# Read: Case studies of circular procurement in action
*Activity type: page*

**Case study: City of Aalborg’s Take Back IT program and Circular Playground 
**

![A bird](../../files/mod_page/content/0/City%20of%20Aalborg-2.jpg)

**
**The City of Aalborg in Denmark, with 207,000 inhabitants, is improving municipal sustainability using procurement to drive innovative circular solutions. Two pilot procurements challenged conventional practice and produced cost-effective, long-term ways to meet staff and community needs.

Aalborg joined the Circular Public Procurement network to test government procurement as a lever to drive the circular economy, reduce resource consumption and take action on emissions. **
The first pilot tackled the 3-4-year laptop replacement habit. Only three of seven ICT departments had take-back contracts, logo-engraving blocked reuse, and discarded machines were treated as a disposal cost. By shifting to a buy-back service, extending life to six years and requiring annual circularity reports, the city can save emissions equivalent to a full year of municipal building energy and the waste output of 3,000 households.

The second pilot re-imagined playgrounds. Starting in 2018, the Environmental Department interviewed schools, kindergartens, safety officers, park staff and procurement to discover shared needs: low cost, high durability, safety, teaching utility and sustainability. A cross-department steering committee translated these into a bold brief—use landscaping and vegetation instead of equipment, cut lifetime maintenance, store carbon and boost biodiversity. Hills, plants and terrain create open-ended play while meeting curriculum goals for outdoor learning.

Market engagement began three years ahead of tender: a 2018 festival announcement, a 2020 playground fair and an online “Meet the Buyers” event signalled the shift from equipment catalogues to landscape-based solutions. Suppliers lacking in-house landscape architecture were asked to submit first-draft terrain models showing plants, surface materials and learning value.

The circular playground vision is now being built in Stigsborg, a former industrial docklands being converted into a residential and education quarter for 8,000 people.

Learn more about the case study: href="https://www.institut.veolia.org/sites/g/files/dvc2551/files/document/2021/11/FACTS_INDUSTRIES_ET_DECHETS-EN_BAT.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener" (https://www.institut.veolia.org/sites/g/files/dvc2551/files/document/2021/11/FACTS_INDUSTRIES_ET_DECHETS-EN_BAT.pdf)**

**Case study: Leeuwarden circular office renovation**

**![Photograph of Leeuwarden](../../files/mod_page/content/0/Leeuwarden%20Circular%20Office-2.jpg)

**The municipality of Leeuwarden in the Netherlands has embraced the circular economy as a core element of its broader sustainability ambitions, recognising its role in resource efficiency, economic resilience, and environmental protection. The municipality harnessed collaboration with businesses and knowledge institutions, in what is known as ‘the triple helix’, acknowledging the necessity of collective change at multiple levels. **
The renovation of the Carré 1 municipal office in Leeuwarden integrates circular principles by reusing existing materials and sourcing new ones sustainably to minimise its material footprint.

Traditional renovation projects often generate significant material waste and rely heavily on virgin resources, contributing to environmental degradation and carbon emissions. As buildings age, refurbishments become necessary, but these interventions often neglect circular design principles, missing opportunities for material reuse and efficient resource management.

 The Municipality of Leeuwarden sought to challenge this approach by making circularity a core requirement in the renovation of Carré 1’s first floor.

The Municipality of Leeuwarden adopted a circular renovation strategy focused on three key ambitions. First, existing materials such as ventilation pipes, hanging systems, and gypsum boards were assessed for reuse, minimising waste and reducing the demand for new resources. Second, any additional materials required were carefully sourced from sustainable origins, prioritising reused, recycled or bio-based options to align with circular principles.

Circularity within the project included reusing ceiling tiles from other renovated buildings, reusing a floor from a church, reusing isolation material, reusing doors, doorframes, and window frames, using circular furniture, reusing drywall, creating tables of citywood from Leeuwarden trees and from a train ceiling, using a slatted ceiling from rejected wood, reusing wooden sport floors, creating lamps, acoustic walls and chairs made of Petfelt, making acoustic isolation panels from 350 jeans, and maintaining the ICT-network, part of the air duct, and radiators.

Finally, the renovation was designed as a learning experience, showcasing circular construction techniques to inspire other municipalities and businesses to adopt similar approaches.

As a result of this approach, the renovation used 80% recycled and reused materials in the project.

Learn more about this case study: href="https://knowledge-hub.circle-economy.com/cgrfriesland/article/30470?n=Circular-Renovation-of-Carr%C3%A9-1-Leading-by-Example" target="_blank" rel="noopener" (https://knowledge-hub.circle-economy.com/cgrfriesland/article/30470?n=Circular-Renovation-of-Carr%C3%A9-1-Leading-by-Example)**
