Someone might ask: “What have toilets got to do with climate change?” The answer is water and the growing risks that climate change is creating for sanitation systems. Floods, droughts, landslides and storm surges are becoming more common and more intense, damaging communities and infrastructure, with vulnerable regions facing the greatest risks. When sanitation systems fail, especially during floods, human waste can spread into water supplies, food crops and homes, triggering public health emergencies and degrading the environment.
This urgency framed the 10th World Toilet Leaders Forum (WTLF), hosted by Suwon Special City, Republic of Korea, under the theme “Next-Generation Toilets for a Changing World.” Held at the Toilet Culture Exhibition Hall (Haewoojae) on 28 October, the forum brought together about 100 national and global experts, including 40 delegates from 13 countries. Organized by the World Toilet Association (WTA), an international NGO established in 2007 to improve global health and hygiene standards through clean toilets, the event explored how sanitation solutions can advance sustainability and human rights.
Delivering a presentation titled “Climate Change and Toilet Focusing on Global Cooperation,” Yeonhee Park, Director of the ICLEI Korea Office, emphasized the need to minimize greenhouse gas emissions, build strong systems to sustain investment, and remain resilient to climate shocks. She highlighted how sanitation links directly to the Sustainable Development Goals, such as food security (SDG 2), public health (SDG 3), clean water and sanitation (SDG 6), sustainable cities (SDG 11), and the protection of oceans and waterways (SDG 14).
Director Park concluded with the promise that ICLEI Korea will continue to cooperate with Suwon City to provide sustainable solutions for universal access to safe and clean sanitation.
The forum also addressed AI·IoT-based smart sanitation technology, inclusive design, and toilets as urban spaces. Participants joined a field trip to visit Suwon City’s smart toilet system, sewage and ecological treatment–based sanitation infrastructure, and a universal design demonstration space.
Throughout this program, participants developed a country-specific action plan that can be applied for implementation back home.
Lee Jae-jun, Mayor of Suwon City, was elected as the 7th President of the World Toilet Association at the 7th WTA General Assembly. At the Forum, Mayor Lee highlighted Suwon’s ambition to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals, stating: “With the belief that access to clean and comfortable toilets is a fundamental human right, Suwon City will work to create an environment that everyone can use with dignity.”
From an international development perspective, the WTA has supported the construction of public toilets in African and Asian countries, including Ghana, Kenya, Mongolia, and Cambodia, since 2008, with 51 public toilets constructed across 19 countries. In December this year, it plans to complete a public restroom at Wat Visunnarat, the oldest temple in Luang Prabang, a UNESCO World Heritage city in Laos.
An ICLEI Member since 2005, Suwon City has worked closely with ICLEI, hosting the ICLEI Korea Office for 10 years (2012–2021), hosting the EcoMobility World Festival (2013), and the EcoMobility Suwon New Festa (2023).
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