The negative effects of rapidly changing living standards in the world have become more visible in the last 10 years. The increase in production and consumption, depending on the main factor of the gradual increase in population, has expanded the framework of industrial areas. Increasing waste materials and depleted resources have begun to be dealt with within the waste management discipline. Sustainability is; It is interested in the characteristics of the measures that should be taken in a way that will not reduce the consumption and welfare levels of the people in the future compared to the present. These concepts, which offer positive concrete effects in the life processes of societies, act together; It has produced useful results with reuse, recycling and recovery methods. In this study, the usability of some solid waste materials in contemporary jewelry designs will be discussed in the upcycling process, which is evaluated within the scope of reuse. Since the beginning of the 1990s, pre- and post-production waste controls and recycling studies have been carried out in the jewelry sector, and sensitivity has been started to be increased. Along with the sector, the work carried out by contemporary jewelry designers at the level of global awareness is also geared towards sustainability. The designers preferred to use upcycling as a contribution to waste management -even on a small scale- in the materials, production methods and production stages to be used in their products. This attitude is related to the fact that waste materials evolve into a piece of jewelry other than their original use, and emerge directly as a design product. In addition, it has provided an effective popularity on the society in terms of environmental benefits and artistic features.

Keywords: Contemporary, sustainable, waste, jewelry, design