ISTANBUL Asia TOASTMASTERS

OUR CLUB

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A friendly English-speaking club in Kadıköy where you can practice public speaking and leadership in a safe, supportive space.Istanbul Asia Toastmasters started as the first English Toastmasters club on the Asian side of Istanbul.
Today we bring together:
- Turkish members who want to improve their English and their speaking skills
- Foreigners living on the Asian side who want a community and a place to grow
- Students, professionals, entrepreneurs, and anyone who wants to express themselves betterWe follow the Toastmasters International program, which has helped millions of people around the world become more confident speakers and leaders since 1924.Our meetings are:
- In English
- Supportive, structured, and fun
- Open to all levels – from “terrified of speaking” to “experienced presenter”See what happens in a meeting

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OUR MEETINGS

If you’ve never joined a Toastmasters meeting before, here’s what you can expect at Istanbul Asia Toastmasters.- Warm welcome & introductions
We say hello, introduce guests, and explain how the meeting works. You’re free to just watch if you want.- Prepared speeches
Members give short speeches (usually 5–7 minutes) from the Toastmasters educational program. Topics can be personal stories, business ideas, hobbies, or anything they care about.- Impromptu speaking (Table Topics)
Volunteers speak for 1–2 minutes on surprise questions. It sounds scary, but it’s fun and low-pressure. Guests can join if they want – or just listen.- Feedback & leadership practice
Members give short, constructive evaluations. Others take meeting roles (timekeeper, Ah-counter, etc.), which builds leadership and organization skills.You can sit quietly and watch your first meeting. No one will force you to speak or put you on the spot.I’m interested – how do I join as a guest?

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Is This Club for You?

Our members join for different reasons, but they usually want one or more of these:- Improve your public speaking
Practice regularly in front of a real audience and learn how to structure your message.- Develop leadership skills
Take roles during meetings, lead parts of the agenda, and later take club officer roles.- Boost your English
Meetings are in English. You’ll listen, speak, and get feedback in a friendly environment, whatever your level is.- Grow your network
Meet people from different backgrounds who also care about personal growth.- Build confidence
The more you speak, the more you realize you can handle interviews, presentations, and tough conversations in real life.This club is a good fit if you are:
- A student who wants to stand out in interviews and presentations
- A professional who needs to present ideas to clients or managers
- An entrepreneur who wants to pitch clearly and inspire others
- A foreigner in Istanbul looking for a supportive English-speaking community
- Someone who simply wants to stop being afraid when all eyes are on youI’m interested – how do I join as a guest?

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founder’s letter

The Istanbul Asia Toastmasters Club was formed in the autumn of 2012. At this time there was already a growing English Toastmasters club on the European side of Istanbul but no English Toastmasters club on the Asian side. A number of foreigners living on the Asian side of Istanbul felt that a Toastmasters group would be a great benefit to many.We felt sure that the way Toastmasters combines the opportunity for people to not only improve their public speaking ability but also develop their leadership skills would be a great value to our Turkish friends. The Toastmasters club would have the added benefit of helping our Turkish friends to improve their English-speaking skills. Locating our club in Kadikoy was another great plus to having our club get as much exposure as possible.Our Toastmasters club began to grow slowly but surely. Within one year – by late spring 2013 – we had enough members to have the status as an official club. Our club began to grow as we attracted more Turkish people and more foreigners as well. An important step was Ozan Sirin becoming the Turkish president of the club. During Ozan’s time and continuing afterward, our club became to grow to have a regular attendance of 30 or more people each week. During this time, we saw more people improve in their public speaking as well as taking on important club leadership roles.It was at this time that the unexpected pandemic struck. Our club was able to continue for a few months being totally online but soon afterward was forced to close (summer 2020). It seemed like our Istanbul Asia Toastmasters club might be destined to be closed for good. However, in the fall of 2023 a number of former club members came together to make efforts to restart the Istanbul Asia Toastmasters club. Among the key leaders who sacrificed to make the restart a reality were ones like Deniz Kalelioglu, Ozan Sirin, Elaine Elliott, Noemi Mano, Eric Walker, Gabe Fendley and too many others to mention.Now under the able leadership of Abdelrahman Hadeya, the Istanbul Asia Toastmasters is growing again, building a solid base in Istanbul but also attracting many others from around the world. If you are looking for an opportunity to grow and develop personally, I would encourage to try Toastmasters and visit us in the Kadikoy area.Ralph Elliott

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CONTACT US

Have questions about meetings, membership, or Toastmasters in general?
Send us a message and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.Privacy notice: Your information will only be used to process your request.