Roundtable on Sustainable Public Procurement as a Tool for Paris Agreement at COP28

As Paris Agreement representatives, observers and stakeholders gather in Dubai for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) from 30 November - 12 December 2023, Climate Law & Governance Day (CLGD) 2023 convenes a community of leading law faculties and law and governance institutes, international organization counsel, government authorities, law associations, judges, professionals and others responsible for inspiring, innovating and building law, policy and governance capacity.

One of the key four topics to be discussed during the day is Testing Legal and Governance Tools for High Ambition Implementation.  

Key partners of the One Planet Network Sustainable Public Procurement programme will be contributing to the topic and joining the Roundtable on Exploring Low Carbon and Energy Efficient Procurement as a Tool for Paris Agreement Implementation during COP28. 

Hosted by United Nations Environment Programme UNEP U4E initiative; CMS, International Law Firm; George Washington University Law School, the roundtable is taking place on the 5^th of December 2023, at 14:35 – 15:45 GST. 

Interested participants can join the event in-person or online by registering here.  

Among others, the following speakers will be sharing experience at the national level in supporting sustainable development through SPP as well as at the international level, as a key partner of the One Planet Network Sustainable Public Procurement programme:   

• The Netherlands - Ms. Marieke Weerdesteijn, Programme Manager, Circular and Fair ICT Pact and Mr. Johan Rodenhuis, Strategic Sustainability Advisor IT, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy
• Mauritius - Mr. B. Dabeesing, Member of the Procurement Policy Office, Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development
• Anne-Claire Howard, Procurement Group Director, UNOPS  

The roundtable discussion will be focused on exploring the following questions:  

• How can the government purchasing power of 14% of GDP in high-income countries and 30% of GDP in developing countries accelerate the demand strategy for a more climate-friendly procurement system? 
• How can a systematic framework be aimed at the integration of low-carbon criteria in all stages of public procurement so as to enable procurement officials to overcome the challenges of setting and reaching net-zero goals?  
• How can emerging economies leverage their large purchasing power in promoting a more sustainable and inclusive growth through the adoption of sustainable public procurement policies?  

Climate Law & Governance Day (CLGD) 2023 is co-organized in partnership with the University of Cambridge, University of Dubai and Middlesex University Dubai, together with key international partner organisations such as the UN Environment Programme. This global international symposium aims to facilitate meaningful dialogue between COP delegates, observers and stakeholders, also keen students, with an interest in national and international law and governance related to climate change, including government representatives and leaders, leading international and domestic legal practitioners, and renowned legal experts.