ISTANBUL—Turkey hosted its second Zero Waste Forum* in Istanbul this past weekend, which served as a preview of an important aspect of the agenda for this year’s UN climate summit.
Turkey launched its Zero Waste project in 2017, with a goal of promoting solutions and international dialogue aimed at reducing the world’s 2.1 billion tons of waste generated annually. This is in part because waste management, resource efficiency, and environmental protection are critical components of climate resilience. A core goal of this approach is to redesign the lifecycle of resources so that more materials are reused and recovered rather than sent to landfills. This year’s forum carried added significance as Turkey will also co-chair the UN climate change conference known as COP31 in November.
Notably, the Zero Waste initiative is championed by First Lady Emine Erdoğan, who was heavily involved in the forum and helped found the Zero Waste Foundation. The zero-waste project has become a key area of collaboration between Turkey and the United Nations, and it has already been noted as a priority for COP31. Another priority at COP31 that overlaps with a zero-waste approach will be fostering so-called circular economies, in which materials are sustainably kept in circulation through reuse, recycling, composting, and other processes.
