Net Zero; Low-Emission Procurement Project
The goal of this project is to significantly reduce indirect CO2 emissions from purchased goods and services (Scope 3; excl. business trips) by engaging with suppliers and continuously integrating sustainability criteria into procurement processes and compliance standards.
Target
Reduce indirect greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from purchased goods and services (Scope 3; excl. business trips) by -20% by 2030 and to net zero by 2040.
Task
Definition and prioritisation of measures in the area of supplier and product management. The focus is on implementation measures in three fields of action:
- Supplier engagement; requesting climate targets and GHG information
- Consideration of climate impact in procurement projects
- Promotion of circular procurement
Responsibility
Procurement units Procurement & Export Services Department, IT Services Department, Facility Services Department, Engineering & Systems Department, Real Estate Department in cooperation with ETH Sustainability
Initial measures include
- Motivate hotspot suppliers to join the Science Based Targets Initiative - certified net zero targets
- Monitor the development of climate targets and corporate carbon footprints of hotspot suppliers
- Apply climate impact as a mandatory award criterion for procurements of CHF 150,000 or more
- Measure the ETH Product Carbon Footprint (revenue-based) of hotspot suppliers
- Establish circularity as an award criterion for procurements of CHF 150,000 or more
- Review product-as-a-service procurements, e.g. for laboratory equipment or ICT
- ETHIS procurement platform; more promotion leads to more demand, better supply and a higher proportion of sustainable products
- Raising awareness; Suppliers receive clear signals from ETH that climate targets based on company-related GHG data and product-related GHG information are becoming increasingly important in supplier assessments and tender evaluations
- Climate targets and GHG reduction monitoring of our hotspot suppliers enables us to better assess our Scope 3 reductions
- By requiring transactional GHG data, we can procure in a more climate-friendly way and increase the accuracy of our Scope 3 balance
- The systematic application of sustainability criteria (climate impact, circularity) and the promotion of sustainable products on the ETHIS procurement platform leads to an increase in GHG-reduced and circular procurements in the total procurement volume
Contact
Abt. Procurement u Export Services
Binzmühlestrasse 130
8092
Zürich
Switzerland