ISWA International Solid Waste Association

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ISWA International Solid Waste Association

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A global, non-profit organisation working in the public interest to promote and develop sustainable w

ISWA – the International Solid Waste Association – is a global, independent and non-profit making association, working in the public interest to promote and develop sustainable waste and resource management and the transition to a Circular Economy. ISWA membership is open to individuals and organisations from the scientific community, public institutions and public and private companies from all over the world working in the field or interested in waste management. As the only worldwide waste association with members in members in 110 countries, ISWA allows you to network with professionals, companies and institutional representatives on a global scale. ISWA’s unique mix of members spans the whole waste sector for the promotion and development of sustainable waste management across the world.

22/10/2026

🔍 “Plastic pollution is closely linked to linear waste systems, where mixed waste streams reduce recycling value and limit private sector participation, while informal recovery plays an important but largely unregulated and socially vulnerable role.” — Future Pioneers for Empowering Communities (FPEC)

🇯🇴 As part of the ongoing discussion on plastic pollution, ISWA is sharing insights from its National Members. Today, we highlight Jordan's testimony.

Plastic pollution in Jordan is closely linked to a predominantly linear municipal solid waste system, where waste is generated, collected, transported, and largely disposed of in landfills, with limited source separation.

📊 System challenges and realities
💠Jordan generates ~2.7 million tonnes of municipal solid waste annually, with organic waste accounting for more than 50%
💠Plastic recyclables account for ~16% of waste, but contamination reduces recovery value
💠The municipal recycling rate remains low, estimated at around 7%
💠Recycling systems are emerging, yet with structural constraints across collection, sorting, and value chains
💠The private recycling sector is active for higher-value materials such as PET and HDPE but constrained by contamination, price volatility, and logistics
💠Informal recovery contributes to recycling but remains unregulated and socially vulnerable
💠Rural and underserved areas face weaker collection systems and limited-service coverage

🏛️ Jordan has made important policy progress through the Waste Management Framework Law No. 16 of 2020, the National Municipal Solid Waste Management Strategy 2015–2034, and the development of an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system for packaging.

👉 A key lesson from Jordan’s experience is that policy alone is not sufficient. Plastic pollution is also a structural challenge shaped by system design, economic incentives, and social conditions.
💠Regulations must be matched with operational systems, municipal capacity, reliable data, enforcement, and stakeholder engagement.
💠Awareness campaigns are most effective when practical waste solutions exist.
💠The informal sector plays a key role and should be better integrated and supported.
💠SMEs can support circular solutions but need improved market access and stable supply chains.

🔄 Breaking the plastic pollution cycle in Jordan requires:
💠Moving beyond landfill-dependent systems toward integrated waste management
💠Scaling source separation at household and institutional level
💠Strengthening recycling value chains and material recovery systems
💠Improving financing mechanisms for waste management
💠Enhancing collaboration between municipalities, private and informal sectors, and communities

💡 Jordan’s experience shows that effective recycling systems depend on material quality, economic viability, and social inclusion across the value chain.

08/10/2026

🔍 “Plastic waste is not one homogeneous stream. Effective circularity requires solutions tailored to different plastic applications, from dedicated collection systems for clean, high-value materials to specialised recycling pathways for complex and difficult-to-recycle plastics.” - ISWA Germany

🇩🇪 As part of the ongoing discussion on plastic pollution, ISWA is sharing insights from its National Members. Today, we highlight Germany's testimony.

Germany has strong waste management systems, but some plastic waste streams need more specialised solutions. Plastic litter remains visible in public areas and waterways, while limited domestic recycling capacity leads to some plastic waste being exported, with limited transparency on its recycling. Textiles, agricultural nets and fishing gear also lack adequate domestic recycling options.

📊 In 2023, Germany generated around 5.9 MT of plastic waste, approximately 94% from post-consumer sources. Around 3 MT of plastic packaging were placed on the market, while 52.2% of packaging waste was recycled under the current EU calculation methodology.

♻️ Germany’s deposit-refund system for PET bottles shows the benefits of collecting a clean, homogeneous waste stream. It has increased bottle recycling and reduced litter, while supporting the use of recycled PET in new bottles. However, repeated recycling can reduce PET quality over time, limiting fully closed-loop recycling.

EPR and separate collection systems support effective collection of mixed plastic packaging, but recycling often produces lower-value materials. Closed-loop recycling, particularly for food packaging, remains difficult due to technical and food-safety requirements.

⚠️ Specialised plastic waste, such as fishing gear, agricultural nets and textiles, is difficult to recycle due to mixed materials and contamination. Pilot projects in the Baltic Sea have recovered over 35 T of fishing gear, but recycling remains challenging. Combining similar waste streams and providing government funding could help create technically and economically viable recycling systems.

🔄 To effectively break the plastic pollution cycle, progress could include:
💠Scaling dedicated collection systems for clean, high-value plastic streams
💠Improving sorting and material quality to enable higher-value and closed-loop recycling
💠Expanding domestic recycling capacity and improving transparency around exported plastic waste and its recycling pathways
💠Scaling specialised recycling by combining compatible waste streams, supported by government–industry collaboration and targeted financing

💡 Germany’s experience shows that circularity depends not only on collecting plastics, but on matching each waste stream with viable recycling pathways, sufficient material quality and volume, and the technologies and markets needed to return materials to productive use.

29/09/2026

🌍 What happens when circular economy projects generate measurable value, but struggle to access the financing needed to scale?

Since 2015, the ISWA YPG Mentorship Programme has connected young professionals with senior experts from across the global waste and resource management community. Through tailored mentor-mentee exchanges, participants gain technical insights, career guidance, and valuable international connections.

The 2025 edition brought together young professionals and experienced experts from around the world, with participants exploring topics relevant to the waste and resource management sector and the transition towards a circular economy.

Today, we highlight a blogpost authored by Moises VARGAS, mentored by Obaloluwa Dairo. The piece explores why circular economy projects in emerging markets struggle to secure financing despite strong environmental and economic fundamentals, highlighting the need to translate circularity metrics into financial language that enables banks and investors to properly assess risk and support scaling.

🔗 Read the full blogpost https://www.iswa.org/blog/from-measuring-circularity-to-financing-it-the-gap-no-one-is-closing/

Interested in joining the YPG Mentorship Programme? A few slots remain open for the 2026–2027 edition. Contact [email protected] to enquire about a late application.

24/09/2026

🔍 “Plastic pollution cannot be solved by exporting or importing the problem. International trade in plastic waste must not become a substitute for effective waste management, source reduction, and circular economy solutions.” — Turkish National Committee on Solid Wastes

As part of the ongoing discussion on , ISWA's national members shared their insights, from their respective countries.

🇹🇷 ISWA’s National Member for Türkiye provided the testimony below.

Türkiye’s plastic-products output was reported at approximately 9.9 MT in 2024, while its plastic waste generation is estimated at approximately 48 kg per person per year, around 45% higher than the global average.

Plastic pollution challenges in Türkiye include:
💠 Gaps in source separation, collection, recycling and recovery capacity
💠 Seasonal tourism and rising single-use plastic consumption
💠 Weaknesses in quality control, traceability and risk-based oversight of international plastic waste trade
💠 Plastic litter across urban, riverine and coastal environments, contributing to microplastic accumulation

⚠️ Rising plastic waste imports have increased pressure on domestic systems, making responsible, traceable trade essential to support recycling and circularity while preventing environmental harm.

🏛️ Türkiye has introduced measures supporting waste recovery, public awareness and circular approaches, including the Zero Waste Project, measures targeting single-use plastics, marine litter plans, the Deposit Management System and EPR. The 2019 paid plastic bag policy cut consumption by approximately 77% in its first year.

📈 Municipal waste recovery rose from around 13% in 2017 to ~38% in 2025. While this reflects overall municipal waste recovery, not plastic recycling specifically, it signals broader progress. Since the Zero Waste Project began, more than 10 MT of plastics have been recovered and returned to the economy.

💡 Breaking the plastic pollution cycle requires:
💠 Prevent: reduce unnecessary single-use plastics through source reduction, reuse and eco-design
💠 Capture: expand deposit return systems, strengthen EPR and improve source separation and collection
💠 Recover: invest in high-quality recycling and recovery infrastructure and prevent leakage through illegal dumping and open burning
💠 Track: strengthen independent data, monitoring and digital traceability of plastic flows
💠 Trade responsibly: apply robust quality controls and risk-based oversight to international plastic waste trade, supporting legitimate recycling while preventing inappropriate processing and environmental leakage

Türkiye’s experience demonstrates that lasting progress requires coordinated action across policy, infrastructure, producers and the public. The next step is to shift focus upstream: prevent waste, keep materials in circulation and ensure plastic waste is managed responsibly at every stage.

23/09/2026

🌍 What makes the ISWA World Congress so unique?

For Maddison Sreeves, Membership Growth Manager at CIWM, ISWA's national member for the UK, it’s the people.

“It is a really unique event that brings together policymakers, academics, operators, and practitioners from all across the world to converge in the UK to discuss and lead best practice moving forward for the next generation.”

The ISWA World Congress 2026 will bring that community together in London this November, and now is the time to register. 🚨 Rates increase on October 1st.

📍 QEII Centre, London
📅 7th to 9th November 2026
👥 1,200+ professionals from across the resource and waste sector

The programme will range from climate finance and material streams to EPR, plastics, behaviour change and hazardous waste, covering some of the most pressing issues shaping the future of our sector.

🎟️ Join us in London this November: https://www.iswa2026.org/tickets/?utm_source=LinkedIn&utm_medium=Socials&utm_campaign=Technical+Pro%E2%80%A6

21/09/2026

🌍 Connecting knowledge, experience and people: ISWA Working Group on Landfills meets in Copenhagen

Last week, members of the ISWA Working Group on Landfills came together in Copenhagen for an inspiring in-person meeting filled with technical discussions, knowledge exchange, experience sharing and meaningful conversations on the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of sustainable landfill management.

♻️ The two-day programme included visits to explore Danish approaches to managing non-recyclable and residual waste in practice, including AV Miljø’s sanitary landfill, where members learned about controlled landfill operations; ARC – Amager Ressourcecenter / CopenHill, Copenhagen’s landmark waste-to-energy facility; and Afatek facility, where members gained insights into the sorting and recycling of incineration bottom ash.

🌐 The programme combined in-person discussions in Copenhagen with hybrid participation, allowing colleagues from across the ISWA community to engage in the discussions, share their experiences and help strengthen our global network.

🤝 Beyond the technical programme, the meeting was also a great opportunity to strengthen our community. Shared meals, informal conversations, and time together outside the meeting room created opportunities to exchange ideas, deepen connections, and enjoy the spirit of collaboration that makes the ISWA network so special.

🙏 A big thank you to AV Miljø and the ISWA Working Group on Landfills Chair, Renè Møller Rosendal, for the excellent organisation and hospitality, and to all Working Group members for their valuable contributions, openness and commitment to advancing sustainable waste management solutions worldwide.

Interested in joining a global community of waste management experts and contributing to knowledge exchange? Learn more about ISWA Landfill Working Groups in René Rosendal's interview https://youtu.be/E-aycrgKqUI?si=8UwdlFGULEE58EBb

16/09/2026

🌍 ISWA Scientific & Technical Committee meeting in Copenhagen

Over the past two days, the ISWA Scientific & Technical Committee (STC) convened in Copenhagen and online for knowledge sharing and strategic discussions.

In a nutshell, the gathering allowed STC members to:
♻️ Have a very insightful visit to ARC (Amager Resource Centre) / CopenHill, seeing waste management and solutions in practice at one of Copenhagen’s most iconic landmarks.
🤝 Exchange perspectives on collaboration, Working Group engagement and continuous improvement, while reflecting on ongoing work, key topics and outputs of ISWA’s Working Groups and bringing together expertise from across the STC.
🌍 Advance preparations and technical contributions towards key global milestones, including and
🎯 Look ahead to upcoming activities and priorities shaping ISWA’s technical work.

Once again, a very kind thank you to Ramboll for hosting this STC meeting, for the warm welcome and excellent arrangements. And thank you to everyone in the STC who contributed to such a constructive meeting, both in the room and online, and for their continued engagement in shaping ISWA's technical content.

Two days well spent, with valuable exchanges, collaboration and progress. Looking forward to continuing the journey and seeing everyone again at the ISWA World Congress 2026 in London!

10/09/2026

🔍 “Plastic pollution cannot be tackled through clean-ups and citizen awareness alone. Effective prevention requires action at source, clear responsibilities across the value chain, and consistent monitoring to determine whether policies are actually reducing plastic leakage.” - Interafval

As part of the ongoing discussion on plastic pollution, ISWA is sharing insights from its National Members on the challenges, policies, good practices and lessons learned in different countries.

🇧🇪 ISWA’s National Member for Belgium provided the testimony below.

Belgium has well-developed waste management and recycling systems, yet plastic pollution remains a challenge, particularly from littering and industrial plastic pellet losses.

📊 In Flanders, plastics account for approximately 14% of litter by weight (~975 tonnes/year), including packaging and plastic foils. Comparable data are unavailable for Brussels and Wallonia, highlighting regional monitoring gaps. Plastic pellets are another concern, particularly in rivers around the Port of Antwerp, where losses can occur during production, handling, storage and transport.

🏛️ Flanders and Wallonia have developed anti-litter policies covering prevention, participation, environment, infrastructure, communication and enforcement. Industry has also introduced action plans to address pellet losses. However, litter has not significantly decreased, and the impact of industry initiatives on pellet pollution remains unclear.

💡 Belgium’s experience raises an important question: are anti-litter policies addressing pollution at its source, or mainly managing litter after it has been generated?

⚠️ Experience also shows the limits of focusing mainly on citizen awareness, education and clean-ups. Greater emphasis is needed higher up the waste hierarchy, on prevention and reuse, alongside stronger producer responsibility. Producers and Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs) should take greater responsibility for preventing litter from products and packaging placed on the market and contributing to related costs. Public authorities should retain responsibility for setting litter policy and independently monitoring its effectiveness.

📍 Monitoring is essential. Flanders’ target to reduce litter by 20% by 2022 compared with 2015 was not achieved. Regional monitoring gaps also call for harmonised methods that distinguish between litter types and enable transparent tracking of progress over time.

At the same time, Belgium can move further upstream and strengthen plastics circularity beyond litter management.

🔄 To effectively break the plastic pollution cycle in Belgium, progress could include:
💠 Preventing plastic leakage at source rather than relying mainly on downstream clean-up
💠 Strengthening prevention and monitoring of plastic pellet losses
💠 Enhancing product recyclability through ecodesign
💠 Introducing stronger minimum recyclability requirements for plastic products
💠 Stimulating demand for recycled plastics through minimum recycled-content requirements and/or economic incentives such as tax measures
💠 Exploring a Deposit Return System to increase collection rates, subject to political agreement

💡 Belgium’s experience shows that advanced waste management systems alone cannot eliminate plastic pollution. Progress requires shifting from litter management to prevention at source, supported by producer responsibility, independent public oversight, ecodesign and consistent monitoring.

09/09/2026

What if campuses could become a starting point for meaningful action on waste and the circular economy? 🌍

A lot of waste is produced daily, be it at home or on campuses. With universities bringing together the communities, knowledge, and professionals of tomorrow, they have a unique role to play in taking action on waste.

That is why ISWA is launching the U-ACT Program together with the ISWA Young Professionals Group (ISWA YPG), creating a platform for students and universities to turn ideas into action on campus.

The purpose of the ISWA U-ACT program is to:
💠Enable student clubs to initiate waste and circular economy initiatives on campus
💠Connect with the ISWA network and experts in the sector, to learn and share experiences
💠Provide a platform for students to contribute to ISWA blogs with their initiatives on campus and to participate in expert webinars conducted by ISWA

ISWA plans to kick off a pilot starting from September 2026, running throughout the academic year.

🚨To implement the U-ACT program, universities are required to have or start a basic membership with ISWA, and students are free to join this initiative.

If this resonates with you, you can express your interest in implementing the program: https://iswa.forms.app/iswa-university-membership. We will get in contact with you!

07/09/2026

🌍 What happens when tourism puts seasonal pressure on a country’s waste management system?

Since 2015, the ISWA YPG Mentorship Programme has connected young professionals with senior experts from across the global waste and resource management community. Through tailored mentor-mentee exchanges, participants gain technical insights, career guidance, and valuable international connections.

The 2025 edition brought together more than 20 mentor-mentee pairings from around the world, with each collaboration culminating in a joint blogpost exploring a topic relevant to the waste and resource management sector.

Today, we highlight a blogpost authored by Nana Adoma Nkansa-Gyamfi, mentored by Haniyeh Jalalipour. The piece examines how tourism-driven population surges in Malta can significantly increase municipal waste generation, while exploring the country’s evolving waste management policies to improve separation, treatment, and resource recovery and better manage seasonal pressures.

🔗 Read the full blogpost: https://www.iswa.org/blog/tourism-waste-a-case-study-of-the-island-of-malta/

Interested in taking part in the next mentorship journey?

Applications for the 2026–2027 YPG Mentorship Programme are now open! Discover this year’s edition, meet the mentor cohort, and submit your application by September 14th.

🔗 Learn more and apply: https://ypg.iswa.org/ypg-mentorship-programme/

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