Her mother partly descends from the Turkish community in
Thessaloniki,
Greece, while her father descends from the
Turkish community in Bulgaria. She completed her primary and secondary education in
İzmir. In 2000, she was due to represent Turkey in the Miss Universe pageant, but Cansu withdrew due to
political issues between Turkey and
Cyprus (Host country of the Miss Universe in 2000); Turkey had no relations with the
Republic of Cyprus. She was forbidden by the
Turkish Government to travel to the 2000 Miss Universe pageant in Cyprus unless she could pass through
Northern Cyprus, which was then forbidden for any visitor to the Republic of Cyprus. The competition committee in Turkey made arrangements for her to travel through
Athens, but the day before her departure the government refused to let her go, "for political reasons". This was the second delegate that was not allowed to represent Turkey that year. Shortly thereafter, the former Miss Turkey started to work as a professional model. She left the
Archeology Department of
Istanbul University and focused on the modeling profession. Representing
Turkey in all international organizations of Istanbul Textile and Apparel Exporters' Association, Cansu Dere participated in various fashion shows in
Paris in 2002 and 2003 and worked with many important photographers. ==Career==