A Busy March for Bilkent Animals' Friends Club
The Bilkent Animals' Friends Club (Hayvan Dostları) has had a busy month. On March 19, 20 and 21, the organization had a stand open in front of the FEASS building to collect cat and dog food, milk and medicine for an upcoming shelter visit. During the lunchtime break, club members played the guitar while receiving donations from their fellow students and the Bilkent community. As a result, over 190 kg of cat and dog food was collected for animals at the shelter.
On March 23, Animals' Friends organized a conference on "Animal Rights." Ekin Kadir Selçuk, a PhD student in the Department of Political Science, discussed animal rights from the perspective of political science.
The shelter visit took place on March 25. Club members took the donations they had collected at the stand to a shelter in İncek owned by the Animal Rescue Association. A large group, consisting of both students and faculty members, went to the shelter. Bilkenters petted and fed the dogs, and afterward commented on the great time they had during the visit.
In addition, Animals' Friends have launched a PR campaign at Bilkent to raise awareness of animals as fellow residents of the university campus. Club members designed a poster: "I am a Bilkenter/Ben de Bilkentliyim." The poster highlights the fact that the animals on campus also live here and have nowhere else to go. The club members plan additional steps in the campaign during the coming weeks.