Anadolu Sigorta's Eyes of the Forest Project Will Protect an Area of ​​1.2 Million Hectares in its 5th Year

Anadolu Sigorta creates a permanent and scalable protection model across Turkey with its "Eyes of the Forest" project, which brings together technology, public-private sector cooperation and social awareness against forest fires, whose number and impact are increasing with the climate crisis. The project was implemented in 2022 under the leadership of the General Directorate of Forestry of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry; It was designed to detect forest fires early and raise social awareness against fire risk. The first unmanned fire observation tower within the scope of the project was commissioned in Adana Balcalı at the end of 2022. 

In 2023, in Çanakkale, Muğla, Adana and Antalya; In 2024, new generation towers were completed and put into service in Istanbul, Izmir, Bursa, Kahramanmaraş and Mersin. With the towers established in Istanbul, Kastamonu, Muğla, Denizli, Bilecik and Izmir in 2025, Eyes of the Forest has turned into an effective early warning network in areas with high fire risk. As of the end of 2025, a total of 16 fire observation towers are actively working in the project. While an area of approximately 800 thousand hectares is monitored uninterruptedly through these towers, 241 forest fires have been detected at a very early stage and possible major disasters have been prevented.

“With the Eyes of the Forest, we aim to create a scalable and sustainable impact that increases social awareness.”

Anadolu Sigorta Corporate Communications, Sustainability and Disaster Management Coordinator Berna Semiz Ergüntan said the following in her evaluation of the Eyes of the Forest project: “With the climate crisis, forest Fires have turned into a multi-layered risk area with not only environmental but also social and economic dimensions. We have designed the Eyes of the Forest project, which is in its 5th year, as a permanent solution model that protects not only the present but also the future in Turkey. Approximately 55% of these forest areas are fire-sensitive areas. We will monitor approximately 1,200,000 hectares of this area with our towers that will be completed in 2026. 800,000 hectares of land are described as more fire-sensitive forest areas. In this way, approximately 10% of the fire-sensitive areas will be monitored with the new towers we will commission. With the support we have implemented in addition to the fire surveillance system of the General Directorate of Forestry, we will contribute to the protection of approximately 5% of the forest areas monitored by the General Directorate of Forestry. While bringing the technology to the field in cooperation with the public-private sector, we focused on the life-saving power of early detection and the importance of the preventive approach. We aim to create a scalable and sustainable impact that increases social awareness while also being an ear."

2026 target: A wider protection network in Turkey and Cyprus

In the 2026 road map of the project, the establishment of new artificial intelligence-supported unmanned fire watchtowers in Balıkesir, Adana, Kastamonu and Denizli provinces; It also includes the commissioning of advanced surveillance systems in Ankara (METU Forests) and Cyprus. 

The Eyes of the Forest is not only a vital technological investment; It is also a strong communication and awareness project. The first part of the "Eyes of the Forest" documentary series prepared within the scope of the project met with the audience in 2023, and the fourth part in 2025. Beyond technical success, the documentary series makes visible the relationship between nature and humans and the common responsibility in fighting fires. Documentary shooting is planned to continue in 2026.

Anadolu Sigorta's Eyes of the Forest Project is a concrete example of how the private sector can create a high impact when it acts together with public institutions in the fight against the climate crisis. The project directly supports the "Life on Land" goal, which is among the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, with its early detection of forest fires and forest protection functions. It also makes a strong contribution to the title of "Partnerships for Purposes", revealing the transformative power of technology in the field of nature conservation.

The towers are not only against fires; It also provides effective surveillance for other forestry activities. At the same time, systems that contribute to the protection of natural life also play an important role in tracking species at risk of extinction.Thanks to the towers serving as base stations for forest communication systems, the communication infrastructure in forest areas is strengthened and the coordination of emergency response teams is significantly facilitated. In addition to the tower installations, Anadolu Sigorta also supports the "Video Analytical Software and Smoke Detection System" project of the General Directorate of Forestry. Thanks to this system, cameras in OGM's existing fire watchtowers can be monitored via a single software platform. Fires can be detected at a very early stage by automatically detecting smoke and flame on video images with artificial intelligence-supported analysis. While this approach strengthens the role of technology in reducing disaster risks, it also offers a digitalization-based adaptation model against climate change.