TORONTO - Greening Greater Toronto, an initiative of the Toronto City Summit Alliance (http://www.torontoalliance.ca/), today announced the creation of a working group of over 25 senior executives from some of Canada's most recognized organizations who will encourage and lead other organizations to buy products and services that minimize environmental impact and create green jobs. The working group, called the Green Procurement Leadership Council, represents approximately $45 billion in annual buying power.

"Our goal is to harness purchasing power to help the environment, build Ontario's green tech sector and create permanent jobs, and the formation of the Green Procurement Leadership Council is a vital first step," said David Pecaut, Greening Greater Toronto Co-Chair, Chair of the Toronto City Summit Alliance, and Senior Partner and Managing Director, The Boston Consulting Group. "In addition to helping the environment and the green economy, Greening Greater Toronto has demonstrated that green procurement can also deliver significant return on investment, and the Leadership Council will share these best practices with others."

According to Greening Greater Toronto's June 2008 report (http://www.greeninggreatertoronto.ca/pdf/Report.pdf), commercial and public sector organizations create 64% of the Toronto region's waste, over 70% of the total waste going to landfill, and almost half of the region's carbon emissions. However, green procurement has been inhibited by a lack of accessible information for commercial and public sector buyers about best practices and about how and where to find and assess green products and services in Ontario.

"Commercial and public sector organizations can significantly reduce their environmental impact when they work together," said Eva Ligeti, Co-Chair, Greening Greater Toronto, and Executive Director, Clean Air Partnership. "Our collaboration has begun with the shared goal of making the Greater Toronto Area the greenest city region in North America, and we look forward to positive outcomes for the environment as the journey continues."

Green Procurement Marketplace Event: May 11-12

To help companies identify and purchase green technologies and services, Greening Greater Toronto, with the Toronto Region Research Alliance, will present the inaugural Green Procurement Marketplace on May 11-12, as part of the Ontario Centre of Excellence Discovery '09 conference (http://www.ocediscovery.com/). The unique Marketplace event will present innovative green technologies and services that deliver environmental benefits and positive business returns. Green technology firms, industry experts, and corporate procurement leaders will join together to network, explore new technologies, and develop strategies to integrate green purchasing for sustainable practices. The Marketplace will be a highlight of Discovery '09, a major two-day conference offering a compelling combination of keynote speakers, green tech demonstrations, expert panels and a technology tradeshow with far-reaching appeal for every participant. For more information on Discovery '09 and how the Marketplace agenda is shaping up, please visit http://www.ocediscovery.com

Green Procurement Leadership Council member organizations include: