Sustainable Procurement is among the key drivers of change in any institution, increasingly becoming a key mechanism for policy delivery and cost reduction. All public procurement in the UK is required to achieve value for money and is governed by the public procurement rule to ensure that it is fair and open. In the UK, universities and colleges yearly spend millions of pounds undertaking capital projects and buying goods and services, and institutions are increasingly making these spending decisions in a sustainable way. The adoption of sustainable and socially responsible procurement policies is now more commonplace. These policy strategies demonstrate a commitment to reshaping the ethical, environmental, and social aspects of investment.
Join like-minded EAUC Members in the EAUC's Fair Trade Community of Practice. This group is for EAUC members only.
EAUC-Scotland's Sustainable Procurement Topic Support Network (TSN) is open to all, providing an opportunity for those working in or with the further and higher education sector to share ideas and questions and to get together to hear from particular speakers or discuss topics of interest.
Prison labour – justified punishment, rehabilitation opportunity, or disciplined workforce for private industry? Paper by EAUC Fair Trade Community of Practice convenor, Liz...
Liz Cooper, convenor of the EAUC Fair Trade Community of Practice has written about the effects of non-firm actors’ interventions in agro-commodity value chains on chain...
Blog post for the Just World Institute blog asking the all important question of, what can we do as procurers of goods to prevent future factory disasters in developing countries?
Liz Cooper, convenor of the EAUC Fair Trade Community of Practice questions to what extent is SRI driven by genuine social and environmental concerns
Liz Cooper, convenor of the EAUC Fair Trade Community of Practice provides this insight into the University of Edinburgh's Fair Trade Strategy 2013-14
This is the University of Edinburgh policy and the proposed amendments to the Fair Trade Policy and Fair Trade Steering Group remit, April 2013
Fair trade Community of Practice convenor, Liz Cooper, sent out a survey to the group's members requesting their thoughts on fair trade in our institutions
EAUC Member responses about Keep Cup and other ways of encouraging the use of recyclable cups.
A case study from Nottingham Trent University's Environment Team about their journey to achieve Catering Mark standards.
Responses from EAUC Members providing insight on the comparative cost analysis of bottled water coolers/heaters compared to installing mains supplied coolers/heaters
Summary and resources from the joint procurement and waste topic support network Monday 22 April 2013, hosted by University of Edinburgh There was a great buzz about the...
'Did you know moments' from the 17th EAUC Annual Conference 2013.
A presentation from EAUC annual conference 2013 on implementing an ethical approach to procurement and supply
With energy procurement managed from central funds the “Electricity Incentivisation Scheme” (EIS) was designed to make University “departments” aware of...
Frameworks for the purchase of biomass boilers & pellets from Pro5
Workshop sessions which help you continue the learning and inspiration from the 14th EAUC Annual Conference 2010 held at Bangor University between the 22nd March - 24th...
Workshop sessions which help you continue the learning and inspiration from the 14th EAUC Annual Conference 2010 held at Bangor University between the 22nd March - 24th...
Scotland’s universities and colleges have publicly declared their intention to address the challenges of climate change and reduce their carbon footprints by signing the...
Scotland's universities and colleges have publicly declared their intention to address the challenges of climate change and reduce their carbon footprints by signing the...
A two page document about vegetables - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about timber - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about steel - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about seafood - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A suite of podcasts and video clips to support raising awareness of promoting poverty aware procurement on campus
These guidance documents provide practical advice and information on how to make the business case for sustainable procurement, what the risks are and how a green team could help.
This reuse implementation guide has been compiled as part of the HEFCE funded project “Moving Towards Zero-Waste”. The aim of the project was to work with HEIs in...
The EAUC lead a 3 year Defra Environmental Action Fund (EAF) project to provide support to universities and colleges wanting to integrate sustainability into their procurement...
A two page document about plastics - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about paper - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about oil and gas - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about fruit - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about electronics - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about clothing - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about Cleaning - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about Beverages - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about Beauty - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
A two page document about Banking - one of the 14 key commodity/service areas chosen to cover the main areas of procurement relevant to poverty issues.
This pamphlet is a practical guide to show public procurers how they can help address social concerns in what they buy and in their expectations of suppliers
The winners' brochure from the 2010 Green Gown Awards.
Green Gown Awards 2011 - winners' brochure from the annual Awards, recognising excellence in sustainability within the further and higher education sector
In 2004 the European Commission published a handbook to give guidance to the Public Sector on procuring “green” products and services
This useful handbook, developed by the University of Birmingham, is a guide to institutions and producers alike on the benefits of farmers' markets and how they can be...
Oxford Brookes was certified as the world’s first Fairtrade university in 2003. Since then, they have remained at the forefront of Fairtrade in the higher education sector
Here is an example of how Anglia Ruskin University have expanded and developed interesting opportunities for employability amongst their students.
EAUC Member responses about the maintenance of electric vehicles.
A presentation from the EAUC Annual Conference 2011 on Sustainable Procurement & the Buy Right campaign.
In this EAUC Member Spotlight, see how Steinel (UK) Ltd works with universities and colleges to help them to reduce energy use and cut carbon through intelligent lighting sensor...
In this EAUC Member Spotlight, see how University of Bristol has had success in reducing its environmental impact over the last ten years.
In this EAUC Member Spotlight, see how University of Bradford's Ecoversity current and past achievements as well as future goals.
A presentation from EAUC annual conference 2012 on the science of climate change and contributions to ESD.
An introduction to how buildings are used to interact with communities, staff and students with a case study from a University and College.
Durham University’s Procurement Service and Catering Department have worked in unison to provide a range of services to its 10 fully catered colleges and other catering...
A presentation from EAUC annual conference 2012 from Sustainable Procurement Centre of Excellence on embedding sustainability within procurement process and practice.
In this EAUC Member Spotlight see Leicester College's strategic commitment to sustainable development.
An EAUC guide on the primary areas of impact and influence in relation to the contributing factors and intervention measures regarding climate change.
The EcoCampus encourages and rewards universities for moving towards environmental sustainability and therefore good operational and management practice.
A University of Bradford led project stimulating strategic change & operational improvements by working with estates & other departments with energy/environmental...
The Energy Consortium has led a partnership made up of Harper Adams University College and the Universities of Lancaster, Liverpool and Surrey to develop additional...
This project, delivered by University of Northampton, puts partnership working at the centre of sustainable development and recognises that universities need to demonstrate...
Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is the first University to receive the Silver Food for Life Catering Mark by the Soil Association for producing a large volume of student meals
Case study of the University of Gloucestershire realizing that computer and printer procurement and usage was a significant contributor to the university’s environmental...
The Suste IT Tool is a simple carbon accounting tool that calculates the amount of energy (kWh), carbon (CO2) and money (£) is spent on ICT related energy use.
Love Food Hate Waste aims to raise awareness of the need to reduce food waste and help us take action. It shows that by doing some easy practical everyday things in the home we...
ICT (or e-Waste) at your institution, an EAUC Insight Guide, provides useful information on e-waste, covering a number of areas such as regulations, storing, recycling and...
Elmwood College has adopted an innovative approach for meeting the requirements of the ISO14001 Environmental Management Standard. It uses curriculum as a mechanism for...
EAUC Member responses with Members’ experience on measurable mandatory tender criteria for building contractors regarding travel to and from university site with respect...
A resource with guidance on developing sustainable timber procurement policies covering all timber and timber derived products
Benchmarks for target setting, a short guide developed by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), provides information on selecting suitable metrics and KPIs; project...
Sustainable ICT Procurement for Institutions, an EAUC Insight Guide, offers advice on selecting most sustainable ICT equipment for institutions, encompassing a range of topics...
A briefing document prepared by ECUS Environmental Consultants (October 2011) which discusses the proposed revisions to ISO14001: 2004 Environmental Management Standard.
The PPAPC produced 14 Commodity Information Sheets; Banking, Beauty, Beverages, Cleaning, Clothing, Electronics, Fruit, Oil&Gas, Paper, Plastics, Seafood, Steel, Timber,...
This resource consists of the weblink to the factsheets for EU Ecolabels.
People & Planet is the largest student network in Britain campaigning to end world poverty, defend human rights and protect the environment.
Link to the Global Social Compliance Programme, a business-driven programme for the continuous improvement of working and environmental conditions in global supply chains
The Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) is an alliance of companies, trade unions and voluntary organisations, working in partnership to improve the lives of poor and vulnerable...
The ILO is the international organization responsible for drawing up and overseeing international labour standards. Web link to their page for more information
This guide, published by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in 2004 provides detail into the benefits of e-procurement.
Responsible supply chain management isn’t just a question of doing the right thing – it makes good business sense. This guide outlines key issues & details a...
A research report to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by the Stockholm Environment Institute and the University of Sydney.
This link takes you to the SPP website where you can find the SMART SPP tool and further information.
Achieving Excellence in Construction Procurement Guide in 'Whole-life Costing and Cost Management', published by the Office of Government Commerce in 2007. Link to the...
The UK Government's Sustainable Procurement Action Plan produced by DEFRA in 2007. Incorporating the Government response to the report of the Sustainable Task Force. Part...
EAUC Member responses about environmentally friendly cleaning policies.
EAUC Member responses about whether recycled paper jams printers. This lead to lots of member discussions.
This UCU energy inspection checklist is compiled from a combination of Carbon Trust and Prospect checklists and is designed to assess the energy use in your building via an...
Examples of carbon reduction strategies, plans and initiatives from a number of universities.
A link to the website of the Staffordshire University hub of regeneration and sustainability where you can find out more about how it works with with regeneration professionals.
A link to purchase the BS8903 guide which helps implement sustainable procurement processes across all supply chains.
In the 2008/09 academic year NUS Services ran two technical projects designed to find out how the equipment found in most students' unions could be managed most efficiently
EAUC Member responses with helpful ways to tackle recycling in Halls of Residence.
A summary from HEFCE for measuring scope 3 carbon emissions
This document from HEFCE offers guidance for institutions on producing individual carbon reduction strategies, targets and associated carbon management plans.
This resource takes you to a page on the Carbon Trust's website which outlines the support offered to public sector bodies.
The Carbon Trust Standard for Carbon publicly recognises your organisation's efforts in reducing carbon emissions.
The link takes you to more information about the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme on the Carbon Trust's website.
The Flexible Framework is a self-assessment mechanism by Sustainable Procurement Task Force, allowing organisations to measure and monitor sustainable procurement progress.
The Government Buying Standards (formerly the Buy Sustainable - Quick Wins) have been designed to make it easier for government buyers to buy sustainably.
E-procurement (electronic procurement) refers to the purchase and sale of supplies, goods and services through the internet or other information and networking systems.
Flexible Framework enables measurement against aspects of sustainable procurement. Scottish Government & Scotland Excel have developed a self-assessment tool to support the...
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive came into force in January 2007 and aims to both reduce the amount of WEEE being produced and encourage everyone...