A new project supporting the transition to a circular economy in European cities has been kicked off. CityLoops, an EU-funded project coordinated by ICLEI Europe,  puts a strong emphasis on how public procurement can support this transition.

CityLoops focuses on two of the most significant urban material flows with remarkable environmental impacts in European cities: construction and demolition waste (CDW) – including soil – and organic waste (OW). Partners involved in this four-year initiative will develop 'circular city scan' methodology and indicators by adapting material flow analysis (MFA) and urban metabolism methods, as well as Circular Procurement Assessments to leverage the power of procurement. This will drive the transition to a circular economy.

Through this process, seven small- to medium-sized cities in Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal and Spain will test a number of innovative tools and processes to support circular planning, procurement, and decision-making related to CDW and OW. Scale-up plans in each of the demonstration cities will be prepared, while collaborative learning networks will be established at the regional level. These activities will be underpinned by public procurement support, including several workshops and guidance material on circular procurement.

Political representatives from most of the cities involved in the project – Høje-Taastrup, Roskilde and the Capital Region of Denmark (Denmark), Mikkeli (Finland), Seville and Vallès Occidental (Spain), and Porto (Portugal) – recently gathered to sign a ‘Circular Cities Declaration’. Through their signatures, they commit to enhancing the circular economy through policy and regulatory levers, including public procurement; to initiating a series of innovative pilot and demonstration activities to help identify the most promising solutions; to sharing knowledge with peers; and to building a wider circular cities coalition with key stakeholders and initiatives across Europe.

Cities and procurement authorities that are interested in becoming circular can join in and follow the activities of this project through a range of site visits, workshops, and webinars. If you are interested to learn more about opportunities to get engaged, please contact procurement@iclei.org.

For more information on CityLoops, please click here.