Marking the first time the global climate change conference has come to Türkiye, COP31 makes its first appearance at the Mediterranean coastal metropolis of Antalya.
The summit will run from November 9 to November 20 at the Antalya EXPO Centre, and is expected to see over 100,000 visitors. This event comes a month after the IAC 2026 (International Astronautical Congress), which took place in Belek, Antalya.
The changes to the city in anticipation of the summits and the mandates explored during the 11-day summit will leave a lasting impact on Antalya, from the daily lifestyle to the construction of properties throughout the city. The impact of COP31 is expected to extend beyond Antalya to influence the world, with delegates from over 197 countries visiting during this period. Antalya is quickly expanding its reputation beyond just a holiday destination and into a diplomatic hub, elevating the city’s prominence on a global scale.
COP31 At a Glance
This global climate change summit occurs annually to explore, create and demonstrate different approaches to climate change mandates. Given the importance and the wide reach of these initiatives, the summit involves many people across different levels of government, education, research and business. COP31 is expected to bring over 100,000 people, including heads of state and ministers, as well as media personnel, from 197 countries worldwide. As such, Antalya serves as an excellent COP summit host city, combining its established tourism sector with its multiple eco-conscious initiatives.
Antalya’s EXPO Centre has been refurbished to better suit the summit, with two separate zones: the Blue Zone and the Green Zone. The Blue Zone, the private section of the EXPO, will host the negotiations on mandates with high-end officials and is coordinated by the United Nations. The Green Zone is the public integration side of the EXPO where workshops, immersive experiences and showcases of the mandates in action take place.
Each day of the 11-day summit will focus on different issues, including global waste, climate-resistant buildings, and clean energy transitions. The full agenda and more details of the program are outlined both on the official COP31 website and the tailor-made mobile application. The collaboration between the Turkish government and the United Nations has ensured a high-quality experience with clean and informative portals that combine access cards, locations, transportation and more in one location for a seamless experience at COP31.
Antalya: The COP31’s Urban Proof of Concept
Antalya was chosen over key Turkish cities to host the first-ever COP summit in the country. A month earlier, the city was also chosen to host the first-ever IAC summit in Turkiye. The reason behind this choice is straightforward when considering that this metropolis has a strong tourism sector, excellent year-round weather, and is immediately affected by the climate issues explored in a summit like COP31.
By hosting the COP31 summit, Antalya has the opportunity to act as a proof of concept for other countries with a global tourism sector. Antalya, a city known for having over 17 million tourists a year, will showcase that there are ways to mitigate the damage of this carbon-heavy industry even at a large scale.
The COP31 president and Turkish Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, Murat Kurum, has been the head of the Antalya Compact for Energy Efficient Buildings. This initiative in Antalya is the proof of concept for the COP31 mandate of the same name. The mandate aims to reduce building energy intensity by 25% by 2035.
Antalya is experiencing widespread upgrades to the power grid, alongside buildings being renovated to meet mandated standards to create energy-efficient buildings. This extends to the new builds throughout the city. By meeting these new mandated standards, buildings can be retrofitted with solar panels and create a new two-way power system where buildings can contribute to and take power from the power grid. This lowers operating costs for tenants and property investors alike.
Paired with the benefits of the Green Waste and the circular model also explored at COP31, value in a building can exist outside even if it ends up demolished. The “design for deconstruction” aspect keeps materials usable instead of rubble and therefore can be sold. The Green Waste initiative also neatly addresses the newly updated environmental laws on increasing taxation on building rubbish removal. A nearby village to the EXPO centre has gone through massive renovations to highlight how the Green Waste system works to lower the cost of rubbish removal. This immersive experience allows for an in-depth understanding of how to scale the initiative to the city as a whole.
As Antalya is the first to go through these major improvements, investors can continue to expect Antalya to remain at the forefront of eco-conscious development. Properties in Antalya are already being constructed with these benefits that are likely going to be mandated throughout the country. Konyaalti is already introducing the LEED certification, a global green building rating, with a new project in Konyaalti part of Antalya.
Antalya as Turkiye’s Leading Eco-Tourism Metropolis
Antalya has become the real-estate sweet spot in terms of eco-consciousness. The city delivers the blend of a Geneva-style framework of environmental accountability and infrastructure, with the natural beauty of the Mediterranean – at a fraction of the European price.
Antalya alone accounts for 50% of Turkiye’s GSTC (Global Sustainable Tourism Council) accommodation certification. The accreditation ensures that sustaining an influx of tourists does not come at the cost of environmental destruction. This certification is going to be mandatory across the country’s tourism sector by 2030. By meeting the GSTC requirements, Antalya can host global summits like COP31 year-round and introduce a new renter demographic of delegates, businesses and media, outside of the traditional peak season holiday-goers.
The infrastructure of the city needs to reflect the scale of this new renter demographic. Hosting COP31 has allowed Antalya to fast-track its eco-conscious transportation revolution to showcase what is possible in a city even of this size – a stark contrast to Istanbul’s congested and polluted transportation system. The international airport has gone through a major expansion and renovation, allowing it to achieve LEED Gold status. COP31 visitors from abroad are immediately greeted with Antalya’s eco-conscious agenda even before the event starts. Visitors and residents of the city also benefit from the fast-tracked upgrade with a new fleet of buses: 71 electric, 233 natural gas-powered and 326 low-emission buses. The dedication to the upgrade was made permanent since a natural gas refuelling station had to be constructed, as none existed before.
COP31’s presence also helps with light-rail/metro line extension into the Konyaalti part of Antalya. As the city actively meets and demonstrates COP31’s sustainable city initiatives, foreign and domestic lenders like the IFC and BBVA – who are present for the summit – can directly verify the environmental compliance needed to secure large-scale funding. Similar initiatives had secured Antalya €140 million from the IFC for earlier segments of the light-rail.
Securing the line extension through green financing ensures a level of future-proofing standard routes simply cannot offer. Going the green-financing route means stricter foreign regulations, but premium European-grade transportation. The clean mobility approach to this line extension further increases the transit premium of a new station and permanently cements Antalya’s role as an emerging global hub for diplomats and tourists alike.
COP31 Summit: What to Watch For
Hosting COP31 has forced Antalya to fast-track major infrastructure projects to meet deadlines and implement large-scale changes. From new low-emission buses and the introduction of natural gas public transport and facilities, to a COP31 legacy mandate like the Antalya Compact for Energy Efficient Buildings, COP31 is the event with a massive impact on Antalya. As a city highly vulnerable to climate change, Antalya takes eco-conscious alternatives seriously and is quickly becoming the Turkish city at the forefront of implementing change.
Investors considering property investment in Antalya – or those who want a glimpse at the future of Turkish property investment as a whole – should pay attention to the mandates emerging from the summit. Because the COP31 president is also the Turkish Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, models implemented in Antalya could easily become the national standard.
COP31 provides an excellent opportunity to track upcoming infrastructure investment. With international green-financing lenders and domestic Turkish investors in attendance, the summit also acts as a live validation centre. Lenders can directly verify environmental compliance, fast-tracking mega-projects in the same manner that has earned Antalya international transit financing on the light-rail before.
The schedule is packed with different initiatives, meetings, and workshops and Antalya is firmly at the centre of this COP31 world stage. Antalya is an important city worldwide, therefore many international events like World Economic Forum, COP31 and more have been held in Antalya.
Antalya is the top 10 most visited city in the world. Many international investors have been investing in properties, hotels and Turkish citizenship investments in Antalya. Turkish Riviera Homes Real Estate company, with 18-years of experience, is based in Antalya, Turkiye and can offer in-depth local knowledge on the city. Do not hesitate to reach out to us on our website: www.turkishrivierahomes.com.
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Sources Referenced:
- “COP31 için EXPO alanının yanındaki mahalle, ‘Sıfır Atık Köyü’ne dönüştürüldü [The neighborhood next to the EXPO area has been converted into a ‘Zero Waste Village’ for COP31]” Son Dakika Haberler (November, 2026) – Information on the Green Waste village project
- “IFC provides 140M euros for tramline in Antalya” Daily Sabah (November, 2026) – Outlining the IFC deal with Antalya Municipality to fund the urban rail system’s initial segments.
- “Türkiye deploys 630 low-emission buses for COP31” Daily Sabah (November, 2026) – Information on the new bus fleet and refueling station.
- “Antalya to Host COP31: Sustainable Tourism, Culture and Climate Challenges” BBVA (November, 2026) – Outlook on the COP31 summit from bank and project investment lender BBVA
- https://cop31.tr/ (November, 2026) – Official COP31 website.
- https://cop31.tr/programme-overview (November, 2026) – Complete programme overview
- https://cop31.tr/news-detail/cop31-launches-antalya-compact-for-energy-efficient-buildings (November, 2026) – Explores the new Antalya Compact Building Mandate
- Fraport TAV Antalya Airport (November, 2026) – For information on airport phase updates and details.
