Cities around the world committed to leveraging their purchasing power to reduce carbon emissions at Daring Cities – the global virtual forum for urban leaders boldly tackling the climate emergency, which took place earlier this month.

In three action-oriented sessions organised by ICLEI’s Global Lead City Network on Sustainable Procurement (GLCN), participants from over 45 countries engaged online to explore how public buyers can navigate the race to zero-emissions in an environment where ‘lowest-price’ still is the deciding factor.

Procurement accounts for 12 percent of GDP in OECD countries, and up to 20 percent in many developing countries. Two-thirds of that is spent at sub-national level. At the same time, local and regional governments around the globe are at the frontline of dealing with the climate emergency through local climate action. They engage as they are at the forefront of dealing with the impacts of climate change, which they already experience and they are closest to communities. Increasingly we see that subnational governments commit to the necessary ambitious targets towards climate neutrality, including operating at 100% renewables or aiming for zero emission construction sites. These targets can be achieved by adopting sustainable procurement as a tool.

“If climate is the problem, procurement is the solution. It is a mechanism that is already in place within public authorities. It is essential to use it.” – Mark Hidson, Deputy Regional Director ICLEI Europe, Global Director Sustainable Procurement.

From reducing emissions to bolstering the green recovery and improving the equity of food systems, members of the GLCN network are using procurement to meet climate and sustainability goals and improve systems and quality of life for their residents.

ICLEI Member Oslo, Norway, uses procurement strategically to reach climate goals aligned with the Paris agreement and the SDGs. In 2017, Oslo adopted a new procurement strategy which is based on the premise that all purchasing decisions have to contribute to the goal of becoming an emission free city. With €3 billion of annual spending on goods, services and constructions works – this is leverage. In addition, Oslo’s climate strategy outlines targets that related to procurement action. For example, the city created a climate budget that is fully integrated with the financial budget and that keeps track of how many emissions are impacted by which measures. “In Oslo we believe that emission reductions are not to be implemented somewhere else, another time or by someone else. We want to take responsibility now and our goal is to reduce emissions by 95 percent by 2030” says Espen Nicolaysen, Head of Section Public Procurement, City of Oslo.

Helsinki, Finland, another ICLEI Member, aims to be carbon neutral by 2035 and reduce direct carbon emissions by 80 percent. To achieve this ambitious goal, the city leverages procurement as a key mechanism. “If the market is not ready yet, collaboration between public buyers at different levels of government is key. Because if only Helsinki is asking for specific machinery, it will negatively affect the offers we can get for the tenders. So communication with the market and others is key. It is better to communicate too early and too much. Even if we do not know everything yet. We are running out of time. We do not have the luxus to waiting for the perfect solutions. So, move with what you have.” Kaisa-Reeta Koskinen, Project Director, Carbon Neutral Helsinki City of Helsinki, Finland. Mayor of Helsinki, Jan Vapaavuori, adds the critical point that “GHG emissions decline by actions, not by writing reports or strategies.”

ICLEI Member Malmö, Sweden aims for climate-friendly, organic and fair food for the city. With 65,000 lunches per day or 21 million a year, procurement of sustainable ingredients has a significant impact. The city’s ambitions are high: a 40 percent reduction of GHG emissions from 2002 to 2020. For implementation on those targets, the city worked a lot on the procurement processes. “And of course, as a city to do this, we need to work with sustainable businesses that can deliver on the ambitions”, Gunilla Andersson, Project Manager, Environmental Department. In addition, Andersson describes how it is key to get education for cooking staff, teachers, health care staff. Looking at a recent school lunch menu, each day has two options: always a plant-based meal and twice a week meals sourced from left-overs.

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