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UN PhotoTÜRKIYE / FROM CORPORATE LIFE TO BEEKEEPING
STORY: TÜRKIYE / FROM CORPORATE LIFE TO BEEKEEPING
TRT: 5:20
SOURCE: FAO
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT FAO ON SCREEN
LANGUAGE: TURKISH / NATS
DATELINE: 11, 12, 14, 15 AUGUST 2025, DÜZCE PROVINCE, TÜRKIYE
15 AUGUST 2025, DÜZCE PROVINCE, TÜRKIYE
1. Pan left, Nurcan’s bee yard
2. Pull focus, from flowers to a beehive door
3. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci closing a beekeeping suit
4. Wide shot, Nurcan Tekneci lifting the frame of a hive
5. Close up, frame of a hive being lifted
6. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“My vision for the future is to establish a bee farm that is more than just a home for bees. I want to invite children, young people, and women to this space, using small-scale trainings and workshops to inspire them to discover the world of beekeeping.”
7. Wide shot, Nurcan Tekneci (right) at home playing with her son (center) and her husband (left)
8. Close up, Nurcan Tekneci (right) at home playing with her son (center) and her husband (left)
9. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci (right) reading a book to her son (left)
10. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“During that period, I realized that we could live with less; there wasn’t a need for so much consumption. Most importantly, I also realized something else: I had never really spent time with my son until then.”
11. Close up, hot water being poured in a cup
12. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci drinking coffee with her husband
13. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“Five years ago, when I moved to the village and said we were starting beekeeping, the locals called us ‘urban beekeepers.’ They said that this is a man’s job, and that I wouldn't be able to lift the hives or manage to do the work.”
14. Wide shot, Nurcan Tekneci opening a beehive
15. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci inspecting a frame of a hive
16. Close up, bees on a frame
17. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“My goal was to show that this profession is not actually a ‘man’s job,’ but rather a business that can be done together.”
18. Wide shot, Nurcan Tekneci making a wax candle
19. Close up, Nurcan Tekneci rolling a wax candle
20. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci tying lavender to a wax candle
21. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“Four years ago, I established my own brand. At first, I focused on beeswax products. Eventually, we found a year-round balance. March through September was honey season, and from September to March, we made our living from beeswax. But bees are such precious creatures that producing only two products would be unfair to them. Then I discovered royal jelly.”
11 AUGUST 2025, DÜZCE PROVINCE, TÜRKIYE
22. Wide shot, FAO indoor training
23. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci and her husband attending FAO indoor training
12 AUGUST 2025, DÜZCE PROVINCE, TÜRKIYE
24. Pan right, FAO outdoor training
25. Med shot, FAO trainer speaking
26. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci attending FAO outdoor training
15 AUGUST 2025, DÜZCE PROVINCE, TÜRKIYE
27. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“These trainings helped us clearly identify where we were going wrong. By correcting those mistakes and working in a more detailed and careful way, I plan to increase my capacity and produce higher-quality, more sustainable products.”
28. Wide shot, Nurcan Tekneci (right) and nutrition expert and FAO Champion Dilara Koçak (left) walking in Nurcan’s bee yard
29. Close up, bees around a beehive door
30. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci (right) and Dilara Koçak (left) opening a beehive
31. Close up, Dilara Koçak inspecting a frame of a hive
32. Close up, a frame of a hive
33. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Dilara Koçak, nutrition expert and FAO champion:
“Here in the heart of the forest, we are guests at a farm of bees, precious partners, miraculous creatures that provide nutrition. Bees are essential for the sustainability of agrifood systems, for pollination, for biodiversity.”
34. Wide shot, Nurcan Tekneci (left) and Dilara Koçak (right) producing wax candles
35. Close up, Dilara Koçak rolling a wax candle
36. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci (left) and Dilara Koçak (right) lighting wax candles
37. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Dilara Koçak, nutrition expert and FAO champion:
“Nurcan, the owner of this bee farm, is a woman leader. She is a beekeeper who started beekeeping traditionally and, with the training she received, she is now doing this at an academic level. She inspires women, inspires young people and does everything she can for the continuation of bees’ lives. Witnessing this is very special. I was inspired.”
38. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci (right) with her son (center) and her husband (left) wearing beekeeping suits and walking in the family bee yard
39. Wide shot, Nurcan Tekneci (right) with her son (center) and her husband (left) inspecting hives
14 AUGUST 2025, DÜZCE PROVINCE, TÜRKIYE
40. Med shot, Nurcan Tekneci selling her products at local market
41. Close up, Nurcan Tekneci talking with a costumer
42. Wide shot, costumer buying honey
15 AUGUST 2025, DÜZCE PROVINCE, TÜRKIYE
43. SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“We are doing this work together with my husband. We’re not doing beekeeping as a hobby. This is our only job. We’re showing society that a family can make a living solely from beekeeping.”
44. Close up, bees around a beehive door
45. Pull focus, hives in Nurcan’s bee yard
46. Aerial shot, Nurcan’s bee yard in the forest
47. Aerial shot, landscape of Düzce’s countryside
In the outskirts of Düzce, in northwestern Türkiye, Nurcan Tekneci, 36, inspects her hives with the precision of the corporate manager she once was. After leaving a successful career in Istanbul to build a professional beekeeping business, she now manages 70 hives producing honey, royal jelly, and propolis. Beyond the harvest, Nurcan envisions a future where her farm becomes a training hub for the next generation of women beekeepers.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“My vision for the future is to establish a bee farm that is more than just a home for bees. I want to invite children, young people, and women to this space, using small-scale trainings and workshops to inspire them to discover the world of beekeeping.”
A few years ago, Nurcan’s life followed a different rhythm. She lived in Istanbul, where she was a human resources manager and maintained a fast-paced career. Everything changed during the pandemic lockdowns. Spending 45 days at home gave her a new perspective on her life and her young son, who was two years old at the time.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“During that period, I realized that we could live with less; there wasn’t a need for so much consumption. Most importantly, I also realized something else: I had never really spent time with my son until then.”
When her husband, Lokman, suggested moving to a village, Nurcan agreed. However, the transition from the city was met with skepticism from her new neighbors.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“Five years ago, when I moved to the village and said we were starting beekeeping, the locals called us ‘urban beekeepers.’ They said that this is a man’s job, and that I wouldn't be able to lift the hives or manage to do the work.”
Faced with this skepticism, Nurcan set out to prove that her new career was about partnership and skill, rather than physical strength alone.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“My goal was to show that this profession is not actually a ‘man’s job,’ but rather a business that can be done together.”
She treated beekeeping as a professional challenge from the start, studying scientific methods and apprenticing with experts. As her experience grew, Nurcan established her own brand and expanded beyond honey. Beeswax candles became a turning point.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper:
“Four years ago, I established my own brand. At first, I focused on beeswax products. Eventually, we found a year-round balance. March through September was honey season, and from September to March, we made our living from beeswax. But bees are such precious creatures that producing only two products would be unfair to them. Then I discovered royal jelly.”
Nurcan continued to diversify her products, including propolis and royal jelly. In 2025, she joined trainings supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) through a project led by the Turkish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. The sessions focused on hive management, disease control, marketing and sustainability.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper: “These trainings helped us clearly identify where we were going wrong. By correcting those mistakes and working in a more detailed and careful way, I plan to increase my capacity and produce higher-quality, more sustainable products.”
After the training, nutrition expert and FAO Champion Dilara Koçak visited the apiary to see how Nurcan’s work supports biodiversity and healthy agrifood systems.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Dilara Koçak, nutrition expert and FAO champion: “Here in the heart of the forest, we are guests at a farm of bees, precious partners, miraculous creatures that provide nutrition. Bees are essential for the sustainability of agrifood systems, for pollination, for biodiversity.”
The two women worked together making beeswax candles. For Dilara, Nurcan is a leader who proves that traditional work can be done at a high academic and professional level.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Dilara Koçak, nutrition expert and FAO champion: “Nurcan, the owner of this bee farm, is a woman leader. She is a beekeeper who started beekeeping traditionally and, with the training she received, she is now doing this at an academic level. She inspires women, inspires young people and does everything she can for the continuation of bees’ lives. Witnessing this is very special. I was inspired.”
Nurcan harvested 200 kilograms of honey in 2025 alone. But she has bigger dreams. She envisions workshops, trainings, and a honey harvest festival where families take home the honey they saw produced.
Nurcan says she didn’t leave her professional life behind; she transformed it. The skills she honed in corporate offices now shape her business: organization, quality control, and communication.
SOUNDBITE (Turkish) Nurcan Tekneci, beekeeper: “We are doing this work together with my husband. We’re not doing beekeeping as a hobby. This is our only job. We’re showing society that a family can make a living solely from beekeeping.”
As the world marks the International Year of the Woman Farmer in 2026, Nurcan’s story highlights the vital role women play in rural economies. In the quiet forests of Düzce, she has found a new way to lead.
The International Year of the Woman Farmer 2026 recognizes the essential contributions of women farmers worldwide to food security, economic prosperity, and improved nutrition and livelihoods, despite heavier workloads, precarious working conditions, and unequal access to resources. It calls for collective action and investment to empower women, in all their diversity, and to build a fairer, more inclusive, and sustainable agrifood system for all.
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