Emine Erdoğan urges focus on preventing waste at COP31 meeting

Emine Erdoğan urged leaders’ spouses to focus on preventing waste at a meeting in Antalya during the UN climate conference COP31.

She said success should be measured not only by waste recycled, but also by waste that never gets produced.

Turkey’s recycling rate has risen from 13% to more than 37% since its Zero Waste Movement began nine years ago, she said.

The movement started in homes and has spread to schools, municipalities, public bodies and factories.

Erdoğan argued that waste is shaped by decisions about what is made, how it is made and how long products are used.

She called for global standards requiring major companies to disclose resource use and environmental impacts, saying responsibility should match the global reach of their businesses.

A Zero Waste Museum is due to open at COP31 on November 12, with displays about recycling, reuse and protecting natural resources.