Green Purchases
The University of Padua has long been committed to promoting sustainability in procurement. By supporting those in charge of procurement and the central purchasing bodies of public administrations, the University participates in various round tables at national, regional and municipal levels to establish Green Public Procurement (GPP) procedures. The goal is to integrate the environmental and social requirements in the purchasing policy and develop sustainable public works.
At the operational level, in addition to the application of the Minimum Environmental Criteria (MEC) in the purchase of goods and services, the University introduces further measures in the tender documents to stimulate the market to propose new solutions, also for the product categories in which specific MECs are not yet envisaged. The University actively supports the Forum CompraVerde Veneto and other green procurement initiatives.
Networking with the territory for Green Public Procurement
In particular, the University adheres to two aspects of the 2019 Protocols of agreement.
The first aspect involves a five-year agreement between the Municipality of Padua, the CCIAA of Padua, and the Italian Local Agenda 21 Coordination to facilitate joint training, education and communication actions to improve and implement GPP in Padua.
The second, promoted by the Veneto Region, includes the universities of Padua, Ca’ Foscari of Venice, Verona and IUAV of Venice, Unioncamere of Veneto and ARPAV. The objective was to create an annual guideline of operational best practices of MECs and the principles of circular economy in public procurement through a regional Memorandum of Understanding on green procurement, which later became one of the winners of the Italian Forum PA 2021 Award. Activities under the protocol led to the updating of CAM for the supply of interior furniture in 2022 and the drafting, in cooperation with FAIRTRADE, of the document “GPP for a sustainable textile system – (UN Agenda 2030).”
Unipd best practices for resource management: award-winning projects
- Compraverde Veneto Prize 2021: project for the recovery and redevelopment of the “Casa dello Studente A. Fusinato”, for the construction of 187 lodgings for university students, of various types and sizes, complete with accessory spaces, with special consideration for aesthetic and functional characteristics, accessibility, safety and impact on the environment;
- Compraverde Veneto Prize 2022: construction of the new university building in via Gradenigo, the redevelopment of the complex in via Campagnola, and the construction of the new Engineering Hub at Padua Fair, for the special attention to the recovery and redevelopment of urban spaces, soil consumption, and compliance with CAM, enriched by the presence of requirements and incentives related to international industry certifications.
