Using procurement to stimulate circular economy
Both public and private organisations purchase huge volumes of goods and services. Applying circular procurement approaches they can help stimulate the circular economy. For instance, by using requirements and criteria about the origin of products, the production processes, how to use them, and how to dispose them.
International collaboration
A circular economy cannot exist without international collaboration. Most value chains of resources and waste flows are international, thus the impacts of our consumption occur not only within our national borders but also beyond them. Thats's why we work with governments, NGOs and companies all over the world to stimulate the circular economy and, especially, circular procurement.
We share our knowledge and experiences on sustainable policies and implementation within the European Union and through United Nations' programmes. Below you'll find examples of projects and initiatives we are working on or have worked on.
UNEP | One Planet Network
The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) supports some global programmes and activities to stimulate a sustainable and circular economy. One of these is the SPP Programme (Sustainable Public Procurement) in which we are a strategic partner informing the direction of the programme and leading on content development in key areas like ICT and construction.
Find out more about One Planet Network
Circular and Fair ICT Pact
This pact is a worldwide collaboration to stimulate and accelerate circularity in ICT. We developed the CFIT Framework for Circular and Fair ICT Procurement. The Framework addresses important starting points to mitigate the negative impact of ICT. CFIT, as a partnership, connects procurement ambitions with market opportunities in the international ICT sector. The CFIT pact sits within the One Planet Network SPP programme and has strong support from UNEP and UNOPS.
Find out more about Circulair and Fair ICT Pact
Circular Minds
The project Circular Minds (Interreg Europe) aims to bridge the gap between circular ambitions and the actual implementation of successful pilots. Learning why this scaling up often doesn't work we specifically focus on the willingness to change in organisations and how to influence that mindset. The outcomes of Circular Minds include a capacity building instrument for organisations, the uptake of this instrument as a tool in CE policies in Europe and the wide dissemination of the instrument in the participating countries and regions.
Find out more about Circular Minds
C-Prone
C-Prone - the name stands for Circular PROcurement NEtwork, but also for chaperone - was launched in October 2024 as a platform or network to stimulate international collaboration by connecting projects and initiatives about circular procurement. C-prone aims to facilitate engagement with those involved in circular procurement projects. The two main goals are 1) connect people that are currently active in projects; and 2) disclose insights, knowledge, and tools that were delivered by previous projects. A future goal can be to advise the European Commission and its programmes about stimulating circular procurement. C-Prone consists of a website as the basic landing platform where information about projects and tools are disclosed, and activities to establish connections between people.
Learning networks - Green Deals
We support other countries, regions and cities setting up local learning networks to stimulate circular procurement. These so called 'Green Deals' are peer-to-peer networks that accelerate the development of circular economy. Their main aim is to facilitate local and regional exchange and peer-to-peer learning. In 2013 we set up the first Green Deal on Circular Procurement in the Netherlands. Based on its success the partnership was extended until 2020 and then continued in the Accelerator Network for Circular Procurement (VCI) and a number of so called Buyer Groups. Internationally we set up and supported Green Deals and similar networks. Regions, cities and countries we worked with so far are Flanders, Paris, Centro Region in Portugal, Finland, USA and Singapore.
The Circular and Fair ICT (CFIT) Pact
The Circular and Fair ICT (CFIT) Pact is a global partnership that aims to drive the sustainable production and use of circular and fair ICT products worldwide by harnessing the power of procurement. Through the CFIT Framework for Circular and Fair ICT Procurement, organizations are guided by four key strategies: buy less, buy better, use better, and use longer. These strategies address the environmental and social challenges of ICT production and use. By bringing together governments, international and multilateral organizations, and other relevant stakeholders, CFIT works towards advancing circularity, reducing environmental impacts, and encouraging fair labor practices across the supply chain. It provides practical procurement tools, guidelines, and a platform for collaboration to drive meaningful global progress. CFIT is part of the UN One Planet Network’s Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) program.
SPP Next
SPP Next is a group of European frontrunners in sustainable procurement coming from public sector and NGOs who are connected to DG Environment's SPP Advisory Group. Participants share knowledge, insights and practical experiences regarding issues, successes and challenges in their SPP policies and practices. Besides their own development SPP Next aims to advise the European Commission in the field of SPP.
ProCirc (Finished)
In ProCirc (EU Interreg North Sea project) partners from seven countries around the North Sea experimented finding ways to use procurement as a lever for circular economy. Over 30 pilots were set up and analysed how to mitigate resource use by 20-25% producing less waste and less carbon emissions.
CityLoops (Finished)
CityLoops (EU Horizon2020 project) comprised over 20 partners and seven European demonstration cities, including Apeldoorn. CityLoops focussed on the regional benefits of a circular economy for small and mid-sized cities in both building and construction and organic waste streams. This included stimulating circular supply chains through circular procurement principles.
Our team
Team MVI of Rijkswaterstaat stimulates circular procurement actions in the Netherlands and worldwide through its assignment from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management. Our main focus on circular actions is in sectors like ICT, textiles, facility management and infrastructure.
Do you want to learn more about our activities, collaborate with us or see how we can help you? Please contact us.