Ecomondo, the green technologies expo, will take place in Rimini (Italy) from 3 - 6 November 2015. Ecomondo is largest showcase in the Euro-Mediterranean area for advanced and sustainable technology for waste processing, water treatment, and recycling.

As well as these topics, monitoring and treatment of indoor and urban air quality, bio-based industry and products, smart cities, and sustainable architecture are in the spotlight.

For more information and to register, visit the link below, or download the conference brochure.

The PROBIS project will present the conclusion of its early market engagement activities through this webinar. Results from the different test sites and market events in Turin and Lombardy (Italy), Seville (Spain) and Borlänge (Sweden) will be included.

The webinar aims to engage the participation of a larger number of suppliers to different procurement procedures, share information about the PROBIS pilots and procurement strategy, communicate the first results of market engagement activities, and collect further information of innovative technologies in the target technological domain.

For more information and to register for the event, click the link below.

Jointly organised by ICLEI, Barcelona City Council, Barcelona Metropolitan Area, and Barcelona Provincial Council in cooperation with the GPP 2020 project consortium, the 2015 Procura+ Seminar will take place on 11 November 2015 in Barcelona (Spain).

The 2015 Seminar will explore 'the challenges ahead - designing procurement for a low-carbon future'. Following the Procura+ Seminar, the Procura+ Participants and National Partners' meeting will take place on 12 November from 9:00-14:30.

Registration for the 2015 Procura+ Seminar is now closed and the event is at capacity.

Registered participants can find information about the programme, the venue and hotel options on the Procura+ Seminar Series website.

This seminar will concentrate on the new directive on procurement (Directive 2014/24/EU). It will deal in particular with the scope of application and general principles, the rules on public contracts and certain procurement regimes. The seminar will also address the new rules on awarding service and works concessions, as well as examining the implications of the new directive on the award of concession contracts (Directive 2014/23/EU).

This seminar is intended for procurement officials and policy-makers from the EU Member States, candidate countries, and European bodies and organisations, who wish to familiarise themselves with the new rules on procurement as they apply to the Member States. Industry and service providers, as well as to academics, lawyers and other persons working in this field.

As Member States need to transpose most of the provisions of the new procurement directives by April 2016, through this seminar participants should receive an insight into the key changes in the procurement directive in order to be prepared for the new regime. The objective of this seminar is to provide an overview of the key changes to the new directive on procurement and to concentrate on specific aspects.

For more information, visit eipa.eu

Strategies in Light Europe is Europe’s biggest LED lighting conference and exhibition, and will take place in London (United Kingdom) from 17 - 19 November 2015. Attracting over 7000 professionals from over 52 countries, the combined events encapsulate the entire industry supply chain, from chip manufacturing, through the design community, to the end user.

The conference is a great opportunity to meet the leading suppliers of energy efficient lighting in Europe and see what is currently available on the market. Included in the conference are two days of thought-provoking sessions, and the accompanying exhibition floor will include the leading LED lighting manufacturers plus companies that supply products from throughout the LED lighting supply chain.

For more information, click the link below.

On 19 November the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable (ICAR), the Danish Institute for Human Rights (DIHR), the Harrison Institute at Georgetown University Law Center, and the Public Procurement Research Group at the University of Nottingham’s School of Law will launch the first international workshop of the Learning Lab on Public Procurement and Human Rights. The workshop will take place in Geneva (Switzerland).

The purpose of the Learning Lab is to facilitate the implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) in the context of public procurement. To accomplish this goal, the Learning Lab will map procurement law and practice in selected countries, develop good practices, convene decision-makers so they can share innovations, develop on-line tools and guidance, and disseminate information to international networks.

The objectives of the first workshop include, among others, providing a global dialogue on public procurement and human rights in the context of the UNGPs, launching the Learning Lab’s mapping report of procurement and human rights in key jurisdictions, and gathering input on the purpose and scope of the Learning Lab.

For more information, download the programme below. To register for the event, click here.

The BRODISE project provides an opportunity for EU public procurers to re-think and re-design their investments and activities for decontamination of brownfield sites through pre-commercial procurement (PCP). Brownfield refers to areas of land which were previously built on, but which are now derelict, underused, or contaminated.

The project aims to develop a soil decontamination public buyers group, with members from EU public authorities affected by the problem. To help with this, BRODISE is inviting participants to a free workshop in Brussels (Belgium) on 24 November, to understand the project and discuss the way forward.

The event will present the current state of the art decontamination technology and discuss what PCP has to offer in this context. At the close of the event attendees will be invited to join the public buyers group. Places at the event are limited and allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

For more information and an invitation to the event, send an email to mas@brodise.eu

'Engaging the market' is the topic of the EU GPP Helpdesk’s upcoming webinar. The event will take place on November 24, between 14:30 – 16:00 CET (Brussels time) and will consist of a series of presentations from across Europe.

The webinar will look at how market engagement is increasingly used in green public procurement (GPP), helping procurers to purchase more sustainable goods and services. Market engagement allows procurers to engage the market before launching a public tender, and develop a better understanding of what sustainable solutions are currently available.

The webinar will also look at a number of key legal issues which need to be considered before, during, and after a market engagement process, and how market engagement can help the market to foresee and prepare to meet the upcoming needs of public authorities. A series of presentations will explain these different aspects.

Participation in the webinar is open to all. For more information and to register, contact gpp-helpdesk@iclei.org

As international climate change negotiations proceed at COP21, local and regional climate action will be in the spotlight at the Cities & Regions Pavilion – TAP2015. As the central point for the local level at COP21, the Cities & Regions Pavilion invites mayors, governors, municipal leaders, civil society leaders, businesses and financiers to engage in lively exchanges on accelerating local and regional climate action in advance of a binding agreement on a new international climate regime. European cities can avail of daily briefings on the progress of the negotiations within the pavilion, including analysis from ICLEI experts.

At the heart of the Pavilion are daily regional “TAP Time” sessions, where selected representatives of cities and regions will present their ambitious, inclusive and cross-cutting projects from the Transformative Actions Program (TAP). During the two weeks, projects from Europe, Latin America, North America, Africa, India, China, Southeast Asia and Oceania will be highlighted. Events will be held of particular interest to European cities, including two sessions focusing on the role of local and regional authorities in supporting community-led energy projects. The sessions will take place in the framework of the CO-POWER project and will focus on challenges and barriers, as well as share success stories, in the ongoing transition to renewably sourced energy at the local level.

On UNFCCC Action Day on 5 December sustainable public procurement will be in focus at the Pavilion. ICLEI is organising the first Global Lead Cities Network Summit on sustainable public procurement, followed by a session led by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and the Korea Environmental Industry and Technology Institute (KEITI) on the 10-year Framework Program.

For more information, visit the TAP website.

This event, organised in parallel with COP21 in Paris (France), will bring together healthcare leaders from across Europe and around the world on 4 December 2015. The event will seek to answer the threat that climate change poses to health provision, with four thematic panel discussions on different topics.

Representatives from hospitals and health systems in France, Europe, the US, Asia, Africa and Latin America will discuss strategies for reducing their carbon footprint, as well as healthcare leadership initiatives to protect public health from climate change.

One of the panels will focus on reduction of carbon emissions through procurement of pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, and transport by health services. The all-day event includes a catered lunch, and translation from French to English will be provided.

To register, click here.