Climate High-Level Champion Calls for Stronger Global Climate Delivery Ahead of COP31

Baku, Azerbaijan, March 18, 2026 /MarketersMEDIA/ — During the Global Baku Forum in Azerbaijan, Climate High-Level Champion Samed Ağırbaş met with policymakers, youth leaders and civil society representatives to highlight the urgency of turning climate commitments into practical action. His visit comes ahead of COP31 in Antalya and precedes his participation in United Nations–related climate events in the United States.

COP31 (UN Climate Conference) Climate High-Level Champion and President of the Zero Waste Foundation Samed Ağırbaş visited Baku from 12–14 March to participate in the Global Baku Forum, bringing together political leaders, policymakers and civil society to discuss the next phase of global climate action. 

The forum, organized by the Nizami Ganjavi International Center, provided a platform for discussions on translating global climate commitments into practical action as countries prepare for COP31 in Antalya.

During the visit, Ağırbaş held high-level meetings, spoke with media representatives and met university students and youth groups as part of a broader effort to strengthen engagement with communities across regions.

“As COP31 Climate High-Level Champion, I intend to travel across all regions to engage directly with youth and women’s groups and ensure their voices are heard,” he said during the visit. “Climate action must be rooted in communities and reflect the perspectives of those most affected by climate change.”

Also visiting US for UN events

Ağırbaş is also participating at the 70th Annual Commission on the Status of Women taking place until 19 March in New York, which is the UN’s largest annual gathering on gender equality and women’s rights. 

He will also attend the International Day of Zero Waste facilitated jointly by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat). Organized on March 30, the event highlights the importance of bolstering waste management globally and the need to promote sustainable consumption and production patterns to address the waste pollution crisis. The initiative will continue with Istanbul Zero Waste Week, scheduled for 1–7 June in Istanbul, bringing together international stakeholders to discuss the advancement of the zero waste movement.

Bridging global climate negotiations and real-world action

The role of the COP31 Climate High-Level Champion is designed to connect international climate negotiations with the practical work needed to implement them. Samed Ağırbaş described his mandate as helping ensure that commitments made under the Paris Agreement translate into concrete results across economies and societies.

“My role is to act as a bridge between international negotiations and the real world where climate action must actually happen,” he said. “Businesses, cities, civil society, faith groups and community leaders all have a part to play in turning climate goals into measurable outcomes.”

He added that the coming years will focus on shifting the global climate agenda from pledges to delivery, ensuring that climate policies lead to tangible progress in areas such as clean energy, resource efficiency and resilient food systems.

Climate action agenda driving implementation

A central mechanism for this effort is the Global Climate Action Agenda, which coordinates more than 500 initiatives designed to accelerate climate solutions across sectors.

These initiatives bring together governments, businesses, financial institutions and civil society organizations to scale practical responses to climate challenges. Areas of focus include reducing food loss and waste, improving water stewardship and accelerating energy efficiency.

Recent initiatives under the agenda include the Food Waste Breakthrough, which aims to halve global food waste by 2030, and the Race to Resilience campaign, which has helped strengthen climate resilience for hundreds of millions of people worldwide.

“The Climate Action Agenda is our delivery platform,” Samed Ağırbaş told. “It helps ensure that the commitments made at COP are translated into real projects and partnerships that people can see and benefit from in their daily lives.”

Azerbaijan–Türkiye partnership and the road to COP31

Discussions in Baku also highlighted the close cooperation between Azerbaijan and Türkiye in advancing climate diplomacy.

COP29 in Baku helped advance negotiations on climate finance and renewed the mandate for the Climate High-Level Champions until 2030, while COP30 in Belém has emphasized implementation of the Paris Agreement. Attention is now turning toward COP31 in Antalya, where further progress on climate delivery is expected.

“Azerbaijan and Türkiye share a deep friendship and a common commitment to climate action,” Ağırbaş stated. “Building on the momentum from Baku and Belém, we have an opportunity to accelerate implementation as we move toward COP31.”

Institutional collaboration between the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and Türkiye’s Zero Waste Foundation has also been highlighted as a potential foundation for deeper cooperation, including the development of a future “Solidarity Hub” aimed at strengthening climate collaboration between regions.

Zero waste and inclusive climate leadership

“Zero waste is not only about managing waste,” he said. “It is about improving how we produce, consume and manage resources across the entire economy. When we reduce waste, we cut emissions, protect natural resources and build more resilient economies.”

The Zero Waste Foundation, working under the leadership of H.E. Emine Erdoğan, Chair of the UN High-Level Advisory Board on Zero Waste and Honorary President of the Zero Waste Foundation, has promoted initiatives aimed at reducing food loss, improving recycling systems and advancing circular economy models. These measures also help reduce methane emissions associated with waste.

Samed Ağırbaş, who began his career as a youth activist and advocate for women’s rights, also stressed the importance of inclusive climate leadership.

“Young people and women are already among the most powerful drivers of climate action,” he said. “Their participation must go beyond symbolic inclusion and extend to shaping decisions and leading implementation.”

Contact Info:
Name: Yavuz Yüksekdağ
Email: Send Email
Organization: Zero Waste Foundation
Website: https://cop.sifiratikvakfi.org/en/

Release ID: 89186213

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