Friday, 6 December 2024, 10:30-11:30 (CET), online

The common charger for mobile phones and other devices will be mandatory at the end of December 2024: What can consumers expect? And what is next?

Since 2009, ANEC and the consumer movement have been lobbying for common chargers to become mandatory. Following the revision of the Radio Equipment directive, this will become soon a reality. The 'common charging' requirements will apply to all handheld mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras, headphones, headsets, portable speakers, handheld videogame consoles, e-readers, earbuds, keyboards, mice, and portable navigation systems as of 28 December 2024. These requirements will also apply to laptops as of 28 April 2026.

USB Type-C port will be the new mandatory standard for portable devices and harmonisation for wireless charging will be ensured in the future.

Join us under the moderation of Chiara Giovannini, ANEC Deputy Director General and learn more about this from Alexis Basiaux, EC Desk Officer for Low Voltage Directive and Common Charger for Mobile Devices from DG GROW H2 Machinery and Equipment.

Alexis will present the new rules on clear information and labelling for consumers which should be present on new devices with charging options. He will also explore with us whether a product must include a charger at sale or not (unbundling).

Registration open until 4 December.

Best of wishes and see you soon!

Tuesday, 19 November 2024, 14:30-15:45 (CET), online

The EC requested the drafting of standards to implement the AI act. The standards are being developed by CEN-CENELEC JTC 21. But what is the content of these AI standards and when do we expect the AI standards to be ready? What role can civil society still play in this process?

Please join us under the moderation of Chiara Giovannini, ANEC Deputy Director General, and following an introduction by Alexandra Toth, Programme Manager at the European AI & Society Fund, to answer this in the company of our speakers:

• Dr. Sebastian Hallensleben, Chair of CEN-CENELEC JTC 21 where European AI standards are being developed and
• Pete Eisenegger, ANEC AI expert in CEN-CLC JTC21 WG4 and WG1 (Strategic Advisory Group & Technical Coherence Forum)

During this informative and interactive session, we will discuss the state of play of the AI standards and the next steps in their approval process. You will also discover how to best influence AI standards to deliver good outcomes for civil society.

This session is organised by ANEC with the kind support of the European AI & Society Fund. 

Please feel free to contact Cezara Popovici, Officer on AI and Communications at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. should you wish to register for this event.

We look forward to seeing you on 19 November!

Monday, 21 October 2024, 14:30 - 15:45 (CEST), online

The EU approach to AI is based on trustworthiness but what does this mean for standardisation?

Please join us under the moderation of Chiara Giovannini, ANEC Deputy Director General, to answer this in the company of our speakers:

• Enrico Panai, Convenor of CEN-CLC JTC 21 WG 4 "Foundational and societal aspects" and
• Pete Eisenegger, ANEC AI expert in CEN-CLC JTC21 WG4 and WG1 (Strategic Advisory Group & Technical Coherence Forum)

During this informative and interactive session, we will discuss about the state of play of the AI Trustworthiness standard and the next steps in its approval process, with a view of knowing how stakeholders can contribute to its drafting. You will also discover how to best influence AI standards to deliver good outcomes for civil society.

This session is organised by ANEC with the kind support of the European AI & Society Fund.

Please feel free to contact Cezara Popovici, Officer on AI and Communications at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. should you wish to register for this event.

We look forward to seeing you on 21 October!

ANEC will host an online expert workshop on 9th September to gather input from members regarding best practices, key experiences, challenges, and opportunities when influencing standards particularly linked to the Ecodesign and Energy Labelling (ED/EL) framework.

The workshop will take place on 9^th September online, from 3-5 PM Brussels time.

Aim: This event is an opportunity to gather learnings and complement our guidance for current and new experts when representing the consumer voice in standards. The input and discussions will help ANEC develop guidance for current Reps as well as to train future experts working on the ED/EL field.

What to expect: ANEC Representatives working on Ecodesign/Energy Labelling (ED/EL) will share their experience attending standardisation meetings in this field. We will then have a discussion with all attendees to reflect on ‘tips & tricks’ to strengthen the consumer voice in standardisation meetings.

Who is it for: This workshop is mostly aimed at ANEC Representatives to learn from ED/EL and discuss their experiences when it comes to representing ANEC at standardisation meetings. While mostly focused on Ecodesign & Sustainability, we are happy to extend the invitation to DOMAP & DIGITAL members, particularly ANEC Reps. It could be for instance quite relevant to those Reps working on product groups with a link to Ecodesign - traditionally energy related products, with the scope is now extending to almost all product categories, aiming for them to use less energy, last longer, be easily repaired, contain more recycled content or have a lower carbon and environmental footprint over its lifecycle.

Please complete this form for your registration by the 5^th of September.

This workshop is part of our work within the EU-funded reaLIFEstandards project.

Tuesday, 4 June 2024, 11:00 – 12:15 (CEST), online

Join us for an ANEC webinar on 4 June at 11am (CET) focusing on electronic waste (WEEE) and initiatives by three colleagues in the national consumer organisations.

🌍 Event: "WEEE & National Initiatives: Consumer Organizations' Perspective"

🕒 Time: 11am – 12.15am

Explore:

• Introduction to WEEE & ongoing evaluation by our secretariat’s Michela Vuerich.
• Projects & national experiences on increasing electronic waste collection by consumer organizations:
  • Altroconsumo (Italy), Marino Melissano
  • Deco Proteste (Portugal), Elsa Agante
  • ZPS (Slovenia), Bostjan Okorn

Please register in advance for this webinar: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAlde2orzwvGdTxFp73UD7hHbTjRyTOYrkt.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information on how to join.

We look forward to have you join us!

Thursday, 27 June 2024, 10:00 – 11:00 (CEST), online

We are thrilled to invite you to our joint ANEC-CEN/CENELEC webinar ‘Inclusive Standardization - Enhancing the involvement of societal stakeholders and SMEs in the standard development process’ that will take place on 27 June 2024 (10:00 – 11:00).

This webinar will provide an overview of the rights of the 'Annex III organizations' - ANEC, ECOS, ETUC and SBS - in the CEN and CENELEC Technical Bodies and their added-value to the European Standardization System.

As Partners of CEN and CENELEC, these experts representing civil society & SMEs benefit from specific rights and obligations to participate in TCs and WGs. Existing tools and tailored mechanisms dedicated to ensure their effective participation will be presented. In particular, the Opinion Mechanism will be described, together with the role of TC Chairs and Secretaries in the process.

Targeted audience: CEN and CENELEC Technical Body Officers.

Speakers: Deborah WAUTIER, Project Manager Stakeholders Engagement at CEN-CENELEC, and Chiara GIOVANNINI, Senior Manager Policy & Innovation, Deputy Director-General at ANEC.

Participation is free of charge, but registration is mandatory. Book your online seat here.

In case of questions related to this webinar, please reach out to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Thursday, 23 May 2024, 11:50 to 13h05 (CEST), Brussels

ANEC is delighted to be hosting a panel at the CPDP conference in Brussels, 22 - 24 May. 

This year’s topic is “to govern or to be governed, that is the question”. ANEC’s panel will feature speakers from the European Commission, ETUC, SBS and the Chair of CEN-CENELEC JTC 21 ‘Artificial Intelligence’ to review what the impact of measures to increase inclusiveness in the Joint Technical Committee has been, what has been achieved so far and identify the challenges that are still faced by civil society, as well as standardisation governance itself.

If you are at the conference, make sure to register for ‘New Governance and Inclusiveness in AI Standardisation - how far have we gone?’, 11:50-13:05 CEST, 23 May 2024.

Register here: https://www.cpdpconferences.org/registration. 

ANEC’s participation has been made possible with the kind support of the European AI & Society Fund.

Wednesday, 3 April 2024, 11:30am to 13h00 (CEST), online

We are pleased to invite you to the ANEC/AccessibleEU webinar on 3 April 2024 from 11h30 to 13h00 (CEST) on the key standardisation works related to accessibility, and on the role ANEC and AccessibleEU play in shaping accessible standards.

It is a basic consumer right to have access to products and services. The European Accessibility Act (Directive 2019/882) is a landmark EU law which requires several consumer products and services to be accessible for persons with disabilities. As of 28 June 2025, companies must ensure that the newly marketed products and services covered by the Act are accessible.

Harmonised Standards have to be drafted on access to public transport, banking services, computers, TVs, e-books, online shops, and much more.

ANEC, together with the AccessibleEU, one of the flagship initiatives of the European Commission Strategy for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities 2021-2030, is organising a webinar to present the state of play of the current standardisation activities and discuss how consumers and persons with disabilities can make accessible products and services with standards.

Come and join us on Wednesday, 3 April, 2024 from 11h to 13h00 (CEST).

This free workshop and mutual learning session will be in English with captioning in English and international sign system (ISS).

You can register here:

https://ec.europa.eu/eusurvey/runner/0c6702d7-f98b-a2b6-e461-d949fcceb2a0. 

Tueday, 12 March 2024, 10:30am CET (Brussels time), online

Fair and Responsible Artificial Intelligence for Consumers is the theme of Consumers International’s campaign for World Consumer Rights Day 2024, celebrated on 15th March each year. 

In recognition of this important day, ANEC invites you to an online workshop on Tuesday 12 March at 10:30 CET, to learn about 'Influencing AI standards that deliver for civil society - the international approach'.

This webinar is aimed at any one who wants to shape international standards that deliver safe, fair and responsible AI for global consumers and civil society stakeholders.

During this informative and interactive 2 hour session you will: 

• Understand the impact of AI on consumers, citizens and society

• Learn about international AI standards and how these link with EU activity

• Discover how best to influence AI standards to deliver good outcomes for civil society

• Get advice on how to overcome barriers to involvement in standards development

REGISTER here to join. 

This session is organised by ANEC with the kind support of the European AI & Society Fund. It is presented by consumer advocates Liz Coll and Julie Hunter who will be sharing their extensive experience in AI, international consumer policy, and standards. 

Please feel free to contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.if you have any questions or accessibility needs.

We look forward to seeing you on 12 March!

Friday, 8 March 2024, 11:00am CET (Brussels time), online

We are pleased to invite you to a new ANEC open webinar: ‘Safe products for all consumers – EC study on gender-responsive and inclusive standards’, taking place on Friday 8 March 2024 from 11h00 to 12h00 CET (Brussels time).

We will be honoured to have Frauke Hoss from the European Commission (GROW.H.2) to present the recent “EU 2024 Study on inclusiveness of anthropometrics in European harmonised standards”, with ANEC’s Chiara Giovannini guiding you through this webinar.

The initiative aims to gather informative and objective evidence about the extent to which the European harmonised standards (hENs) safeguard the general principle of equality and safety so that products are safe for the European population in all its diversity. Overall, the study aims to improve our understanding of the implications for safety and health caused by standards that do not sufficiently consider the diversity of anthropometric dimensions of human bodies.

To this end, such standards need to be based on recent data that is representative of the EU population, both in the design and testing of products.

To register for the webinar (by 8 March), please go to: http://tinyurl.com/m5pn38y5.

We look forward to having you join!

Thursday, 25 January 2024, 11:30am CET (Brussels time), online