After his graduation on Tourism Management, Semi Hakim continued to his career as a chef after receiving his professional culinary training in Istanbul. During his time as a chef, he conducted research projects on food and culture, worked on gastro-diplomacy projects, coordinated food events, and led projects focused on supporting small-scale food producers in Turkey. Following years, Semi Hakim also continued his Master’s in Agriculture Economics. In 2015, together with Shirley Kaston, Semi co-founded the Kök Projekt and started working on the development of agri-food accelerator programs within Emerging Markets. Kök Projekt is an agri-food management consulting company that works together with corporates, governmental organizations and investment funds, focusing on supporting agri-food, water and climate technology company through the lens of Climate Adaptation, Food Security and Water Security challenges.