Rana Birden
Rana Birden - Kale Group, Head of Corporate Communications and Impact Investments
Rana Birden is the Head of Corporate Communications and Impact Investments at Kale Group. A graduate of Galatasaray University’s Department of International Relations, she continued her academic path with an MA in European Union Studies at the same university. Since beginning her career in 1999, she has taken leading roles across public affairs, civil society, and impact investing.
Birden started as a Senior Research Specialist at the Economic Development Foundation (İKV), later serving as Assistant Project Coordinator in the EU Civil Society Development Program and as Coordinator of EU Research and Documentation at Bahçeşehir University. She also served as Director of the Foundation for Social Participation and Development, delivering notable projects in the field. Drawing on her deep civil-society expertise, she has advised distinguished organizations including the Sabancı Foundation, the Third Sector Foundation of Türkiye (TÜSEV), and the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. She was the Managing Director of the Global Relations Forum (2012–2014) and served in strategic roles as a Board Member of the Türkiye–Europe Foundation and on the C20 Executive Board (2014–2016).
Since 2016, Birden has led Kale Group’s corporate communications and impact investment agenda, launching the company’s social responsibility initiatives and innovative business models. In her own words, she is a leader “nourished not by problems, but by responsibility,” bringing an entrepreneurial civic mindset to every step. For the past eight years, she has overseen Corporate Communications, Public Affairs, Community Management, Impact Investments, and Social Responsibility projects at Kale Group, while also serving as the General Manager of the Dr. (h.c.) İbrahim Bodur Kaleseramik Education, Health and Social Assistance Foundation (KSV).
