United States and Italy Sign Memorandum of Understanding to Strengthen Environmental Protection at Major Events
The agreement will support U.S. efforts to tackle food loss and waste, boost recycling and water reuse, and advance circular economy strategies at the upcoming Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympics
HOUSTON — Today, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin met with Italy’s Deputy Minister of the Environment and Energy Security (MASE) Vannia Gava at the G20 Energy Abundance Ministerial to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the United States and Italy to strengthen environmental protection at large-scale events.
The partnership builds upon lessons learned from Italy’s successful hosting of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics and will help the United States to better protect human health and the environment at the upcoming Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympics.
This three-year agreement establishes a framework for cooperation and information sharing to strengthen each country’s respective programs to tackle food loss and waste, boost recycling and water reuse, implement circular economy strategies, and take other innovative approaches to protect human health and the environment while hosting major events.
“The United States and Italy face similar environmental challenges, and this MOU will supercharge our mutual ability to protect human health and the environment with cutting-edge ideas and gold-standard science,” said EPA Administrator Zeldin. “The Trump EPA looks forward to both learning from MASE and sharing how our programs, like Feed It Onward, have channeled American ingenuity, grit, and community into huge environmental wins.”
“With the signing of this MOU, Italy and the United States strengthen an already solid relationship on issues crucial to the future of our planet: circular economy, reduction of food loss and waste, efficient management of resources starting with water,” said Vice Minister Gava. “This is an agreement that also looks ahead to the major international events, from the Milano-Cortina Olympics experience to the Los Angeles 2028 Games, demonstrating how environmental challenges can and must be an integral part of the events that bring the world together. A further step in cooperation with a strategic partner such as the United States.”
MOU Details
EPA and MASE’s shared commitment to reducing food loss and waste was a catalyst for this MOU. Both Italy and the United States have frameworks to support food loss and waste reduction, including EPA’s Feed It Onward Initiative. In the United States, more than one-third of all food goes uneaten. Feed It Onward provides a national platform to highlight the farmers, businesses, nonprofits, military partners, and communities who work to ensure surplus food is being put to use rather than wasted. The initiative connects food donors and organizations in food waste reduction with communities in need, while reducing the environmental impacts of wasted food.
Through cooperation, EPA and MASE will share best practices on reducing food loss and waste, enhancing air quality management, expanding water reuse and recycling initiatives, and educating stakeholders and the public on responsible environmental practices. The next step in this agreement is the creation of a workplan to implement the MOU.
Please see the Memorandum of Understanding Between the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security of the Italian Republic (pdf) for more information.
Background
This MOU builds on a long history of cooperation between the United States and Italy. In 1988, the two nations signed an agreement for Scientific and Technological Cooperation in Rome. The agreement was amended and extended at a Washington, D.C. signing in 1993. In 2025, President Donald J. Trump and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni issued a Joint Leaders’ Statement continuing this strong relationship.