World Sustainable Procurement Day 2024: A Key Community Milestone

WSPD 2024 boasted 24 thought-provoking sessions led by an impressive line-up of 99 speakers. This year saw remarkable global engagement with online attendance increasing by 20% and numerous in-person team viewing events that united procurement communities from Shanghai to New York. Additionally, the first WSPD Hub was created in collaboration with the Euclid Network Impact Summit in The Hague featuring live-streaming to and from both events.

“I’m immensely proud to have witnessed the tremendous eagerness for learning and collaboration within the sustainable procurement community, which illustrated remarkable global interest, fostering a culture of continuous exchange on an impressive international scale. WSPD has truly become a key annual milestone for the procurement community” said Mélissa de Roquebrune, the Executive Director of the Sustainable Procurement Pledge (SPP). The proud organizer of WSPD.

The event covered a wide array of critical sustainability and procurement topics. Sessions dove deep into the aspects of human rights within supply chains, strategies for managing Scope 3 emissions, and the importance of supplier diversity. Discussions also explored the nuances of social procurement and shed light on emerging trends, such as the integration of Artificial Intelligence and technological innovation in enhancing sustainable procurement practices. The WSPD 2024 thus served as a hub to exchange strategies, success stories and lessons learned, aimed at forging a sustainable future for the procurement profession, truly embracing the spirit of a “For Procurement, By Procurement” event.

“We are thrilled by the overwhelming participation and the impact of the event, underscoring the growing importance of sustainable procurement in today’s global economy,” said Joe McClain, Director Supplier Diversity and Sustainability at Eaton, member of the SPP Champion Program.

“Our company became a proud SPP Champion to engage our procurement professionals in the pivotal discussions and actions necessary for driving sustainability in global supply chains. Our engagement is aligned with our mission: to improve the quality of life and the environment using our power management technologies and services”.

Echoing the event’s forward-thinking spirit, a participant from Melbourne, Australia remarked, “You can really feel in this year’s WSPD that there is a shift in the belief and conviction that we in procurement are making a positive difference. I feel very inspired by what I have heard today”.

For those who could not attend or wish to revisit the sessions, all recordings are available on the SPP YouTube channel.