Circular Public Procurement is a 3 year project supported by the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme.

The aim is to address the societal challenge of resource efficiency, by considering innovation from a multidimensional perspective – including involving products, processes and new business models and by exploiting the synergies between public authorities, research institutions, SMEs and non-profit organisations in this field. 

Through innovative thinking, change of mindset and new points of view on the existing reality, a ´getting-more-by-using less´ approach will be introduced. This change of paradigms in the current way of using resources will be given by introducing the principles of circular economy thinking to the market and in the public procurement strategies and practices of partner cities.

A circular economy approach is an alternative to the “make, use, dispose” model, which aims to keep products and materials in the value chain for a longer period and to recover raw materials after the lifetime of the products for their next use.

Applied to public procurement, it is known as a different way of acquiring goods and services that promotes consideration of the whole lifecycle of products throughout their supply chain.
By experimenting with non-conventional business models, circular procurement aims to lead the way to a circular economy.

For the achievement of developing an adequate framework for circular procurement, the project team will follow a four steps approach:

1. The study of the current state of knowledge on public/circular procurement.
2. Building necessary capacity on circular procurement for all relevant stakeholders.
3. Delivery and Implementation of pilot public procurement programs.
4. Disseminating widely the project outcomes.

The main outputs of Circular PP:

1. a set of recommendations to develop further circular procurement policy and to improve the current institutional organisation of procurement entities;
2. training material for public authorities alongside procurement seminars in all seven participating countries, activities to raise awareness among SMEs concerning the design and delivery of circular products and services;
3. the delivery of five pilot procurements, as well as a number of specified dissemination activities to exploit the outcomes.