COP31 High-Level Climate Champion Samed Ağırbaş attended Baku Climate Action Week (BCAW 2026), held under the theme “Regional Action and Global Solidarity for Climate Resilience”. The opening session brought together the COP29, COP30 and COP31 Presidencies and representatives of international organisations such as the UNFCCC and IRENA.
“We are building one of the largest COPs in the world, hosting 197 countries in Türkiye.”
— Samed Ağırbaş, COP31 High-Level Climate Champion
Ağırbaş outlined the opportunities Türkiye's zero waste approach offers for resource efficiency and the circular economy. Bilateral meetings addressed Türkiye–Azerbaijan joint working groups and cooperation on the clean energy transition.
Ulaanbaatar: UNCCD COP17
Ağırbaş also represented Türkiye at the 17th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD COP17), held in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia, on 24–26 August 2026. Delivering the opening speech at the session “Transforming Land, Climate and Biodiversity Resilience through Nature-Based Solutions”, he stressed the need for a holistic approach to climate change, land restoration, water and food security, biodiversity and the circular economy.
In an article published in Daily Sabah during the same period, “From Zero Waste to COP31: Rethinking Our Way of Life”, Ağırbaş argued that the climate debate must go beyond carbon emissions to encompass resource management and patterns of production and consumption.
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