Zero Waste Forum 2026 and Zero Waste Festival positioned Istanbul as a platform connecting diplomacy, implementation and public engagement ahead of COP31 in Antalya.
Istanbul - Zero Waste Forum 2026 and the Zero Waste Festival placed Istanbul at the center of Türkiye’s preparations for COP31 in Antalya, connecting international environmental diplomacy with practical implementation and public participation around the zero waste agenda.
The three-day forum, organized by the Zero Waste Foundation at İstanbul Atatürk Airport from June 5-7, was held under the theme “Road to Antalya: Zero Waste as Climate Action.” It brought together governments, cities, international organizations, experts and stakeholders in a format designed to build implementation readiness rather than conduct formal negotiations.
“Zero waste is not only an environmental agenda; it is climate action in practice,” said Samed Ağırbaş, President of the Zero Waste Foundation and COP31 Climate High-Level Champion. “It is about preventing waste before it is created, transforming systems and strengthening the capacity to deliver results. That is why the road to COP31 must include both policy alignment and visible public ownership.”
The forum was described as a high-level rehearsal for Antalya. It welcomed more than 120 ministers from 183 countries, hundreds of mayors and more than 5,000 participants. The scale made it one of the largest gatherings linked to global environmental diplomacy and the most significant pre-COP31 platforms focused on zero waste and climate action.
Zero Waste Forum 2026’s role was to accelerate coordination, strengthen partnerships and help translate stakeholder priorities into implementation pathways. Its outputs included the Road to Antalya Declaration, the City Action Commitments Package, the Food Waste and Methane Action Guide, and the Partnership and Project Pipeline.
“COP31 will be judged not only by ambition, but by how ambition translates into action,” Ağırbaş told. “The forum gave governments, cities and institutions a shared platform to move from intention to preparation. Our focus was to make zero waste more concrete, more collaborative and more useful for the climate agenda.”
The program featured 247 speakers and covered a broad set of systems, from industry and technology to agriculture, forestry, energy and natural resources. Three High-Level Ministerial Sessions were held in those areas, reinforcing sector-specific leadership on the Road to Antalya.
Food waste and methane action formed a central theme. Sessions examined prevention and recovery across production, logistics, retail and hospitality, along with organic waste management, methane reduction, city-level implementation, scalable solutions and evidence-based guidance.
Working under the vision of H.E. Emine Erdoğan, founder of the Zero Waste Movement, Chair of the UN High-Level Advisory Board on Zero Waste and Honorary President of the Zero Waste Foundation, Ağırbaş told that focus was intended to show how zero waste can connect directly with climate outcomes.
“Food waste and methane are areas where prevention, recovery and better management can create practical gains,” he said. “They also show why cities, businesses and communities need to be part of the same conversation as ministers and international organizations.”
One of Europe’s largest environmental events with over 1 million visitors
The forum was the central event of Zero Waste Week, organized by the Governorship of Istanbul in cooperation with the Zero Waste Foundation from June 1-7. Alongside it, the Zero Waste Festival turned the same agenda toward the public through environmental awareness, sustainable living, culture, arts, technology, exhibitions, workshops and interactive experiences.
The festival welcomed more than one million visitors, making it one of Europe’s largest public environmental engagement events and demonstrating how sustainability agendas can move beyond policy discussions and into everyday life. Its role was to give the zero waste agenda public visibility and a wider social base while the forum carried the policy, diplomacy and implementation track.
“Zero Waste Forum 2026 provided the policy and delivery platform for the Road to Antalya,” Ağırbaş said. “The Zero Waste Festival gave that agenda public visibility, awareness and ownership. Together, they showed how COP31 can connect high-level ambition with practical action, from governments and cities to citizens and communities.”
For Türkiye, the combined forum and festival offered a way to frame COP31 as more than a diplomatic milestone. Together, the forum and festival demonstrated Türkiye’s ambition to position COP31 not only as a diplomatic conference, but as a platform that connects governments, cities, businesses, civil society and citizens around practical climate solutions. They positioned Istanbul as a platform where environmental diplomacy, city action and citizen engagement could meet before the climate agenda moves to Antalya.
Ağırbaş stated that the task ahead is to keep that connection intact. “The value of this week will be measured by what continues after Istanbul,” he concluded. “The Road to Antalya is about carrying partnerships, commitments and public momentum into COP31 with a clear implementation mindset.”
Media Contact
Company Name: Zero Waste Foundation
Contact Person: Ahmet Musa Bala
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City: Istanbul
Country: Turkey
Website: https://globalzerowasteforum.org/
