Public authorities in Europe are major buyers of goods and services, with public procurement (PP) accounting for approximately €1.8 trillion annually—around 14% of the EU’s gross domestic product. Governed by national, EU, and international legal frameworks, PP is increasingly recognised not only as a tool for efficient public spending, but also as a powerful policy lever for achieving broader societal goals. Sustainable public procurement (SPP), which integrates social and environmental considerations into purchasing decisions, allows contracting authorities (CAs) to drive demand for responsible business practices, green technologies, and products with a lower environmental footprint. As such, SPP contributes directly to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), promoting social justice, human rights, and environmental sustainability.
The Sustainability and Procurement in International, European, and National Systems (SAPIENS) project was launched to respond to the growing need for interdisciplinary research into the role of PP—particularly SPP—in addressing the complex challenges of the 21st century. The overarching objective of the project was to build a significantly enhanced European knowledge base and research capacity around the legal, economic, and business dimensions of SPP. Through this, SAPIENS aimed to support Europe’s transition toward more sustainable and inclusive public sector practices.
SAPIENS addressed this challenge by: i) fostering interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaboration between world-leading academic experts in Law, Economics, and Management; ii) partnering with key public and private stakeholders, including international organisations, central purchasing bodies, contracting authorities, R&D centres, and civil society actors; iii) training a new generation of specialists capable of navigating the legal, economic, and institutional dimensions of SPP; iv) supporting the uptake and practical implementation of SPP across Europe through the development of open-access tools, training materials, and policy-oriented outputs.
By the end of the Action, SAPIENS had made significant contributions to the emergence of SPP as a recognised sub-discipline within sustainability studies. It helped bridge the gap between research and practice, expanded the pool of trained professionals in the field, and created resources to support the continued mainstreaming of SPP in public sector decision-making. As such, the project delivered on its ambition to strengthen Europe's capacity to address pressing social and environmental challenges through sustainable public procurement.
