. This however does not capture the entire picture as the growth of this number has been 10 fold in the past year [2]. This massive growth can most directly be attributed to the rising prices of cryptocurrencies and to the speedy devaluation of the Turkish Lira (around ~40% against the US Dollar in 2021).
Devaluation of the currency has gotten exceedingly worse and is set to continue in the near future. The negative effects are felt throughout the country as wages tumble on a USD basis. The minimum wage is around $220 as of the time of this proposal (nearly half the working population earn min. wage), meaning any funds put to work in Turkey can get lots of involvement from the local population.
Despite this growth, Cardano adoption is very low. Although there is an ADA trading community of around 2853 people just in the telegram group, there is currently no broader Cardano community. The majority of the investors in the trading group were drawn to ADA by the performance of the cryptocurrency. As a result, trader emotions like fear and greed dominate the conversation within cryptocurrency communities, resulting in misinformation about the broader Cardano community. As such, a Turkish Cardano community is sorely needed to raise awareness of the vision of Cardano beyond the token price.
We the proposers of this challenge are trying to do so and bring more qualified Turkish people into the Cardano community. However, we are just a group of three within Project Catalyst with a broader network of around 20 that are involved in cryptocurrencies in Turkey. If the real value of Cardano can be demonstrated in Turkey, this number will dramatically increase. This is especially true given that the majority of young people are interested in participating in international projects. However, they face language obstacles and lack some of the relevant competencies. Therefore more initiatives are needed to realize the potential of Turkey and to aid the global adoption of Cardano.
Given these points, what could Turkey offer the Cardano community back in return? Turkey has great potential in its qualified IT and cybersecurity personnel built thanks in part to a solid financial services sector. It also has a large pool of young, active and forward looking individuals, looking to contribute to their communities. This challenge aims to bring this potential to the Cardano ecosystem.
Guiding questions
How can we involve general ADA holders in project Catalyst in Turkey?
How can we increase the number of SPOs from Turkey?
How can we increase more meaningful participation from Turkey?
How can we encourage new members to utilize the tools and services available for onboarding?
How can we localize the existing materials?
Challange Team
Cem Karaca
<https://www.linkedin.com/in/ckaraca>
Özgür Yaşar Akyar
<https://www.linkedin.com/in/ozguryasarakyar>
Çağkan Acarbay
<https://www.linkedin.com/in/%C3%A7a%C4%9Fkan-acarbay-b2210b136>
References
[1] https://triple-a.io/crypto-ownership-turkey/.
[2] <https://www.paribu.com/blog/en/news/paribu-has-published-the-results-of-the-most-comprehensive-cryptocurrency-survey-cryptocurrency-use-in-turkey-has-increased-by-10-times>