In 2018, Green Council invited organizations to take our Sustainable Procurement Charter to develop, document and implement sustainable procurement with reference to ISO20400:2017. The Charter is open to any organization – regardless of its sector, size and location – that is involved in procurement decisions and processes. Companies who join the Charter will need to implement sustainable procurement, set objectives, measure progress and prove their progress to Green Council.
Implemented in
- Asia / Pacific
- China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
Led by
Sectors of activity
Buildings and construction, Energy, Public Procurement
Type of initiative
Capacity Building & Implementation, Policy Frameworks & Tools
Start date
01/01/2018
End date
31/12/2020
Submitted on:
10/01/2018Objectives
The globalization of sourcing and the practice of outsourcing non-core activities have been common business strategies for companies to reduce their costs. To ensure the cost savings is achieved, procurement has traditionally been responsible for managing the supply chain and balance the cost, quality and delivery of the goods and services. However, globalization and outsourcing are both causing and resulting in more complex, lengthy and dynamic supply chains while bring new sustainability risks e.g. air pollution, poor working conditions etc. during the production and delivery of goods and services.
Green Council believes that procurement can directly influence the sustainability of the materials, products, and services, for example, undertaking a demand review, understanding the life-cycle costs, specifying the requirements of products in material selection, packaging and disassembly, engaging suppliers early in product design, working with suppliers to improve the sustainability of their operation and determining how waste is handled at the end-of-life.
Sustainable procurement is no longer a nice-to-have direction– it's an integral business function responsible for protecting and improving brand reputation, driving revenue and mitigating business risk. In 2017, the new ISO 20400:2017 Sustainable Procurement Guidance was released to provide guidance on implementing sustainable procurement.
Green Council expect companies will take our Sustainable Procurement Charter to demonstrate their successful achievements in sustainable procurement.
The objectives of the Charter were:
1. to promote the implementation of sustainable procurement among organizations in HK
2. to provide an experience sharing and networking platform for organizations who have committed to implement sustainable program
3. to build people capacity for implementing sustainable procurement
4. to assess progress and milestones of organization
5. to provide advice in implementation
Activities
As collected through the One Planet Reporting
Outcome level
SCP Commitments
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Official Launching Ceremony for Sustainable Procurement Charter
Official Launching Ceremony for Sustainable Procurement Charter
Regions
Asia / Pacific
Lead organization
Green Council Limited
Objective
The main goals of launching the Sustainable Procurement Charter are to encourage and invite orgainizations to participate in our Sustainable Procurement Charter as a committment to develop, document and implement sustainable procurement with reference to ISO20400. Importantly, Green Council has developed a Charter framework for identifying and assessing sustainable procurement implementation milestones. It allows organizations to measure and monitor their progress over time.
Achievements
The official launch of the Sustainable Procurement Charter was held on July 12th, 2018. Mr. Wong Kam-sing, GBS, JP, Secretary for the Environment of the Hong Kong SAR Government attended as the Guest of Honour. The Launching Ceremony was led by Mr. Shih Wing-ching, Chairman of Green Council, Ms Linda Ho Wai-ping, Chief Executive Officer of Green Council, Green Council executive members, and thirteen (13) representatives of Charter founding members. In support of the Charter launch, Dr. Mushtaq Memom of the United Nations delivered a well-received speech regarding the importance of sustainable procurement. The event was an overwhelming success with over 100 participants. However, there are challenges in inviting members to join this Charter. The practices of sustainable procurement and ISO20400 are not famililar in both private and public sectors. It will take a longer time for promotion the understanding of sustainable procurement and the benefits of joining the Charter.
Output level
Training for SCP
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Sustainable Procurement Charter Workshop 2018 on ISO 20400 : Sustainable Procurement Guidance
Sustainable Procurement Charter Workshop 2018 on ISO 20400 : Sustainable Procurement Guidance
Regions
Asia / Pacific
Lead organization
Green Council Limited
Objective
To build people capacity in implementation of sustainable procurement with referece to ISO20400.
Achievements
The second 1-day workshop on ISO 20400: Sustainable Procurement Guidance was held. 28 participants from 15 companies joined the workshop. Other than learning, participants have taken challenging exercises in setting procurement policy, strategy, objectives, making decisions on life-cycle costing and identifying supply chain risks. To develop a green specification for office furniture, each participant was required to suggest one criterion in specification. The result was inspiring and many suggestions were not the same. It is the power of brainstorming! Suggestions included timer from sustainable sources, VOC limits in paint, low formaldehyde, spares continuity, environmental packaging, assembly without glue, use of recycled materials etc. However, participants found that many of the sustainable criteria were not included in their purchase specifications.
Impact and Results
By joining the Charter, organizations have been required and committed to implement sustainable procurement. Requirements include setting up policies and procedures, strategy development, green procurement, supply chain risk management, supplier diversity, setting improvement objectives etc..
Upto first quarter of 2019, the following organizations have joined the Charter and committed to implement sustainable procurement:
14 Founding Member
1. Baguio Green Group Limited
2. The Bank of East Asia, Limited
3. Chung Tai Printing (China) Company Limited
4. CLP Power Hong Kong Limited
5. D&G Technology Holding Company Limited
6. HKT Limited
7. Hong Kong Baptist University
8. The Hong Kong and China Gas Company Limited
9. The Hong Kong Electric Co., Ltd.
10. Kerry Properties Limited
11. MTR Corporation Limited
12. New World Development Company Limited
13. Ocean Park Corporation
14. PCCW Limited
Established Member
1. Allied Environmental Consultants Limited
2. Crown Gas Stoves (Holdings) Company Limited
3. Inax Technology Limited
4. JCDecaux Transport
5. Lap Energy Hong Kong Limited
6. Pro-Tech Technology (Asia) Ltd.
7. Sunlight (1977) Holdings Limited
8. Swire Properties Limited
Next steps and how to get involved
To join the Charter, any interest company can find out more information in www.greencouncil.org or via email: info@greencouncil.org