NEWS
Every day, approximately 300 million individuals are menstruating, yet surprisingly, there is no global or European standard to ensure the safety of menstrual products. This International Women’s Day, we want to spotlight the critical work of ISO/TC 338 — Menstrual Products.
The European Commission has confirmed that the revision of the Standardization Regulation (EU Regulation no. 1025/2012) will be carried out in parallel with the revision of the New Legislative Framework Regulation and the Market Surveillance Regulation, resulting in a package of the European Product Act (EPA). CEN and CENELEC support this approach to ensure alignment with the three Regulations to strengthen European quality infrastructure.
CEN and CENELEC welcome the European Commission’s initiative to revise Directive 2014/24/EU on public procurement with the aim of increasing simplicity, flexibility, and transparency.
The beginning of 2026 has been marked by an intense series of dissemination activities supporting the implementation of the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA). Through webinars, deep-dive technical sessions and on-site workshops, the European standardization community is actively engaging stakeholders and facilitating the understanding of how harmonized standards will support CRA compliance.
In January, CEN and CENELEC participated in the European Commission’s public consultation on the European Research Area Act, the flagship initiative aimed at closing the EU’s innovation gap and making Europe the most attractive destination for researchers.
The Horizon Europe project RISERS has published the first public version of its Roadmap for Industrial Symbiosis Standardization for Efficient Resource Sharing.
Europe faces growing geopolitical pressures and a rapidly evolving defence landscape. To build a resilient and competitive European defence sector, standardization must be integrated early and systematically into defence policy, planning, procurement, and capability development.
The war in Ukraine has made defence a top priority for Europe. Numerous policies focus on increasing European defence capabilities through greater cooperation and coordination of national defence forces, developing measures for interoperability, joint procurement, reducing industrial fragmentation, and strengthening supply chains.
The current lack of a dedicated, strategic framework for European defence standardization is an important opportunity to engage defence stakeholders and ensure standardization is focused on meeting their urgent and long-term needs.
The three European Standardization Organizations – CEN, CENELEC and ETSI – have created a consortium to respond to a call under the Single Market Programme Standardization aimed at Reinforcing the European Standardization System through Education and addressing the need for skilled experts in standardization.
Every four years, when the Winter Olympics comes around, people all over the world gather to marvel at the incredible skill, determination, and bravery the athletes showcase, set against a breathtaking backdrop of snow-covered peaks. This recurring rite has been in full force these weeks with the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. While it is undoubtedly the sportspeople in the spotlight, did you know that a myriad of standards are working in the background to ensure people are protected and the competitions run smoothly?
SateLIGHT ASTRA Project – Satellite Light – Assessment, Standardization and Technical Response for Astronomers Standardization for protecting dark skies