News & Press Releases - Fair procurement for the public sector © FEMNET ⁇ Jonas Heidebrecht 04 May 2021 Fairly procured in Fairtrade Towns: Impulse for over 100 committed people Many cities and municipalities are active as fair trade towns for global justice and fair trade. More and more people are also committed to sustainable procurement. FEMNET and Fairtrade Germany provided impetus for implementation in a joint webinar. Getting to know success factors The event was aimed at all fair trade activists, especially members of fair trade town steering groups. Lisa Herrmann (Fairtrade Deutschland) introduced the webinar and emphasized the importance of community engagement in order to achieve development policy goals. A cornerstone of this commitment can be the implementation of a social and ecological procurement practice. Subsequently, Mara Mürlebach (FEMNET) discussed success factors for such a project. Uncovering procurement myths Again and again, committed parties are told that sustainable procurement is too expensive, too complicated or not legally secure. Therefore, it was then a matter of getting to grips with such ‘procurement myths’ and getting to know good counterarguments. Positive examples from municipalities have also been reported, which, in spite of all myths and worries, are already sustainable. Particularly valuable was the input from Barbara Schroeder (Fairtrade Town Control Group Markt Roßtal), who reported on the experiences and achievements of her municipality. In the meantime, a whole range of products could be procured sustainably, such as furniture, office materials and workwear. Recording available on Youtube 90 minutes of concentrated information, even at home: With our impulse for more sustainable procurement, we want to reach as many interested parties as possible. A recording of the event is the YouTube channel of FEMNET available.
