Montréal, Québec’s metropolis, is the largest French-speaking city in North America. Well-known for its openness, creativity and cultural vitality, Montréal is an innovative city that is concerned about the quality of life of its citizens and the sustainability of its actions.

Due to their important volume, Ville de Montréal purchasing practices can be powerful drivers to obtain more sustainable supplies, stimulate a sense of innovation and apply the principles of responsible procurement. It is up to the City to make use of this economic force to minimize environmental impacts and maximize the socio-economic benefits for its jurisdiction.

In 2006, the municipal administration adopted a procurement policy that clearly stated that, when purchasing goods and services, the City would take into account the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. More recently, the Ville de Montréal adopted the 2016-2020 Sustainable Montréal Plan, which established objectives and described the challenges Montréal faces with regard to sustainable procurement. Committed to playing a leadership role, Montréal also included within this official document an action plan for organizations active within its jurisdiction to encourage them to commit to implementing several responsible procurement principles. Montréal organizations have been invited to put shoulder to the wheel by adopting social responsible procurement criteria or policy and supporting the development of the social economy. This is where “Together for a sustainable metropolis”, the theme of Montréal’s effort, comes fully into play.

Some of the accomplishments of the city are:

• The City of Montréal, a Member of ICLEI since 1993, has fostered a strong partnership with the ICLEI Network over the past two decades. As host of the ICLEI World Congress 2018, Montréal will show how it is leading the way towards a more sustainable urban future, bringing hundreds of local leaders together to build momentum on local sustainable action worldwide.
• Montréal adopted a Community Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Plan and, more recently, a Climate Change Adaptation Plan including concrete measures to counter the effects of heat waves, excessive rain events, destructive storms, drought and winter flooding. Montréal is also a member of the 100 Resilient Cities network.
• In June 2009, Montréal adopted a Sustainable development policy for City buildings. All new municipal buildings greater than 200 sq.m. must obtain LEED-Gold certification and any major renovation must be completed under LEED-Silver criteria.
• With the Transportation Electrification Strategy 2016-2020, in addition to the concrete actions led by the City, such as rolling out a network of charging stations, Montréal also plans to act as a facilitator and create a climate that fosters innovation and sustainable economic development. The municipal administration also intends to set the example by converting its own fleet of service vehicles to electricity.
• LED Lighting Project: The City plans to upgrade 110,000 street lights in the coming years. This smart city project has projected savings of over $278 million over a 20-year period (the useful life of LEDs).
• Montréal presented an Economic Development Action Plan. Two avenues related to sustainable development were included to increase development of the metropolitan economy: green chemistry and electrification of transportation.
• The City can also count on the excellence of an industrial cluster that brings together activities of several clean technology subsectors, related to green chemistry, ecomobility, waste materials, energy efficiency and renewable energy, soils and groundwater. The cluster includes more than 450 companies, including world-recognized leaders: TM4, Biothemica, Effenco, Magnus, Northex Environnement, Enerkem and many others.