The establishment of the Secretary-General’s Advisory Board of Eminent Persons on Zero Waste (the Advisory Board on Zero Waste) was announced by the Secretary-General at the High-Level Meeting on the Role of Zero Waste as a Transformative Solution in Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, held during the General Assembly on 30 March 2023. The Advisory Board was established for a period of three years. The 12 members that constitute the Advisory Board are to promote local and national zero-waste initiatives through awareness-raising, promotion of local and national zero-waste initiatives, and dissemination of best practices and success stories towards implementation of United Nations General Assembly resolution 77/161. 

UN-Habitat and UNEP are the Secretariat for the Advisory Board. Under-Secretary-General for Policy Guy Ryder acts as ex-officio representative for the UN Secretary-General.