In each edition of our newsletter, Circular Shift will spotlight one of our esteemed project partners. This semester, we are happy to interview the Municipality of Almere (NL).
How can circular procurement help Almere reach its goals while staying sustainable?
Almere is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year and continues to grow rapidly, with its population expected to increase from 230,000 to 250,000 in the coming years. This growth requires additional housing, services, and organisational development. Circular procurement helps the city reduce its environmental impact while meeting these demands. Especially in large tenders, such as IT procurement, the potential for CO₂ reduction is significant. Almere has already successfully procured office furniture in a circular way and is now working towards circular IT procurement, supported by its Circular Procurement Academy to engage more colleagues and increase the number of circular contracts.
How does Almere's experience with training & education benefit the Circular Shift project?
Together with its partner PRICE (Practice and Innovation Centre for Circular Economy), Almere has developed a Circular Procurement Academy to train staff in applying circular principles. So far, five training programmes have been delivered, combining theory with hands-on learning. Participants worked on real procurement cases, preparing circular tenders and reflecting on their approach together. This practical and modular set-up forms a strong foundation for Work Package 2 within the Circular Shift project and can be further developed and shared with partners.
What does Almere hope to gain from this interregional partnership?
Almere values the Circular Shift collaboration with 9 partners from 5 North-West European nations to further improve and expand its training approach. The partnership helps make these training programmes more replicable and applicable to other organisations. It also brings in new perspectives and strengthens the link between circular procurement, value chains, and contract monitoring to better understand impact. These insights are essential for scaling up circular procurement, which depends heavily on motivated professionals and the experience they build over time.