Ankara: Emine Erdogan, Trkiye's first lady and the chair of the UN Advisory Board of Eminent Persons on Zero Waste, took part in a series of programs in New York focusing on children, climate change, and sustainable development.
According to Anadolu Agency,Emine Erdogan accompanied Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during his official visit to New York for the 81st session of the UN General Assembly.
During her stay, she attended a number of events and programs and held meetings with several spouses of world leaders at the Turkish House, Trkiye's diplomatic center in New York.
On Sept. 21, President Erdogan and Emine Erdogan were warmly welcomed at the Turkish House by Turkish citizens holding Turkish flags.
New York climate week
Emine Erdogan's first program in New York was the opening event of New York Climate Week, held at an event venue, with Trkiye's Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change and the Zero Waste Foundation among its main partners.
In her speech, the first lady said climate change was one of the most visible consequences of the heavy burden human activity has placed on the planet.
"The Zero Waste movement has transformed individuals from helpless observers of the climate crisis into key actors in finding solutions," she said. "It has demonstrated that behavioral changes that may seem small can develop into a social culture when widely adopted and, when supported by appropriate policies, can evolve into lasting systems."
"Building infrastructure that makes it easier for people to make the right choices, designing products to be more durable, repairable and reusable, developing technologies that enable circular production, and establishing international cooperation for these efforts are our shared responsibilities," she added.
Building safer digital systems for children
Emine Erdogan also attended an event titled The Invisible Architecture: Building Safe Digital Systems for Children - Advancing International Standards and Shared Responsibility, held on the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly.
The event was organized under her patronage in cooperation with Trkiye's Ministry of Family and Social Services, UNICEF, and the UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children.
Walking from the Turkish House to the UN headquarters, the first lady said children today are increasingly being treated as targets whose attention and personal data are being closely monitored and reduced to user profiles.
She stressed that protecting children in the digital environment is a shared responsibility.
"Ensuring children's safety is not solely the responsibility of parents; it is the responsibility of all of us. We must build a healthy digital ecosystem and ensure that safety is not an additional feature added to digital systems later, but the starting point of their design," she said.
Calling for countries to coordinate their efforts rather than adopting separate regulations for technology companies, Emine Erdogan said there was a need for common global standards.
"Rather than relying on differing national practices, we should develop common global standards. We should establish these standards together under the umbrella of the United Nations," she said.
She also called for regular monitoring and reporting mechanisms to promote common implementation practices among countries, while strengthening the accountability of technology companies and digital platforms in protecting children.
Among those who addressed the event were Queen Mathilde of Belgium, Trkiye's Minister of Family and Social Services Mahinur Ozdemir Goktas, the spouses of the leaders of The Gambia, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Lithuania, Burundi, Kenya, Guatemala, Senegal, Romania, Chile, Lebanon, and Canada, along with UNICEF Director of Child Protection Sheema Sen Gupta and UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children Dr. Najat Maalla M'jid.
Representatives from North Macedonia and Kyrgyzstan, as well as Trkiye's Justice Minister Akin Gurlek, Health Minister Kemal Memisoglu, and Zero Waste Foundation President Samed Agirbas, also attended the event, along with senior editors from television networks and newspapers.
High-level energy transition dialogue
Emine Erdogan also attended President Erdogan's address to the 81st UN General Assembly.
Following his speech, she posted on social media, saying she hoped the Turkish president's call for a world based on peace, human dignity, and fairness would resonate with the conscience of the international community.
At the UN headquarters, Emine Erdogan also attended the International Energy Agency's High-Level Energy Transition Dialogue.
In her remarks, she pointed to increasingly frequent extreme weather events, including record temperatures, wildfires, floods, and storms.
She said these developments were linked to growing energy demand driven by rising consumption and increasing greenhouse gas emissions. She called on people to reconsider how they use natural resources and the consequences of unlimited consumption.
"Our primary concern should be moving away from a throwaway culture built around single-use products," she said. "For the well-being of all of us and for intergenerational justice, we need to move toward a culture of sustainability based on long-lasting and durable products."
Emine Erdogan said Trkiye ranks fifth in Europe and 11th globally in terms of installed renewable energy capacity.
She said Trkiye aims to increase its installed solar and wind power capacity to 120 gigawatts by 2035.
"We are building this goal around the principle of producing clean energy with the least possible waste," she said, adding that Trkiye intends to further advance its zero-waste approach as part of the action agenda of COP31, which it will host in November.
"Zero waste is one of the strongest pathways to real transformation across every stage, from production to consumption," she said.
'A circular economy is a necessity for our future'
Emine Erdogan also sent a message to the opening of the Sustainable Development Impact Meetings organized by the World Economic Forum in New York.
She said current production and consumption systems were not capable of carrying humanity into the future.
"Our planet resembles a plundered mine, our oceans cannot breathe, and cities are struggling to cope with their waste. Therefore, a circular economy is not one of the options before us; it is a necessity for our future," she said.
The first lady noted that transitioning to a circular economy would strengthen sustainable development, expand recycling, improve waste management, and increase the use of renewable energy sources.
She added that Trkiye views zero waste as a key tool for achieving these goals.
Meetings with world leaders' spouses
Emine Erdogan also held meetings with several spouses of world leaders at the Turkish House.
She met Rosangela Lula da Silva, wife of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva; Fatima Maada Bio, wife of Sierra Leone's President Julius Maada Bio; and Rachel Ruto, wife of Kenyan President William Ruto.
She also met Jeffrey Sachs, president of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
In addition, Emine Erdogan accompanied President Erdogan at events marking 100 Years of Friendship: Trkiye-US, as well as events organized by the Turkish-American National Steering Committee, the International Union of Democrats, the Independent Industrialists and Businessmen's Association (MUSIAD), and the US Council of Muslim Organizations.