UNITED NATIONS DECLARES ZERO WASTE DAY

By: Hillary LeBlanc

Governments around the world establish national recognition days to highlight important causes, historical events and social movements. These days serve to educate the public, promote awareness and most importantly honor significant contributions or struggles within society.

Some governments focus on historical remembrance, such as Veterans Day in the United States or Remembrance Day in Canada, while others may emphasize social progress such as International Women’s Day or Human Rights Day. Certain recognition days are dedicated to cultural or environmental causes, such as Indigenous Peoples’ Day or Earth Day. The selection of these days often reflects a nation’s values, history, and priorities, with some being legislated by government bodies and others emerging through public advocacy and societal support.

The United Nations (UN) is an international organization founded in 1945 with the goal of discussing global problems and finding solutions. Of the many days that the United Nations recognize, they have recently claimed March 30th to be International Day of Zero Waste. The UN, currently made up of 193 Member States, cover five main areas concern: maintain international peace and security, protect human rights, deliver humanitarian aid, support sustainable development and climate action and to  uphold international law.

Credit: Kyle Glenn / @kylejglenn

The International Day of Zero Waste was created on the 14th of December 2022. The country of Türkiye, with 105 other countries, put forward the resolution, following other high-level decisions focused on pollution. The International Day of Zero Waste encourages Member States, organizations of the United Nations system, civil society, the private sector, academia, women, youth and other stakeholders to participate in activities aimed at raising awareness of national, sub-national, regional and local zero-waste initiatives and their contribution to achieving sustainable development.

Promoting zero-waste initiatives through this international day helps advance all the goals and targets in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, such as making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable and ensuring sustainable consumption. These goals address all forms of waste including food loss and waste, natural resource extraction and electronic waste.

According to the UN, households, small businesses and public service providers generate between 2.1 billion and 2.3 billion tons of municipal solid waste every year – from packaging and electronics to plastics and food. However, waste management services around the world are ill-equipped to handle this, with 2.7 billion people lacking access to solid waste collection and only 61-62 per cent of municipal solid waste being managed in controlled facilities. 

Without urgent action, municipal solid waste generation will balloon to 3.8 billion tons annually by 2050. The UN shares that every year the textile sector produces 2–8 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, and it uses 215 trillion litres of water, which is the equivalent of 86 million Olympic-sized swimming pools.

Credit: Leon Kohle / @leon_kohle

This year’s International Day of Zero Waste highlights the need for action in the fashion and textile industry to reduce waste and advance circular solutions. With fast fashion contributing to over-consumption, textile production surpasses sustainability efforts to combat waste production. Clothing production doubled from 2000 to 2015 and yet, 92 million tonnes of textile waste is produced globally. This equates to a garbage truck full of clothing incinerated or sent to landfills every second.

Finding a solution to this crisis requires systemic change through sustainable production and consumption, and circular solutions. A zero-waste approach is key to this transition. Consumers can significantly reduce environmental harm by reusing items, repairing and mending garments, and recycling. Shifting away from fast fashion and investing in durable, high-quality clothing not only conserves resources but also honors traditional sustainability approaches. Doubling the number of times a garment is worn would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by fourty-four percent. The private sector must take responsibility by designing products that are durable, repairable, and recyclable, while embracing circular business models that curb chemical pollution, reduce production volumes, use sustainable materials, and help rebuild biodiversity. Innovation and accountability should guide business strategies.

Governments play a critical role by enforcing Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes, regulating harmful chemicals, investing in recycling infrastructure, and incentivizing sustainable business models to drive the transition to a circular economy.

The UN is having flagship events in Geneva, Barcelona, Nairobi, New York, Paris and China as well as a virtual webinar on April 2nd. They encourage the community to use hashtags #ZeroWasteDay and #BeatWastePollution as we all work toward a safer planet and combat waste production.

Cover Image: Mathias Reding / @matreding