Türkiye is preparing to host the largest international event of 2026. The 31st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP31), to be held in Antalya from 9 to 20 November, looks set to become far more than an ordinary climate conference. The summit, which helps shape climate policy, will sit at the centre of the world's diplomatic, economic and media agenda in November.
The COP journey, which began in Berlin in 1995, reached a historic turning point in Paris in 2015. World leaders agreed there on the goal of limiting the increase in global average temperature to 1.5°C. That agreement remains the cornerstone of global climate policy today.
The significance of COP31 stems largely from climate diplomacy's transition into a new phase. Eleven years after the Paris Agreement, the central question is no longer the announcement of new targets, but how existing targets will be implemented. COP31 in Antalya is therefore intended to be an "implementation COP".
COP31 will also assess how closely national climate commitments - nationally determined contributions, or NDCs - bring the world to the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C, thereby shaping the political direction of the Paris Agreement's second decade. Developing countries have long complained that climate finance is inadequate, and COP31 will focus on this finance. Transitioning away from fossil fuels will be another major topic.
We will see together whether the transition away from fossil fuels becomes more concrete at COP31. If real and meaningful steps are taken across these issues, the summit could join COP21 in Paris and COP28 in Dubai among the defining events in the history of climate negotiations.
Organisation Matters
Türkiye belongs neither to the traditional Western bloc nor to the developing countries in the G77, which seek to develop common positions on subjects ranging from climate change to development finance. Its climate-vulnerable position at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, Middle East, Europe and Africa leads many observers to believe that Antalya can provide a negotiating environment capable of easing disagreements between developed and developing countries.
The decisions made at COP31 will affect not only governments, but societies as a whole. From carbon-emissions targets and renewable-energy investment to green-finance mechanisms and circular-economy policy, the framework agreed in Antalya will directly shape the world inherited by future generations. How the Antalya summit is governed and organised is therefore an important matter in its own right.
Approximately 100,000 Visitors Expected
One of the summit's most notable features is the co-presidency arrangement between Türkiye and Australia. Türkiye's Minister of Environment, Urbanisation and Climate Change Murat Kurum will serve as the official COP31 President, while Australia's Minister for Climate Change and Energy Chris Bowen will serve as President of Negotiations. The COP31 President will provide overall political leadership and organisational direction and will be responsible for the COP31 Action Agenda.
The President of Negotiations will manage the formal negotiations, seek consensus, lead communications on the talks and help shape the decision texts.
Approximately 100,000 international visitors are expected in Antalya during November. Although a precise figure is difficult to provide, between 50 and 100 heads of state or government are expected to attend COP31. The Leaders' Summit will be held on the third and fourth days of the conference, 11 and 12 November 2026, hosted by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Samed Ağırbaş, who also chairs the Zero Waste Foundation, will serve as the COP31 High-Level Climate Champion, strengthening climate action by non-state actors and encouraging implementation of COP outcomes on the ground.
Alongside these senior officials, executives from the UN Climate Change Secretariat (UNFCCC), chairs of technical bodies, facilitators, co-chairs of contact groups and hundreds of negotiators will work throughout the summit.
Volunteer Programmes and Side Events
As at every COP, COP31 will include zones with different levels of access for security and protocol purposes. The most important will be the Blue Zone, the official UN area of the COP. It will host national delegations, UN officials, UNFCCC-accredited non-governmental organisations, academics, observer organisations and UNFCCC-accredited media. Country pavilions, official meetings and negotiations will also take place there.
The Green Zone will feature public events managed by Türkiye. It will host NGO events, cultural programmes, academic work, company presentations, panels and exhibitions. Technology and innovation actors, investors, partnerships, NGOs, academics and young people will come together there to develop solutions, share knowledge and take joint action.
Applications have also opened for a volunteer programme under the banner "Volunteer for the Climate, Leave Your Mark on the Future". Anyone seeking to contribute to a sustainable future, gain experience at a large international event and support global climate action and diplomacy may apply.
Institutions can apply for a place in the Green Zone to present projects, technologies and initiatives that contribute to climate action. Start-ups developing innovative climate solutions, technologies and initiatives may also apply to attend COP31.
Approved organisations will be able to hold official COP31 side events during the conference to present climate initiatives, research, policy discussions and shared solutions. Organisations wishing to support the COP31 Presidency through strategic cooperation, expert assistance or in-kind contributions may also submit partnership applications.
At a time when the world needs multilateral cooperation in every sense, building the capacity to produce tangible, measurable and implementation-focused outcomes is essential. COP summits are unmissable opportunities for our planet and humanity precisely because of this role.
The Antalya summit faces the major task of turning existing climate commitments into tangible and traceable progress. It can become the "COP of the future" only to the extent that it succeeds.
Date: 16 July 2026
