Filiz Odabas-Geldiay
A committed advocate for peaceful societies, Filiz Odabas-Geldiay has served for the past 15 years as the Executive Director for IAHV which is a member of ECOSOC since 2002. IAHV offers cost-effective, scalable and accessible public health intervention that promotes wellness and mental health.
In this role, Filiz leads IAHV’s governance, strategy and public global relations and oversees IAHV’s programs to help at-risk youth, veterans with PTS, prisoners, and university students. She also leads strategy and partnerships for IAHV’s disaster and trauma relief, peace and conflict resolution work, implementation of leadership and vocational training for Iraqi widows, community development including with affected populations such as the Yezidi women and girls in the camps of Iraq.
Formerly, she was the founder and Executive Director of the World Children's Day Foundation (WCDF) that collaborated with UNICEF to mobilize elementary school students in 140 countries to help the needy in their communities.
A former correspondent for the USA edition of Hurriyet, the largest daily of Turkey, she has also published articles in the Washington Post and Nation’s Business.
Her engagements include serving on the Secretary’s Subcommittee for Women at the U.S. State Department's Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy (ACIEP); Private Sector Adviser on the US Delegation to the Third APEC Senior Officials Meeting; and Lessons Learned Working Group at USIP; a founder and Board member of Ataturk Society of America.
She has addressed, among others, the UN, U.S. Department of State, UNFPA, International Women’s Conference in Bali, George Washington University, William & Mary College, Harvard Club of Washington and the World Bank.
She was selected as one of the Nation’s Top 90 Women Mentoring Leaders at the Global Women Mentoring and Philanthropy Summit; was the recipient of the Capitol Hero Award from the American University, the Vishalakshi Award from the Art of Living Foundation, and was nominated for People Who Make a Difference Award by the Helena Curtis, Inc.
Filiz holds M.A. in Communications and Conflict Management and a B.A. in International Relations from American University.
She is a senior instructor of stress-management and meditation courses and has taught people from all walks of life including U.S. Members of Congress, diplomats, corporate executives and Iraqi widows.
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Executive Director , International Association For Human Values (IAHV)