COP31 and Climate Diplomacy: Türkiye's Zero Waste Initiative and Hosting Role

Why It Matters

Türkiye is set to host COP31, the 2026 UN climate conference, in Antalya, with a Turkish minister as COP president. The arrangement was announced at COP30 in Belém in November 2025 as a compromise with Australia. Ankara has paired the role with its signature climate-related soft-power project, the Zero Waste initiative, and with a 2053 net-zero target, so COP31 is the first time Türkiye's climate record and its climate diplomacy will be examined together on a global stage.

This guide states only widely documented facts. Where details are procedural or may still change, such as exact programme and agenda items, readers should check the UNFCCC secretariat and the host government's official COP31 channels.

Background

How COP hosting works

UN climate conferences (Conferences of the Parties, or COPs) rotate among the UN regional groups. COP31 fell to the Western European and Others Group (WEOG), and the host must be agreed by consensus. Both Türkiye (offering Antalya) and Australia (offering Adelaide) put themselves forward, and neither could be chosen without the other's consent. The deadlock was resolved at COP30 in Belém, Brazil, in November 2025.

The compromise

As publicly announced at COP30:

• Venue and host: Türkiye hosts COP31 in Antalya. The conference is scheduled for November 2026 (the announced dates are 9–20 November).
• Presidency: Murat Kurum, Türkiye's Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, serves as COP31 President.
• Australia's role: Australia holds a newly created role, President of Negotiations, led by Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen, covering the negotiating process.
• Pacific link: A pre-COP meeting is planned in the Pacific region, reflecting Pacific states' interest in the process.

This split of responsibilities is unusual. COP presidents normally both host and chair the negotiations, so how the two roles interact in practice is one of the things to watch.

Key dates in Türkiye's climate and Zero Waste path

What Zero Waste is

Zero Waste is a waste-prevention and resource-efficiency policy framework: reducing waste at source, expanding separate collection and recycling, and building circular-economy practices. In Türkiye it has been implemented through national regulation, municipal and school programmes, and a digital information system run with the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change. Internationally, the UN General Assembly's resolution (A/RES/77/161), proposed by Türkiye and co-sponsored by well over 100 member states, established 30 March as the International Day of Zero Waste, with UNEP and UN-Habitat facilitating observance.

Key Players & Positions

The UNFCCC secretariat and UN system

The UNFCCC secretariat, headed by Executive Secretary Simon Stiell, treats the host decision as a matter for Parties and focuses on delivery of the Paris Agreement's cycle: new national targets (NDCs), adaptation, and finance. The UN Secretary-General's office has publicly welcomed Zero Waste advocacy through the High-Level Advisory Board, although waste is not itself a formal negotiating track under the UNFCCC.

Australia and Pacific Island states

Australia's government has stated that its President of Negotiations role is meant to ensure Pacific voices and priorities are central, including climate finance, adaptation and sea-level rise. Pacific governments have long argued that the Pacific, as the most exposed region, deserves visible prominence in the process. Australia's own domestic emissions and fossil fuel exports have drawn criticism from civil society, which is a separate matter from its COP role.

The European Union and other parties

The EU has set a 2040 emissions-reduction goal of 90% (with certain flexibilities) as its contribution to the Paris cycle, and tends to press other large and middle-income emitters for stronger near-term targets and fossil fuel transition language. Brazil, as COP30 host, has pushed for implementation and 'roadmaps' for transition away from fossil fuels and deforestation. Many developing countries stress the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and demand predictable climate finance from developed countries.

Civil society and independent trackers

Non-governmental analysts, including the Climate Action Tracker, have rated Türkiye's NDC and policy trajectory as insufficient for a 1.5°C pathway, pointing to continued coal in the power mix and a 2053 net-zero date that is later than the 2050 targets of the EU and many OECD members. Turkish officials respond that the target reflects national circumstances, rapid growth in renewables, and the absence of dedicated climate finance.

Source Comparison

For how this site separates documented facts from attributed positions, see Editorial Principles.

Key Terms & Related Guides

• COP (Conference of the Parties): The UNFCCC's annual decision-making body. COP31 is the 31st session.
• NDC (Nationally Determined Contribution): A country's own climate target under the Paris Agreement, updated every five years.
• Net zero: Balancing remaining greenhouse gas emissions with removals so that net emissions equal zero.
• Annex I / Annex II: UNFCCC country lists. Annex I covers industrialized countries and economies in transition; Annex II covers those with financial obligations to developing countries. Türkiye is in Annex I but not Annex II.
• CBDR-RC: Common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, the Convention's equity principle.
• Zero Waste: A policy framework for preventing waste and circulating materials, recognized by the UN through the International Day of Zero Waste.
• President of Negotiations: The role assigned to Australia under the COP31 arrangement, separate from the COP31 Presidency held by Türkiye.

Related guides:

• The World Is Bigger Than Five: Türkiye's Case for UN Security Council Reform
• Türkiye's Marine Spatial Planning and the 2025 IOC-UNESCO Registration
• The Montreux Convention, Black Sea Security and Türkiye's Russia–Ukraine Mediation
• About The State Papers: Mission, Transparency and Editorial Team

The State Papers presents global affairs with a dedicated perspective from Türkiye. Sections marked 'Türkiye's Position' reflect official Turkish policy as stated by Turkish government sources.

Cross-Publication Dossiers & Sister Desk Perspectives

For complementary primary-source analysis across our specialist editorial network, consult:

• The Political Accord: COP31 and Climate Diplomacy: Türkiye's Zero Waste Initiative and Hosting Role — How Türkiye's climate diplomacy works: the Zero Waste initiative, the 2053 net-zero goal, and the COP31 Antalya hosting and presidency arrangement explained.
• Bloc Politics: COP31 and Türkiye's Climate Diplomacy: Zero Waste, Hosting Role and What to Expect — How COP31 in Antalya works, what Türkiye's climate diplomacy and Zero Waste initiative mean, and how the EU, Global South and Pacific frame the talks.
• Borders & Blocs: COP31, Zero Waste and Türkiye's Climate Diplomacy — What does hosting COP31 mean for Türkiye? A guide to the Antalya arrangement, Zero Waste initiative, 2053 net-zero goal, Paris status and critics' views.