"Some of us had barely read a book in our lives. But when the library opened, we started to develop an interest in reading. And now my friends come everyday to find new books so they can read more and more," says Eray Yılmaz, a 27-year-old resident in Türkiye's capital Ankara, who has spent seven years working at the heart of an extraordinary community initiative.

In an inspiring journey, Yılmaz and his colleagues started to turn books that had been "thrown in the rubbish" into a thriving library in the city's Cankaya district that not only promotes reusing discarded books but also fosters a love for reading among the local population.

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Yılmaz himself started to read at the age of 9, when his primary school teacher encouraged him by giving him books as gifts. It has become a lifelong habit, he reads every night for at least half an hour before going to bed.

He recognizes it is a privilege to be able to read because not everyone can. With a 96.74 percent literacy rate recorded for Türkiye in 2019, there are still some in his country who cannot read and write.

'What should we do with these books?'

And it is projects like the Copten Cıkan Kutuphane, which means 'library made out of trash,' that are playing a key role in improving literacy rates in Ankara.

It was in 2016, when Yılmaz and his colleagues started "rescuing" books found in the trash they would collect from several neighborhoods of the district. The idea to use these books to establish a library emerged when they alerted their boss to their growing collection.

"We are finding books, what should we do with these books? We don't want to throw these away," Yılmaz recalls the conversation some of the municipality's cleaning department staff had with their director.

They initially had around 500 books. The library now houses 10,000 with another 25,000 kept safely in storage.

"In a very short time period, our stocks were full of books and it was like we had more books than we could manage," Yılmaz tells CGTN. "So we decided to donate books to schools and prisons."

Located in a space beneath an old factory in the outskirts of Cankaya, the library stands as a symbol of hope for the local community. This library project is very much focused on zero waste and responsible use of resources.

Disused tables, chairs and some other furniture items, from local restaurants and public spaces, have been given a new lease of life here. 

'No books are in the garbage anymore'

The team's commitment to rescuing books from the waste has had a profound impact on young and old alike, with many reading enthusiasts eager to find new titles on a regular basis now available to them for free. 

The team of the Sci Kutuphanesi library,  meaning workers' library, even goes to "collect the books from people's doors. So if they want to get rid of some books, they can just call us. In our district at the moment, almost no books are in the garbage anymore."

Cankaya is the biggest district municipality in Türkiye, with a population of around one million spread over 483 square kilometers. And the community is very diverse, with some pockets of "more vulnerable places, it's a huge mix overall."

"In Cankaya, you can meet all sorts of people, just like you would in Istanbul, it is one of the most cosmopolitan areas in the country," says Umut Berker Sevilmis, Director of Foreign Relations in Cankaya Municipality.

And the library, although on the outskirts of the central district, is just a kilometer away from the residential parts of the city.

"Most people come in their cars. But those who don't have a car and want to visit the library can use public transport. There are bus stops nearby from where we can pick them up, they just have to inform us ahead of their visit," explains Yılmaz how the library project is focused on serving the community and making the facility accessible to as many people as it possibly can.

The inside of the library has been designed to be a fun place and it looks beautiful and warm, which makes it particularly popular with children.

"Lots of children come. It is an inviting space so when children come to visit, it definitely encourages them to read more because they enjoy being here and learning through reading," says Yılmaz, his face shining with the joy he gets out of being a part of such a positive initiative.

'Don't throw books away'

The library's outreach extends to village schools and prisons, where access to books is often limited. The team actively collaborates with these institutions, responding to their specific needs and sending the lovingly rescued books where they know these will be "cherished and loved."

It comes as no surprise that the project's popularity has gone beyond Ankara, with schools from other cities often reaching out and asking the library to donate books for their students.

"When they find out there is this donation, they contact us and then we ask what kind of books they need and how many. After completing all the formalities, we arrange to send the books, 200 to 300 books to one school. And if the school is close to us, then we ourselves take the books to them," tells the library worker.

It was on one such school book donation trip in a small city in Türkiye, that Yılmaz recalls they decided to name the library after a student who had recently passed away in a car accident. It is moments like this that keep the library workers motivated to spread the joy of reading with as many children as they can.

"Sometimes we find love letters among the books, which is something lovely," says Yılmaz.

The project has donated approximately 7,500 books to 51 schools and prisons so far. Moreover, it has inspired other municipalities to establish libraries for their workers and residents. 

"We have even transformed a garbage truck into a mobile library, visiting people in different districts of the city, with other municipalities following suit, traveling around and making books available to people," says Yılmaz. 

He finds real purpose in inspiring others to fulfill their passion to read. He loves that the project that he started with his colleagues has been followed as "a best practice." It is what gets him out of bed every single day, he says.

"Don't throw books away. Share them -  in schools, with friends and colleagues. And read as much as you can because it will make your life better," he suggests, having seen firsthand how it has made a difference to the lives of so many in his community and beyond.

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