The Zero Waste Festival will be held at Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport from June 4-7, bringing together environmental initiatives, cultural programs and educational activities under the theme “Efficiency in Energy, Transformation in the Future.”
Organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources and the Zero Waste Foundation under the leadership of Emine Erdoğan, the festival aims to promote sustainable living, waste reduction and environmental awareness. It is designed as an interactive space where visitors can explore recycling practices, eco-friendly technologies and hands-on sustainability workshops.
The event will host thousands of participants, including environmental activists, academics, artists and students. A main stage will feature concerts by Turkish artists including Sefo, Ceza, Buray, Emre Aydın, Sinan Akçıl and Rafet El Roman.
Alongside music performances, the program includes panel discussions and talks on sustainability, environmental ethics, and social transformation. Speakers include Kemal Sayar, Hikmet Barutçugil, Alper Tüydeş and others.
A major focus of the festival is education. Children will participate in workshops such as seed planting, woodworking, recycling crafts, painting and calligraphy, while interactive theater and storytelling sessions will run throughout the event. Adults will also take part in sustainability workshops, including upcycling clothing, natural cleaning products, ceramics, marbling, and textile reuse.
A dedicated “zero waste kitchen” will host 37 workshops demonstrating how food waste can be reduced through practical methods, including creative recipes using food scraps. Additional “soil workshops” will encourage participants to plant saplings, flowers, and succulents.
The festival will also include exhibition areas, including a Zero Waste Museum and a showcase by ASELSAN featuring industrial materials transformed into artwork, highlighting the creative potential of recycling and upcycling.
A traditional sports area organized by the World Ethnosport Union will present games such as archery, mangala, horseback riding and tug-of-war, aiming to preserve cultural heritage alongside environmental awareness.
Organizers say the festival also reflects a sustainability approach in its own setup, noting that it reuses infrastructure from the previous Ethnosport Culture Festival to reduce waste, logistics and carbon emissions.
The festival emphasizes a broader message of resource efficiency and circular economy principles, framing environmental responsibility as a shared global priority.
