The Zero Waste Summit, an event bringing together all parties involved in the widespread recycling concept, began in Istanbul on Friday.
First Lady Emine Erdoğan said that Türkiye is ready to share its experience on the zero-waste initiative that it launched in 2017.
"Türkiye is ready to share its experience with zero waste with any country that wishes, and to put forth whatever it takes to turn zero waste into a global movement," Erdoğan said at the third international zero-waste summit and award ceremony in Istanbul.
The zero-waste project was launched by the first lady with the aim of highlighting the importance of zero waste in fighting the climate crisis.
"The seed we planted with hope in these lands five years ago turned into a big plane tree whose shadow today reaches the farthest countries. This success primarily belongs to our people, who adopted zero waste as a philosophy of life and enrich it with their voluntary contributions," Erdoğan said.
"The declaration of goodwill, with the number of signatories growing every day, was an important step towards institutionalizing the global interest and support for our zero-waste project," said the president's wife.
Organized by the Ministry of Environment, Urban Planning and Climate Change, the third edition of the summit celebrates the nationwide program that is now recognized by the world thanks to the efforts of first lady Emine Erdoğan, who launched the scheme in 2017.
The summit is being held under the theme “climate and youth" and also recognizes exemplary practices and individuals engaged in the concept. An awards ceremony was held at the event venue to felicitate good zero-waste practices and individuals for their commitment to this concept of sustainability. Along with panels and conferences, the summit hosts workshops on zero waste and exhibitions, including one by prominent artist Deniz Sağdıç, known for her work using recycled materials. Sağdıç was also set to take part in a live installation, creating an artwork made of recycled materials inspired by the Kauai bird, an extinct species. Another digital exhibition based on GPS data obtained from two endangered sea turtles released into the sea by the first lady and Minister of Environment, Urban Planning and Climate Change, Murat Kurum, was also scheduled to be held, shedding light on the turtles' route over the course of two years. A panel entitled “Youth for Climate” was held at the summit, along with a conference entitled “World Is Our Common Home.”
The summit also hosted a musical on recycling entitled “Year 2053: A World Without Waste” and a screening of a documentary on zero waste. Three chefs who serve as jury members on the Turkish version of MasterChef were set to introduce the concept of a “zero waste kitchen” at the event, based on good recycling practices in the kitchen. Among those attending the summit will be waste collectors, who are viewed as the most important actors in the recycling scheme.
The Zero Waste Project has led Türkiye's fight against climate change. The initiative primarily aims to bring the country in line with sustainable development principles, prevent uncontrolled waste and leave a "cleaner, developed" country to future generations. The project received awards last year from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the U.N.-Habitat program and was also included in an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) country report in 2019 as a promising project. Recently, it was honored by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean before the first lady was awarded the Climate and Development Leadership award for the project by the World Bank. To further its success, the Turkish first lady took the country's landmark recycling scheme to the U.N. and signed a goodwill agreement with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to extend the project across the world.
The zero waste initiative has already helped Türkiye to cut off 3.9 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions and save billions of dollars. Some 150,000 buildings across Türkiye have switched to the zero waste management system, which involves the separate disposal of garbage and recycling practices. The ministry prepared a regulation on the issue in 2019, setting the guidelines for recycling practices. In addition, some 17 million people are said to have been educated on the adoption of zero waste practices since the project's inception in 2017.
Speaking to broadcaster A Haber before the summit, Minister Kurum said they were "excited" for the event that celebrated a project, "which started out with modest goals but snowballed into a larger action." "Zero Waste, launched under the patronage of Emine Erdoğan, became a global project and marks its fifth year. It is like a child we raised," Kurum said. The minister also noted that they specifically chose a congress center on the coast of Istanbul's famed Golden Horn. "This was a place where you wouldn't be able to walk in the 1990s because of heavy pollution and stench. It was converted into a place with promenades where you could breathe fresh air during the tenure of then Mayor Recep Tayyip Erdoğan," he said, referring to the incumbent president of the Republic of Türkiye who is credited for a massive cleanup campaign in the area in 1997.
Kurum said zero waste became Türkiye's "biggest environmental movement" and noted that many buildings, from the Presidential Compex to ministries and the buildings of public agencies switched to zero waste practices: "150,000 buildings converted to this system." "When we started out, the recycling rate in Türkiye was almost zero but now we are a country that recycles 27% of its waste," he said. "Zero waste is very valuable for us. It is now a lifestyle. We have to raise generations to adapt to this concept. We want to leave a good legacy to them," he said.
