Circular procurement is an important instrument to achieve a circular economy. In a circular economy, you repurpose products, components and materials in the highest possible quality. As a result, they retain their value in closed cycles.
In circular procurement, an organisation focuses on optimising the flow of materials, in the following three ways:
– narrowing: reducing primary raw material use by using less material or by choosing secondary or bio-based materials
– extending: extending the lifetime of products and components, e.g. by maintenance or reuse of products and/or components
– close: close material flows by reusing the materials used over and over again so that it does not end up as waste.
A circular economy is about using materials as efficiently as possible. Everything we use is reused or ‘returned’ to the economy – we close the circle. Any remaining resources at the end of a product’s life cycle are used to make new products and/or materials. So waste is also a resource.
In the circular economy, in addition to size, preserving the value of materials and products plays a crucial role. Value preservation is linked to a longer life of products, components and materials. Thus, resource efficiency increases.
We face major sustainability challenges: global warming, the reduction of biodiversity and globally, our living environment is under pressure. These problems are largely caused by the excessive consumption of raw materials for products, energy and food. The resulting environmental impact exceeds the limits of what the earth can tolerate.
Global demand for raw materials has tripled since 1970. If this growth continues, raw material use will double again by 2060 (click here for the (Dutch) Integrated Circular Economy Report, 2023). This calls for radically more efficient use of available resources. That is, to use raw materials less, more intensively and for a longer period of time. In this way, we reduce environmental impact and improve the security of supply of raw materials.
Procurement is one of the key factors contributing to increasing the impact of the circular economy. To accelerate circular procurement, among both public purchasers and private purchasing organisations, a joint approach involving the government and the business community is needed. To make a significant contribution to this, PIANOo, Rijkswaterstaat, and Nevi – made possible by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management – are collaborating on the theme of circular procurement. Click here to read more.
VCI is a collaboration of PIANOo, Rijkswaterstaat and Nevi. It is co-sponsored by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management.
We have a contact form for that purpose. Click here for the form.
VCI organises regular events and meetings throughout the year where you can meet like-minded people. Stay up to date by visiting our event page here (Dutch).
Prior to the event, you will receive a viewing link in your mailbox. Didn’t receive it? Then check your spam first. Can’t find a link there either? Then fill in the contact form here and let us know that you did not receive a link. We will send you the link a.s.a.p.
No, these are always free of charge.
To watch a recording, you need to register in advance. After the webinar, you will receive a link to watch the recording. Trainings are not recorded and are therefore not available to rewatch.
Visit our events page here (Dutch) to see all upcoming events organised by VCI. You will find a registration form at the bottom of the page. By registering there, you will receive the necessary information prior to the event.
Keep an eye on our events page here. You can also follow us on LinkedIn and sign up for our quarterly newsletter. You can sign up for the newsletter at the bottom of this page (only available in Dutch).
To this end, we have drawn up a roadmap. The roadmap consists of two parts:
1) internal organisation
2) procurement process.
Each part goes through six steps. Each step includes the most important starting points and concrete action points. View the step-by-step plan here.
Yes, VCI is also international. To this end, we have an English-language and a Dutch-language website. The Dutch website can be found here.
For this, we would like to refer you to the ‘Handreiking intern opdrachtgeverschap voor publieke organisaties’. Click here.(Dutch)
More information on formulating circular requirements or procurement criteria can be found in the step-by-step plan. To formulate requirements and criteria, you can also use the MVI criteria tool. Using this tool, you can easily collect the most recent Sustainable Public Procurement (SPP) criteria for your purchasing document.
More information on how to measure the effects of your circular procurement process can be found in the roadmap.
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