MAKÜ representatives participated in the COP31 Climate Diplomacy program

The panel titled ‘From Zero Waste to COP31: Turkey's Climate Diplomacy’ and the ‘Climate Diplomacy’ book promotion program was attended by representatives of Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University (MAKÜ) organized by the Presidency of Communications on October 27, 2026, in Ankara.

The program, which started with opening speeches by the Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change and COP31 President Murat Kurum and the President of Communications Prof. Dr. Burhanettin Duran, included the promotion of the ‘Climate Diplomacy’ book prepared in Turkish and English.

In the panel moderated by Assoc. Prof. Merve Özdemir; Halil Hasar, Head of Climate Change at the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, Prof. Dr. Abdulmenaf Turan, Faculty Member at Ankara University Faculty of Applied Sciences, Mehmet Ali Kahraman, Director of the COP31 Presidency Office, and Mustafa Erdağı, General Manager of the Zero Waste Foundation participated as speakers.

Turkey's climate diplomacy from Zero Waste to COP31

In the panel; the relationship of the Zero Waste approach with climate policies, Turkey's role in climate diplomacy, and the responsibilities it could undertake in the process leading to COP31 were discussed.

It was emphasized in the speeches that COP31 is not just a two-week organization, but a long-term process where countries' development plans and climate policies are shaped. Additionally, the importance of a practical action agenda that can produce concrete results, areas where developed and developing countries can act together, and the necessity of international cooperation in combating climate change were highlighted.

It was stated that the 10-item action agenda determined by the COP31 Presidency Office consists of topics such as food security and agriculture, clean energy, and green industrialization, which could be common working areas for all countries, while it was noted that COP31 presents an important opportunity for the dissemination of the Zero Waste approach on a national and international scale.

The program, which addressed Turkey's vision for combating climate change, sustainable development goals, and the approach to climate diplomacy in the COP31 process, was attended on behalf of Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University by; Sustainability Coordinator Dr. Lecturer Kübra Ertan Türe, Assistant Sustainability Coordinator Researcher Dr. Yasin Aşık, Research Assistant Ahmet Gürsel from the Computer Engineering Department, Research Assistant Medine Rasimgil from the Architecture Department, and Doctoral Student Tuğçe Çeküç, President of the Food Engineering Research and Development Community.

Within the scope of the program, MAKÜ representatives had the opportunity to closely follow Turkey's vision for the COP31 process and current developments in the field of climate diplomacy, providing important evaluations regarding the university's sustainability efforts.