IEC President and Secretary-General greet Young Professionals

IEC Young Professionals at the welcome event

IEC President Jo Cops and Secretary-General Philippe Metzger have welcomed IEC Young Professionals (YPs) to this year's General Meeting in the Scottish city of Edinburgh. They congratulated the 94 participants in the IEC YP Programme on being picked to represent their 48 countries.

Over the next five days, the young professionals will learn more about IEC standardization and conformity assessment activities. They will have opportunities to observe policy discussions and to engage with IEC experts and leaders.

Mr Cops said, "Your presence here reflects not just your commitment to your professional growth, but also your dedication to advancing standardization work to address global challenges".

Mr Metzger added that the future of the IEC depended on its ability to nurture the next generation of engineers, scientists and technology experts. "The IEC needs the insights of digital natives to help the organization to understand challenges and to move with the times".

Mr Cops echoed his remarks: "You bring a unique blend of enthusiasm, expertise, and fresh insights that can help us tackle the complex challenges of today and tomorrow", he told the YPs.

Mr Metzger underlined the role that international standards play in supporting innovation. He illustrated his point by reminding YPs that their USB chargers and the JPEG images of Edinburgh stored on their phones were based on international standards.

Mr Cops stressed that the benefits of the Young Professionals Programme ran both ways. He said that the IEC gained insights from young professionals and learned from their understanding of the digital world.

In return, he continued, YPs benefitted from important networking opportunities. Both the president and the Secretary-General encouraged the programme participants to seize these opportunities and to foster collaborations that would carry them forward in their careers.

At this year's IEC General Meeting, YPs will participate in discussions on key issues, ranging from emerging technologies, like quantum technologies, to exploring the standardization needs arising from smart manufacturing. They will also engage with IEC technical experts.

YPs will participate in standardization and conformity assessment "bootcamps" to gain essential skills and the know-how to join in the work of the technical committees, including using the Online Standards Development tool.

The Young Professionals workshop is designed to give participants ample opportunity to explore important issues shaping the future of standardization and to share their thoughts the IEC leadership. The young professionals will present their ideas to the IEC General Assembly on Friday.

Find out more about the IEC Young Professionals Programme.