The 2026 Zero Waste Forum: Key Outcomes and a Waste Free World

Photo by Michael Jerrard on Unsplash

The 2026 Zero Waste Forum marked a turning point in how the global community approaches sustainable materials and recycling. Held in early June in Istanbul, the Forum brought together thousands of participants from nearly two hundred countries, making it one of the most important environmental gatherings of the year. As Türkiye gears up to host COP31 later in the year, the Forum provides a prelude to the big climate convening.

Sustainable Materials

A major outcome of the Forum was the renewed emphasis on sustainable materials as the backbone of a circular economy. Discussions highlighted how industries must move beyond single-use plastics and resource-intensive packaging toward bio-based, recyclable, and regenerative alternatives. This shift was framed not as a niche innovation but as a systemic necessity, with governments, businesses, and civil society urged to accelerate adoption. This shift is welcomed as a systemic necessity, with governments, businesses, and civil society urged to accelerate adoption. The Forum underscored that sustainable materials are critical to reducing emissions, conserving resources, and preventing pollution at its source.

Recycling

Recycling was another key theme of the Forum’s agenda. Rather than discussing recycling as an end-of-pipe solution, the gathering stressed the importance of designing products and supply chains with recyclability in mind. Participants presented this upstream approach as a viable solution to waste reduction. The Forum showcased examples of advanced recycling technologies, community-led collection systems, and policy frameworks that incentivise closed-loop production. These case studies demonstrated that recycling, when integrated into broader systems of sustainable material use, can drive both environmental and economic resilience.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWMFeAneVxQ

Zero Waste for Climate Action

The significance of the Forum lay in its ability to connect waste prevention with climate action. By framing sustainable materials and recycling as climate strategies, the event elevated zero waste from a local initiative to a global imperative. It also positioned Istanbul as a hub for environmental diplomacy, linking the outcomes of the Forum directly to the upcoming COP31 negotiations in Antalya. For regions navigating rapid urbanisation and resource constraints, the Forum’s outcomes offered a roadmap of investing in sustainable materials, building recycling infrastructure, and integrating zero waste principles into national climate strategies.

With the Zero Waste Initiative being a priority for COP31, the Zero Waste Forum is a key steppingstone in setting agenda items for negotiations. The Forum's discussions show that sustainable materials and recycling can be ket components to sustainable development and climate action.