Presentation of Yokohama’s initiatives at the Zero Waste Forum

The City of Yokohama participated in the Zero Waste Forum held in Istanbul, Republic of Türkiye, from June 5 to 7 2026 (Organized by Zero Waste Foundation*). This participation was by invitation, following Yokohama City’s selection in March this year as one of the United Nations’ Top 20 Leading Zero Waste Cities*, the only city from Japan to receive this recognition.

The forum brought together global leaders, policymakers, innovators, municipal officials, and diverse stakeholders from local communities to engage in concrete and practical discussions aimed at achieving a zero-waste society.

From Yokohama City, Executive Director for Global Initiatives at the Policy Administration and International Affairs Bureau, and Manager in the same division, participated as speakers in a total of four sessions. They introduced Yokohama’s efforts toward realizing a zero-waste society, including:

• A nearly 50% reduction in waste volume over 20 years achieved through collaboration with residents,
• The “Plastic 5.3 Plan” to reduce plastic waste,
• Initiatives toward building a circular economy.

They also highlighted Yokohama’s role as the first signatory city of the Asian Circular City Declaration (ACCD), and shared plans to expand these initiatives across the Asia-Pacific region, including the upcoming Asia-Pacific Circular Cities (APCC) Forum scheduled for September this year.

*The Zero Waste Foundation was announced in October 2023 as part of the United Nations World Cities Day program, under the patronage of First Lady Emine Erdoğan of the Republic of Türkiye. Since 2017, Türkiye has implemented the Zero Waste Initiative under her leadership. In 2022, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the “Zero Waste” resolution proposed by Türkiye, establishing the International Day of Zero Waste.

 *UN “20 Cities Leading the Way toward Zero Waste”

The Advisory Board on Zero Waste established by UN Secretary- General António Guterres, has selected “20 Cities toward Zero Waste” to showcase exemplary global practices in waste reduction and circular economy initiatives and to encourage other cities to adopt these models.