Turkey hosts COP31 amid fossil fuel tensions: Youth delegate selection reveals systemic contradictions in climate governance

Indigenous frameworks in Turkey, such as the *Doğa Derneği*’s land stewardship models, emphasize regenerative agriculture and communal land rights, directly opposing the industrial livestock model represented by the appointed 'youth champion.' Turkey’s hosting of COP31 occurs on lands historically inhabited by Indigenous peoples, including the Hittites and Luwians, whose cosmologies framed nature as sacred—a stark contrast to the extractivist logic driving COP negotiations. The exclusion of Indigenous delegates from key roles reflects a global pattern where COP processes prioritize corporate and state actors over traditional knowledge holders.

The COP process itself emerged from the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), a treaty that codified industrialized nations’ historical responsibility while failing to enforce binding emissions cuts. Turkey’s role as a bridge between Europe and the Middle East mirrors its Ottoman imperial history, where resource extraction and trade routes shaped modern geopolitics—patterns now replicated in its energy policies. The cattle farmer’s appointment echoes past instances where COP delegations included industry representatives, such as the 2021 appointment of a Shell executive to the UK’s COP26 presidency team.

In the Pacific Islands, where COP31 will be held, climate justice is framed through the *Pacific Way*—a collective approach rooted in communal decision-making and intergenerational equity, diametrically opposed to the individualistic 'youth champion' model promoted in the West. Indigenous Australian pastoralists, such as the Martu people, have long practiced fire management that reduces bushfire risks, a practice ignored in favor of industrial cattle farming. Turkey’s own *çevre hareketi* (environmental movement) has drawn parallels between climate action and anti-colonial struggles, yet these connections are absent in mainstream COP narratives.

Industrial livestock farming contributes 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, with methane from cattle being 28-36 times more potent than CO2 over 100 years—contradicting the 'sustainable' framing of the appointed delegate. Turkey’s energy mix remains 34% coal, with plans to expand gas infrastructure, undermining its COP31 credibility as a host committed to 1.5°C alignment. Scientific consensus emphasizes the need for systemic transitions in agriculture and energy, yet COP processes continue to favor incremental market-based solutions over proven regenerative practices.

In Turkish folk traditions, the *bereket* (fertility) of land is celebrated through poetry and festivals, such as *Hıdrellez*, which embody a spiritual connection to nature—directly at odds with industrial agriculture’s commodification of land. The appointment of a cattle farmer as a 'youth champion' reduces climate action to a performative role, stripping it of the sacred and communal dimensions central to Indigenous and Sufi traditions in the region. Artistic movements like *Yeşil Sol* (Green Left) in Turkey critique this disconnect, using murals and music to highlight the spiritual violence of extractivism.

Scenario modeling by the IPCC shows that limiting warming to 1.5°C requires a 43% reduction in global livestock emissions by 2030, yet COP processes lack mechanisms to enforce such targets. Turkey’s hosting of COP31 could either accelerate fossil fuel phase-outs or lock in decades of gas infrastructure, depending on whether youth delegates are given real decision-making power. Future generations will judge COP31 not by its procedural successes but by whether it dismantles the extractive economies that drive the climate crisis.

Frontline communities in Turkey’s coal regions, such as Zonguldak, face displacement due to mining expansion yet are excluded from COP31 delegations. Global South youth, who bear the brunt of climate impacts, are sidelined in favor of a delegate whose industry exacerbates their suffering. Indigenous women leaders, such as those from the *Kurdish Ecology Movement*, have long advocated for climate justice but are systematically excluded from COP processes, which prioritize state and corporate actors.