The Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions (BRS) – the three core multilateral environmental agreements governing hazardous chemicals and waste – held their joint Conferences of the Parties (COPs) over the past two weeks (28 April – 9 May) in Geneva. These conventions are key instruments for protecting human health and the environment from hazardous waste, chemicals, and persistent organic pollutants. Despite their direct relevance for the subnational level, local and regional governments (LRGs) remain largely absent from formal participation in the BRS COPs processes.
This is particularly striking under the Basel Convention, which directly addresses waste management — a responsibility that typically falls to local governments. Municipalities around the world are on the front lines of managing household waste, yet their voices are not systematically included in shaping global frameworks.
During a side event on 7 May 2025, “Waste in the Spotlight: A Call for Sound Management and Global Action,” organized by the French Solid Waste Partnership and other stakeholders, some key messages were conveyed by participants and organisers :
“Waste and resource management must be more prominently, cross-sectorally promoted as a core pillar of sustainable development,”
“There is currently no direct reference to resource efficiency or waste management in the SDGs — a critical gap. Is this because these issues were overlooked during the SDG negotiations, or because local and regional governments weren’t meaningfully involved? Both need to change.”
The GCH called for stronger recognition of LRGs in global waste governance and emphasized that they are uniquely positioned to implement the Framework for the environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes and other wastes (ESM). The newly presented Overall guidance document on the environmentally sound management of household waste is focusing on household waste and emphasizing local levels importance, is a welcome step but for it to be impactful, it must be further adaptable to local realities.
The discussion also underscored the importance of supporting women working in the informal recycling sector, and the role municipalities can play in enabling inclusive, just transitions. Initiatives such as public-private partnerships, gender-responsive planning, and participatory governance are essential for building resilient local waste systems.
The GCH further highlighted the growing global movement around plastic pollution, a topic deeply linked to human and environmental health. It recalled that a coalition formed by LRGs with major city networks (including ICLEI) worked to ensure LRGs’ concerns are reflected in the ongoing negotiations for a new global treaty against plastic pollution.
Looking ahead to the post-2030 sustainability agenda, the GCH expressed strong support for a “global push” that includes national and subnational actors alike:
“We urge Parties to include local and regional governments in national delegations, and to consult them not only during implementation, but before and during decision-making processes.” The GCH remains committed to supporting LRGs worldwide and ensuring that their operational realities shape global solutions — especially on waste, where the stakes are high, and action must be collective while funding and possibilities are sometimes limited on local level.