Global Businesses and Governments Convene Coalition for Sustainable Procurement to Hard-Wire Sustainability into Supply Chains

NEW YORK, Sept. 25, 2025 /CNW/ -- On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly High-level Week, the Coalition for Sustainable Procurement convened for the first time, announcing its founding members and formally launching a joint public-private effort to embed sustainability into procurement and supply chains at a global scale. Led by the UN Global Compact, the Coalition will help companies move from policy intent to practical implementation — turning purchasing power into a lever for climate action, nature protection, decent work and resilient growth.

The Coalition's founding members are Altus Power, Inc., BBVA, Concept 4 Limited, Ezaki Glico Co., Ltd., Intrepid Travel, JDE Peet's N.V., KPMG, Outokumpu Oyj, PPC Group, ReNew Pvt Ltd., S&P Global Inc., Safaricom PLC, Schneider Electric SE, Vita Forte Inc. and Watch and Jewellery Initiative 2030. Their commitment signals a new phase of collaboration to scale responsible sourcing, accelerate supplier decarbonization and due diligence, and open global value chains to small and medium-sized enterprises.

Hosted at the Chrysler Building in New York, the forum centred on a high-level public-private dialogue that brought together Chief Procurement Officers, sustainability leaders, ministers and policymakers. Participants underscored the pivotal role of the public sector — not only through enabling regulatory frameworks, but also by integrating sustainability criteria in government purchasing to set market-shaping norms that the private sector can follow at speed and scale. The discussion focused on aligning policy with sustainable development priorities; sharing real-world barriers and solutions across regions and industries; and charting practical avenues for cooperation that make sustainable procurement the default, not the exception.

Coinciding with the convening, the Coalition issued its first publication, Procurement: A Catalyst for Sustainable Growth and Resilience. The report maps the current state of sustainable procurement, identifies gaps and emerging trends, and consolidates essential frameworks, tools and case studies from practitioners. It is designed to help organizations integrate ESG into purchasing decisions, strengthen supplier engagement and build more resilient, transparent supply chains.     

Looking ahead, the Coalition will prioritize several areas of action:

• A platform for public–private collaboration — enabling leading supply chain owners to bring firm-level data and real case examples of challenges and innovations in driving sustainable supply chains. This will generate insights and serve as a bridge to help inform policymaking as regulatory frameworks advance globally.
• Common direction and practical guidance — shared guidance and tools to help buyers weigh environmental and social impacts alongside cost, quality and delivery.
• Translating dialogue into action — providing a space to transform discussion into shared initiatives and practical steps that advance sustainable procurement.

By convening diverse actors around shared, practical solutions, the Coalition aims to harmonize expectations, lower transaction costs and accelerate the flow of investment into resilient and equitable supply chains. Its work will help companies operationalize commitments on climate and nature, human rights and decent work, and responsible technology — while enabling policymakers to design supportive rules that reward long-term value creation.

Organizations interested in supporting or learning more about the Coalition for Sustainable Procurement are invited to contact the UN Global Compact Sustainable Supply Chains & SMEs Team at [email protected].

Notes to Editors

About the UN Global Compact

The ambition of the UN Global Compact is to accelerate and scale the global collective impact of business by upholding the Ten Principles and delivering the SDGs through accountable companies and ecosystems that enable change. With more than 20,000 participating companies, 5 Regional Hubs, 64 Country Networks covering 85 countries and 9 Country Managers establishing Networks in 16 other countries, the UN Global Compact is the world's largest corporate sustainability initiative — one Global Compact uniting business for a better world. For more information, follow @globalcompact on social media and visit our website at unglobalcompact.org.

SOURCE United Nations Global Compact

Alexandra Gee, [email protected]