COP31 Antalya 2026 – A Complete Guide to the UN Climate Change Conference, Its Leaders and the Full Daily Programme – Be an Example – Environmental Protection
Today, 9 November 2026, the world's climate negotiations open in Antalya, on Türkiye's Mediterranean coast, as the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference – COP31 – gets under way. Until 20 November, almost every country on Earth will sit at the same table to agree on concrete steps against the climate crisis. In this single guide, InfoCons walks you through what COP31 is, who is steering it, why Türkiye is hosting, the priorities on the table this year and the full day-by-day programme.
What COP31 is – and why it matters
COP stands for Conference of the Parties, and COP31 is the 31st session of this body – the supreme decision-making organ of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The UNFCCC is a landmark treaty adopted in 1992 and the parent agreement of the 2015 Paris Agreement. Held every year since 1995, the COP summits are the only multilateral forum in which the world negotiates collective climate action: keeping the rise in global temperature within 1.5°C, helping vulnerable communities adapt, and reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.
COP31 is widely seen as a milestone at which countries are expected to strengthen their commitments and accelerate the shift to a low-carbon economy. Beyond the national negotiators from the member states (the Parties), the conference also brings together business leaders, scientists, young people, Indigenous Peoples and civil society, who share knowledge and good practice for a global, collective and inclusive response to climate change.
Who is leading COP31
Türkiye hosts the conference. Mr. Murat Kurum – Türkiye's Minister of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change – has been appointed President of COP31, while Mr. Chris Bowen of Australia serves as President of Negotiations. A prominent role in shaping the host country's agenda is also played by Her Excellency Emine Erdoğan, Honorary President of the Zero Waste Foundation and Chair of the UN Secretary-General's Advisory Board on Zero Waste.
Why Antalya, and why Türkiye
Antalya was selected for its strong tourism and congress infrastructure – an international airport, high accommodation capacity and venues able to welcome thousands of delegates. Its Mediterranean setting also carries symbolic weight, as the summit takes place in a region strongly exposed to the effects of climate change. Türkiye, for its part, is internationally recognised for its leadership in zero waste and the circular economy; hosting COP31 reinforces its standing in climate diplomacy and accelerates regional and international cooperation on climate-resilient development.
The priorities on the COP31 agenda
The Antalya edition starts from the idea that waste prevention and the circular economy are, in themselves, a form of climate action. On that foundation, the agenda centres on four main directions:
- circular economy and waste management;
- water and food security;
- access to climate finance;
- the role of young people and cities.
These sit alongside the fundamental goals of every Conference of the Parties: limiting global warming to 1.5°C, supporting vulnerable communities in the face of climate impacts, and reaching climate neutrality by 2050. The decisions taken in Antalya will shape national emission-reduction targets, energy policies, sustainable-development strategies and finance mechanisms, with consequences for economies, international trade and environmental policy for decades to come.
How the conference is organised – the Blue Zone and the Green Zone
As at every COP, the conference unfolds across two main spaces. The Blue Zone hosts the official negotiations between member states and the official pavilions, under UN authority. The Green Zone is open to civil society, business, academia and the public, and is dedicated to dialogue, innovation and best practice.
Within the Blue Zone, the formal bodies of the climate process meet in parallel: COP 31 (the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC), CMP 21 (the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol), CMA 8 (the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement) and the two subsidiary bodies, SBSTA 65 and SBI 65 – together with the Antalya Leaders' Summit in the high-level segment. Each day of the conference is built around a main theme.
COP31 day by day – the full programme
Below is the full COP31 pavilion programme, day by day and hour by hour, with each day's theme, the location (Blue Zone or Green Zone) and the stage. InfoCons brings you the complete agenda of the conference.
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 9 November
Thematic Day : Food · Agriculture · Health
09:40 – Food, Agriculture and Health Pavilion Opening Ceremony ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
10:00 – Preventing Food Waste: From Supply Chains to National Action ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
10:45 – From Farm to Shelf to Plate: Cold Chains, Retail and Surplus Rescue ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
12:20 – Launch Event #OneBillionChallenge ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
13:30 – Methane, Air and Health: From Detection to Community Benefits ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
13:45 – Solar, Hydrogen and the Waste Behind Clean Energy ( Green Zone – Energy and Transport Hub )
13:45 – Food Loss in the Field: Farms, Orchards and Crop Protection ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
14:00 – Measuring Food Waste in the Kitchen: Data as the Intervention ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
14:40 – Zero Waste: What It Means and What It Excludes ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
15:00 – Climate, Health and Zero Waste: Campuses and Clinics ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
15:00 – Industrial Zones and Recycling Associations ( Green Zone – Green Industrialization Hub )
15:30 – Food Waste Breakthrough: UNEP and Champion Countries ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
15:50 – Hospital Waste: What Zero Waste Certification Changed on the Ward ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
17:00 – Ending Open Burning and Open Dumping: the Urban Health and Climate Crisis ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 10 November
Thematic Day : Energy and Transport
09:00 – From Satellites to Action: Turning Global Landfill Methane Data into Climate Policy and Impact ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
10:00 – Cities Measure Climate: Plans, Indices and Evidence ( Green Zone – Green Industrialization Hub )
10:30 – Global Sustainable Aviation Forum — Aviation's Climate Action: A Shared Responsibility ( Green Zone – Aviation Hub )
10:45 – Local Solutions, Global Impact: Zero Waste Climate Action from the Global South ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
11:10 – Investment COP: Financing Zero Waste Cities ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
13:30 – Organic Waste as a Zero Waste and Climate Solution: What the Grid Actually Needs ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
14:00 – Organic Waste Technology at Scale: Compost, Feed and Biomethane ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
14:40 – Low-Carbon Logistics and Reusable Packaging ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
15:00 – Mobility and Energy Policy: What Gets Retired, Reused and Recycled ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
15:30 – Biomethane and Sustainable Solutions for Cities ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
16:15 – Buildings, Heat and Factories: The Engineers' View ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
17:00 – Zero Waste as City Management ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
17:00 – Bio LNG: Pathways to Decarbonise Global Routes ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 11 November
Thematic Day : Zero Waste
13:30 – Regional Governments on Food Waste and Methane ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
14:40 – International Investments and Partnerships in the Energy Transition ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
14:40 – The Role of International Education in the Climate Crisis: The Türkiye Scholarships Example ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
15:50 – Critical Minerals and the Energy Transition ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 12 November
Thematic Day : Resilient Cities and Built Environment
09:45 – Launch of Our Zero Waste Future: the Report, the Istanbul Platform and Zero Waste Districts ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
11:10 – Financing Resilience on the Ground ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
13:30 – Climate Finance Unlocked: Mapping Instruments from Mitigation to Adaptation and Resilience ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
14:40 – Green Economic Partnership: The Next Competitive Edge, a Türkiye–EU Partnership for Circular Industry, Clean Energy and Zero Waste ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
14:40 – The Role of International Education in the Climate Crisis: The Türkiye Scholarships Example ( Blue Zone – Key Partner Stage )
18:30 – Zero Waste Networking Reception ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 13 November
Thematic Day : Finance and Trade
09:00 – EPR That Actually Collects: Three National Systems Compared ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
10:00 – Insuring the Transition: Adaptation, Insurance and Zero Waste Districts ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
10:45 – A Credit Line for Circularity: EUR 120-150m and What It Buys ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
11:10 – No Silver Bullet, No Time to Waste: Philanthropy as a Catalyst for Climate Action ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
12:15 – Zero Waste in Action: Future of Textile with Grown Biofabric ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
12:20 – Where Waste Climate Finance Should Go ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
12:30 – 27th International Children's Forum ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
13:30 – Launch: Waste-Free Sustainable Living with Women ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
13:30 – Green Finance for Circular Business ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
14:00 – Climate Diplomacy With Young Leaders ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
14:40 – Women Who Lead the Transition: Business for a Green Future ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
14:40 – Infrastructure for Life: Energy and Mobility in Sustainable Cities ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
15:30 – Local action, lasting impact: Financing grassroot Zero waste ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
16:00 – Carbon Removal in Zero Waste Districts: Turning Residual Materials into Removals, Avoided Emissions and Local Value ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
17:15 – From Africa's Cultural Heritage to Climate Action: Invisible Labour and Social Resilience ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 14 November
Thematic Day : Children · Youth · Education · Skills
09:00 – Skills for Collection, Sorting and Recycling Jobs ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
10:00 – Green Jobs That Already Exist: Repair, Reuse, Collection and Sorting ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
10:45 – Youth That Litigates: From the ICJ Advisory Opinion to National Waste Law ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
11:20 – Zero Waste Generation (GenZero): Launch of the Global Youth Volunteer and Ambassador Network ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
12:15 – Zero Waste Campuses: What Was Measured ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
12:20 – Youth-Powered Transformation: Girls and Young People Driving Zero Waste Systems Change ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
13:30 – Youth-Led Zero Waste Action ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
14:40 – Youth Tackling Methane: Social Business and the Road to Scale ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
14:40 – Zero Waste in Schools: What Türkiye Built ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
15:00 – NGIC high-level youth event ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
15:00 – Following the Money: Climate Finance, Reporting and Transparency ( Green Zone – Climate Finance Hub )
15:00 – Climate Education for Children ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
15:50 – Circular Waste and Resources Management towards a Zero Waste Future ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
16:15 – Campuses That Run Zero Waste ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
17:00 – NGIC High-Level Session ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
17:15 – Cities Towards Zero Waste: Behaviour Change and Education ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 15 November
Sunday is a rest day in the COP31 pavilion programme – no sessions are scheduled. The official negotiations continue in the Blue Zone.
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 16 November
Thematic Day : Science · Industry · Technology
09:00 – Global Circularity Protocol for Business ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
10:00 – Ecodesign, Repair and the Sharing Economy ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
10:45 – Traceability That Reduces Waste: DPP, CBAM and What Gets Measured ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
11:10 – Scaling Up the Reuse Economy ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
12:15 – Deposits and Proof: Return Systems and Recycled-Content Claims That Hold Up ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
12:20 – Circular Construction and Green Buildings (World Green Building Council) ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
13:30 – Electronics: From Disposable to Durable ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
14:00 – Textiles: The Sector That Has to Prevent, Not Recycle ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
14:20 – Upstream PAS Launch: Plan to Accelerate Solutions for Upstream Circularity ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
15:15 – From Steel to Streets: Paving the Way for a Circular Economy ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
15:30 – Towards Zero Waste: Scaling Textile-to-Textile Recycling and Digital Technologies for the Sector's Green Transformation ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
15:50 – Deposit Return Systems: a Proven Climate Solution ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
16:15 – Youth Networks: One Waste Problem, One Ask ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
17:00 – Secondary Raw Materials and Green Industrialisation ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
17:15 – Advancing Zero Waste Through Reuse: Building Blocks for Inclusive, Context-Specific Reuse Ecosystems ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 17 November
Thematic Day : Ocean · Seas · Nature · Land Use
09:00 – Zero Waste Solutions for Super Pollutant Mitigation: From Evidence to Implementation ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
10:00 – From Organic Waste to Wealth: Carbon Markets and the Business Case for Biological Fertilisers ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
10:00 – Marine Litter: What the Sea and the Shore Show ( Green Zone – Science and Technology Hub )
10:45 – Marine Litter Is a Waste System Failure Onshore ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
11:10 – From Source to Sea: Zero Waste for Ocean and Climate Resilience ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
11:15 – Water, Forests and Ecosystems: Science Beyond Waste ( Green Zone – Science and Technology Hub )
12:20 – Waste at the Junction of the Three Rio Conventions ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
14:00 – Small Islands, Whole Systems: The Maldives Case ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
14:40 – Tides of Change: Zero Waste for the Blue Planet and Islands ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
15:00 – AI for Resource Efficiency: Not Wasting Water, Energy or Materials ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
15:00 – Clean-ups That Change Behaviour ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
15:50 – Coastal Communities and Zero Waste ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
16:15 – Communities That Look After the Land ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
17:00 – Mediterranean Without Waste ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
17:00 – Green Logistics Corridors and Sustainable Transport ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
17:15 – Satellite Data for Waste Methane: From Monitoring to Government Action ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
17:25 – Side Event ( Blue Zone – Side Events Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 18 November
Thematic Day : Human and Social Development
09:30 – Heritage Adapts: Culture and Heritage as a Zero Waste Strategy ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
11:10 – Women Leading the Zero Waste Movement ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
12:15 – Women Running Waste Systems ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
12:20 – The Informal Sector Enabling Climate Action ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
13:30 – Zero Waste Tourism: Implementation on the Turkish Coast ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
14:40 – Making Textile Circularity Work: Scaling Collection, Reuse and Recycling to Reduce Waste ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
15:00 – Disaster Waste and Public Health ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
15:50 – From COP to People: Narratives That Empower Communities to Act ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
16:15 – Who Gets Left Out of Zero Waste? ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
17:00 – Construction and Demolition: the Sleeping Giant with Climate Potential ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
17:15 – Building Collection and Sorting in the Global South: Morocco, the Gulf, Sindh and the Turkish Coast ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
Stay informed with InfoCons – COP31 events on 19 November
Thematic Day : IMECE – Enhancing Implementation
09:00 – Zero Waste in the EU: What Regulation Delivered and What It Did Not ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
10:00 – Organic Waste and Methane: From Data to City Delivery ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
10:00 – Reuse, Repair and Art Made From Waste ( Green Zone – Zero Waste Hub )
11:10 – Carbon Removal Call to Action (Climate Champions team and UNEP) ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
12:20 – Istanbul Platform and Zero Waste Forum 2027 ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
14:00 – Two Turkish Cities, Two Scales ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
14:40 – Data and Indicators: Measuring Progress ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
15:30 – Multilevel Climate Governance: From Coordination to Implementation on the Ground ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
15:50 – Data, AI and Waste ( Blue Zone – Our Common Home Stage )
17:00 – Climate High-Level Champions Special Event Road to Addis: Bringing the Global Climate Action Agenda to the World ( Blue Zone – Zero Waste Forum Stage )
17:15 – Culture and Narrative: Taking Zero Waste Beyond the Convinced ( Blue Zone – Circularity Stage )
The pavilion programme runs from 9 to 19 November, while the conference's official negotiations continue until 20 November 2026.
Signed : InfoCons – Environmental Protection Department