The first priority is to bring wastes under control (1.1). But that on its own is not enough - it is also necessary to move from waste management in a linear economy to resource management within a circular economy (1.2). Tackling waste management helps to address more than half of the high-level sustainable development goals within the Post-2015 Development Agenda and promises significant early reductions in greenhouse gas emissions throughout the economy (1.3). A readers’ guide to the GWMO is provided (1.4) and the Chapter is followed by two Topic Sheets, on Waste and Climate and on the World’s 50 Biggest Dumpsites.