi’s speech “Please notice me in traffic so that I can be safe and equal in traffic” resulted in some emotional moments.