Time for Transformation in Sustainability: Türkiye Has No Waste to Lose
The ÇEVKO Foundation has played an important role in establishing recycling systems in Türkiye and fostering recycling awareness and culture within society. Founded by stakeholders who take responsibility for the environment and society and embrace the principles of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), our Foundation has continued its efforts with ever-increasing momentum for 34 years.
In recent years, our Foundation’s primary areas of focus have been the transition to a circular economy and the fight against the climate crisis — both of which are of vital importance for the present and future of our planet. The world faces many challenges, from trade wars to migration movements, from regional conflicts to economic uncertainty. However, the climate crisis stands as the most urgent and far-reaching threat to humanity, both due to its direct connection with these challenges and the persistence of its impacts. The circular economy, on the other hand, offers a holistic and comprehensive systemic response to the climate crisis, addressing not only environmental but also social and economic dimensions.
Today, designing products to minimize waste, reusing them, and ensuring that post-consumption waste is collected and recycled separately at the source have become priorities in the environmental and economic policies of all nations. The key elements of this process are separate collection of waste at the source and the establishment of effective recycling systems.
Türkiye, despite having significant recycling capacity, utilizes much of it to process imported waste, while a large portion of its own recyclable materials are sent to landfills. The main issue is that domestically generated waste is not collected and processed separately. The reduction in waste imports may leave recycling capacity underused. Therefore, urgent measures should be taken to separately collect and recycle domestic waste — particularly post-consumer household waste — directly at the source.
The model we consider the most effective and economical for the separate collection and recycling of recyclable waste is the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) model. Introduced in Türkiye under the leadership of our Foundation, EPR is an environmental policy in which producers’ responsibilities extend to the post-consumer phase, as defined by the OECD.
Combating the climate crisis and transitioning to a circular economy require a transformation that encompasses not only environmental but also economic and social dimensions. For this transformation, it is essential to reactivate the EPR model, implement participatory and binding legal regulations, strengthen science-based practices, and ensure youth participation in decision-making processes. Türkiye has neither time nor waste to waste for this comprehensive transformation.
