NEWS
In its national Standardization Strategy, SIST (the Slovenian Institute for Standardization) set four main goals. One of them is develop new areas of standardization that will support the strategic development of the Republic of Slovenia through the involvement of stakeholders.
By 2024, the small Republic of San Marino could have its own national standardization body. In the meantime, it has started structuring an accreditation body, with the ambitious goal of European mutual recognition.
To mark the occasion of World Consumer Rights Day on 15 March 2023, ANEC joined the Consumers International social media campaign ‘How can standards help protect consumers through clean energy transitions in the midst of cost-of-living crisis?’
The new issue of the CEN-CENELEC newsletter 'On The Spot' is out now!
Standards have a strong impact on society and contribute to the safety of everyday life. Besides, knowledge of standardization has numerous benefits for the labour market, as it can contribute to the dissemination of new technologies and skills. For this reason, attracting new talent (and especially young professionals) to standardization is key.
The Croatian Standards Institute (HZN) wanted to know how much students know about standards and what they think about the impact of knowledge standardization on career development. HZN’s Department for International Cooperation and Public Relations has therefore conducted a survey about this topic among students at the Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology of the University of Zagreb, Department of Analytical Chemistry, in cooperation with Danijela Ašperger, Ph.D., professor at the Faculty.
"Women, come forward - together we can achieve great things!". This is what Elisabeth Mertl, expert at Austrian Standards in the Medical Technology Committee, says in her video statement on why she is involved in standardization.
On 22 March 2023, SIST, the Slovenian Institute for Standardization, hosted an event on Regulations and Standards attended by 30 students from a local High School. During a three-hour programme, SIST presented standardization through interesting videos and learning materials on standards related to the school environment and free time activities, and involved the students to actively contribute to the topic preparing interactive lectures and a workshop.
The so-called European CSRD Directive (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive 2022/2464) has a significant impact on every business. It foresees the obligation to draw up a Sustainability Statement on their social and environmental impact for all companies whose securities are traded in regulated markets. Consequently, this requirement is not limited to large companies, but it also includes many SMEs (with the sole exception of micro-enterprises).
Last year, the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of a resolution calling on the Commission to “propose a common legal framework to ensure fair remuneration for traineeships and apprenticeships in order to avoid exploitative practices”, following a campaign by the ETUC Youth Committee (see ETUC press release of 10 November 2022). The issue of internships is now on the European Commission’s Work Programme for 2023.
In February, ANEC sent a Favourable Opinion to CEN on the proposed adoption of FprEN 1466 ‘Child care articles - Carry cots and stands for domestic use - Safety requirements and test methods’, currently under approval. The ballot closed on 9 March, with all votes cast in favour.