With the protocol signed between the Zero Waste Foundation and Turkish Airlines, the way has been opened for joint work on resource efficiency, waste management, reducing food waste and cutting carbon emissions in the aviation sector. As part of the cooperation, a forum on the global sustainable aviation agenda will also be held at COP31.
While work continues during Türkiye’s COP31 Presidency to ensure that climate action finds concrete results across different sectors, an important cooperation has been launched in the field of sustainable aviation.
Under the strategic cooperation protocol signed between the Zero Waste Foundation and Turkish Airlines, it was agreed to carry out joint work on Zero Waste, sustainable aviation, the circular economy, resource efficiency and the fight against climate change.
The cooperation stands out as one of the important examples in the aviation sector of the implementation-focused approach that has come to the fore under Türkiye’s COP31 Presidency, and it also aims to share efforts to improve the sector’s environmental performance on a global scale.
Through the cooperation, carried out in line with the Zero Waste vision put forward under the leadership of Emine Erdoğan, Founder of the Zero Waste Movement, Chair of the United Nations High-Level Advisory Board on Zero Waste and Honorary President of the Zero Waste Foundation, the aim is to carry out joint work on Zero Waste, sustainable aviation, the circular economy and the fight against climate change.
With the protocol signed at a program attended by Samed Ağırbaş, President of the Zero Waste Foundation and COP31 High-Level Climate Champion, and Ahmet Olmuştur, General Manager of Turkish Airlines, the aim is to bring together the Zero Waste Foundation’s stakeholder network and awareness capacity with THY’s global aviation experience and operational strength.
A Global Dialogue for the Future of Aviation at COP31
Noting that the cooperation with Turkish Airlines brings Türkiye’s environmental and climate vision together with a strong global brand, Samed Ağırbaş, President of the Zero Waste Foundation and COP31 High-Level Climate Champion, said: “Today we are signing an important cooperation that brings Türkiye’s environmental and climate vision together with a strong global brand. Turkish Airlines is also especially important to us as the first company with which we have signed a cooperation agreement. The Zero Waste Movement, launched in 2017 by Emine Erdoğan, has today grown into a global movement that resonates in all 81 provinces of Türkiye and 193 countries around the world. In this context, we want a society that reduces waste and protects its resources, and together with many international organizations, above all the United Nations, we are working for a more livable, fairer world.”
“COP31 Will Be a Meeting Where Action Is Seen”
Saying, “The ‘Our Shared Home, the World’ vision put forward by Emine Erdoğan presents protecting our resources, reducing waste and leaving a more livable world to future generations as one of the fundamental responsibilities of our common future, not just of environmental policy,” Ağırbaş also referred to Türkiye’s COP31 Presidency, stating: “Today we are taking this vision further throughout Türkiye’s COP31 Presidency with the strong climate perspective put forward by our Minister, Murat Kurum. COP31 will not be just a meeting where negotiating tables are set up, but a meeting where action is seen and the realities on the ground are discussed. As the High-Level Climate Champion of COP31, I continue to work to point toward a meeting where the realities on the ground are discussed.”
The Agenda of Zero Waste and Resource Efficiency in Aviation
Speaking about the work to be carried out under the cooperation, Ağırbaş said: “We will carry out joint work across a wide area, from reducing waste and bringing it back into the economy to preventing food waste, from resource efficiency to reducing carbon emissions, and from passenger awareness to sustainable aviation practices. We also believe that the work we will carry out together with Turkish Airlines will contribute to the vision Türkiye has put forward for the future of sustainable aviation. Because in the world of the future, success will be measured not only by how fast we move, but by how smartly, efficiently and responsibly we use our resources.”
THY’s Sustainable Aviation Contribution to COP31
Ahmet Olmuştur, General Manager of Turkish Airlines, expressed their pleasure that Türkiye will host COP31 for the first time, saying: “We are delighted that the Conference of the Parties, the highest decision-making body of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, will be held in Antalya on 9–22 November 2026, hosted by Türkiye for the first time. As Turkish Airlines, we are happy to be a part of COP31.”
The Global Sustainable Aviation Forum in Antalya
Drawing attention to the forum to be held at COP31 under the cooperation with the Zero Waste Foundation, Olmuştur said: “Within the scope of our partnership and cooperation with the Zero Waste Foundation, we will jointly organize the Global Sustainable Aviation Forum on Energy and Transport Day at COP31. At a time when COP31 will bring the stakeholders of the global climate agenda together in Türkiye, the forum we will organize will offer a dialogue platform to address, at a high level, aviation’s decarbonization process and its role in sustainable economic development.”
Assessing the scope of the signed protocol, Olmuştur said: “Under the protocol, we will carry out new work together in the areas of Zero Waste, sustainability, the circular economy, resource efficiency, reducing the carbon footprint, sustainable aviation and the fight against climate change.”
Sustainability Practices Will Meet the COP31 Agenda
Noting that the cooperation directly overlaps with Turkish Airlines’ existing sustainability practices, Olmuştur said: “The protocol we have signed directly overlaps with the practices we are already carrying out on reducing the carbon footprint, operational and resource efficiency, sustainable aviation fuels, waste management, reducing food waste and the circular economy. We continue to work in line with our 2050 carbon-neutral airline commitment, consistent with our country’s 2053 net-zero target. With our new-generation aircraft and operational improvements, we are achieving emission reductions and increasing our fuel efficiency.” At the end of his speech, Olmuştur thanked those who contributed to making the cooperation happen, saying: “On this occasion, I would like to thank everyone who contributed to this protocol, above all Emine Erdoğan, who put forward this initiative, and my brother Samed Ağırbaş, President of our Zero Waste Foundation, with whom we are signing the protocol here today, and I hope the protocol will bring good fortune.”
The Circular Approach in Aviation Operations Will Be Strengthened
Under the cooperation, work will be carried out to increase resource efficiency in aviation operations, prevent and reduce waste generation, manage cabin and passenger-generated waste, and prevent food waste.
In addition, projects aimed at reducing the carbon footprint are planned to be implemented at national and international levels. Through the cooperation, the aim is to develop workable solutions for using resources more efficiently and reducing waste across the aviation ecosystem.
A Shared Agenda at COP31 and the International Zero Waste Forum
Joint work is also planned at important platforms such as the 31st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31), hosted by Türkiye under the leadership of Murat Kurum, Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change and President of COP31, and the International Zero Waste Forum organized by the Zero Waste Foundation.
While the aim is to share good practices in sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), operational efficiency, emission reduction and the circular economy and to raise global awareness, projects will be developed to bring Zero Waste awareness and a culture of sustainable living to wide audiences.
A Sustainability Perspective on the Passenger Experience
Passenger awareness will be one of the cooperation’s key themes. In this context, awareness activities for passengers will be carried out on selected THY flights and through digital communication channels, using informative content, videos and announcements.
In addition, technical workshops and joint events will be organized, with the participation of sector stakeholders, public institutions, academics and international organizations, to address the circular economy and waste management in aviation.
The cooperation established between the Zero Waste Foundation and Turkish Airlines is aimed at contributing to a stronger place for sustainable aviation on the agenda within COP31’s implementation and multi-stakeholder cooperation approach.
