Making ESG goals more achievable for municipalities
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Adopting sustainable practices enables Canadian municipalities to do more with less. It also transforms people’s quality of life. However, many organizations face significant challenges. These include budget constraints, procurement hurdles, and the absence of a cohesive environmental, social, and governance (ESG) strategy. Other reasons municipalities might struggle to implement ESG initiatives, such as:
Procurement and supply chain challenges – Sustainable procurement involves sourcing eco-friendly materials, selecting suppliers aligned with ESG values, and ensuring ethical practices across the supply chain. Organizations often need help vetting ESG-compliant suppliers and allocating budgets for green alternatives. These tend to cost more. Moreover, procurement processes tend to be slow and hard to navigate, further delaying the impact.
Lack of action plan or strategy – Communities may have different levels of industry expertise. As they begin their first sustainability project, this may lead to fragmented efforts and missed opportunities for impactful change.
Absence of adequate data – Before kickstarting any ESG project, organizations must translate the problem they’re solving into measurable data metrics for decision makers. However, communities usually need advanced tools and reporting mechanisms to collect this data. Absence of baseline data often stifles leaders from securing grants and balancing short-term budget pressures with long-term sustainability investments.
How Municipalities Can Lead ESG Initiatives
Robust procurement vehicles and green technology alternatives can support municipal ESG initiatives. They can also tackle the burgeoning problem of e-waste and limit environmental impact.
For instance, Dell has designed new energy-efficient devices that reduce harmful emissions. The Dell Lifecycle Hub is a multivendor device lifecycle management solution that helps organizations repair, redeploy, and retire devices to maximize asset reusability. This is crucial for local governments.
In addition to partnering with tech vendors, there are other ways to achieve local sustainability goals:
- Easy procurement for energy-efficient technology – Procure environmentally certified products with a trusted supply chain.
- Align with your ESG strategy – Access tailored guidance that aligns with your specific ESG objectives and helps you build action plans.
- Boost your sustainability program – Whether it’s responsibly disposing of e-waste through IT asset disposition services or improving circularity with maintenance services, your program can have a more significant impact.
Together with Dell, CDW continues to offer support, expertise, and technology to uplift Canadian municipalities. To learn more, visit cdw.ca/sustainability. MW
✯ Municipal World Executive and Essentials Plus Members: You might also be interested in Amanda Chouinard’s article: Top five trends shaping sustainable procurement in Canada.
Jen Schrock is CDW Canada’s director of product & partner operations and strategic initiatives. She is passionate about sustainability and serves as a Canadian ambassador to CDW’s global ESG initiatives.
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