At the High-Level Meeting of the UN General Assembly on The Role of Zero Waste as a Transformative Solution in Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals Madam Tamara Vučić, Spouse of the President of the Republic of Serbia, delivered an inspiring speech.

Distinguished Secretary-General, Your Excellency, Esteemed participants,

Ladies and Gentleman,

It gives me an immense pleasure to take part in the first event on International day of Zero Waste, under circumstances when the issues of preservation of the environment is one of the key issues for the entire mankind.

I would particularly like to thank the First Lady of Türkyie, Her Excellency Madam Emine Erdoğan for her relentless commitment to this important issue and her efforts in promoting the concept of zero waste.

Dear friends,

Mahatma Gandhi, one of the most brilliant minds the world has ever seen, famously remarked, "The world has plenty for everyone's need, but not enough for everyone's greed." These words powerfully illustrate some of the fundamental challenges deeply rooted in the dynamics of our modern human society. It is crucial to acknowledge the close relation between irrational consumption, amplified production and global challenges. Zero waste is not merely about reducing waste production – it is a way of life and a philosophy that demands solidarity, sharing best practices, and coordinated action by all those who can contribute to positive change.

I would like to share a short, true story with you, which happened a few days ago. Namely, while sitting in a café in the center of Belgrade, one lady started grumping about the cleanliness of a hallway she had just passed by, about not being pleased with anything and how she would have managed things much better if she had had the instruments of power in her hands… A gentleman that was accompanying her listened carefully, and at one moment he kindly interrupted her by saying the following: “My dear, for the beginning of this reign of yours, I would like to see that flower pot in front of our building filled with flowers, and then we can start taking care about other people’s backyards.”

It was funny to hear this, but this is certainly not a joke. This is the essence: we need ourselves to become agents of change. We have two homes – the one is our body, and the other home is the Planet Earth. We cannot afford ourselves to neglect neither of the two.

My country, the Republic of Serbia, has a long tradition of environmental activism, dating back to the early 20th century when we were one of the first countries in Europe to establish national parks. Today, they are lungs of my country. To support the breathing process, metaphorically speaking, we made significant strides towards renewable energy, with the construction of the largest wind farm in the Western Balkans 4 years ago. As the EU candidate country, the Republic of Serbia adopted the EU Green Agenda for the Western Balkans.

Moreover, the government has launched initiatives to reduce waste and promote sustainable practices, such as the reduction of plastic packaging and the adoption of circular business models. We are particularly committed to education of the youngest ones, because they are our future. And "The best way to predict your future is to create it," said Abraham Lincoln famously.

That is why we are all here. To transform the Earth into a better place for all, let us join forces and three Rs – reduce, reuse and recycle.