Şermin ÖZDEMİR, who graduated from the Department of Environmental Engineering at Middle East Technical University in 2005, completed her Master’s degree in Business Administration at Gazi University.

Having worked as an environmental engineer in the private sector between 2005 and 2006, Özdemir began her public service career in 2007 as an Assistant Environmental and Forestry Specialist at the Ministry of Environment and Forestry of the Republic of Turkey.

In December 2008, Özdemir was appointed as a Programming Specialist at the European Union’s Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) Coordination and Implementation Centre; from 2010 onwards, she served as Coordinator and Head of Department within the same centre. During this period, he oversaw the programming, project cycle management, tendering, contract management, monitoring and evaluation processes for investment and technical assistance projects funded by the European Union; he also played a role in programming activities carried out in collaboration with the European Commission. He also served as an Adviser to the IPA Directorate; he played an active role in chairing the tender committee, coordinating quality control and quality assurance systems, and in initiatives aimed at developing institutional capacity.

From March 2019 to April 2025, he served as Programme and Operations Specialist at the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) Representative Office in Turkey and the Subregional Office for Central Asia (SEC). He was involved in the development and implementation of national and regional projects carried out under the European Union, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the FAO Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) and other international funding mechanisms; He managed processes relating to programme and operations management, project cycle management, budgeting, procurement, tendering and contract management, monitoring and evaluation, resource mobilisation and stakeholder coordination. He played an active role in coordinating regional programmes and projects covering not only Turkey but also the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus.

Özdemir rejoined the Ministry in April 2025, serving as Head of the International Organisations Branch within the Directorate-General for the European Union and Foreign Relations. During this period, he coordinated cooperation with the United Nations system, the OECD and other international organisations, as well as multilateral diplomatic processes; He played an active role in the planning and execution, under the coordination of the Directorate General, of high-level international meetings and events organised within the framework of the G20, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-7), OECD processes, preparations for COP31, the COP31 Resilient Cities Programme, the COP31 D-8 Environment Ministers’ Meeting and the Zero Waste initiative.

Özdemir, who has been serving as Acting Head of the Project Implementation Department at the Directorate-General for European Union and Foreign Relations of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change since August 2026, continues his work in the areas of public investment projects, international financing, relations with international organisations, multilateral diplomacy, project and programme management, and institutional capacity building.