Research and Innovation – An Opportunity to Get Involved

The European Commission has recently published the new Work Programme for 2025–2026 under the Horizon Europe programme, the EU’s largest funding initiative for research and innovation. This programme supports Europe's green and digital transformation and aims to help build a fairer, more competitive, and more resilient society.

The European standardization organizations CEN and CENELEC support this programme, as it places special emphasis on the importance of standards. It is through standardization that new ideas and research can be translated into practical application, contributing to market development.

How can you get involved?

If you work in research, development, innovation, or technical development of products and services – this is an opportunity for you!

CEN and CENELEC have already analyzed topics from six main areas of the programme, and as much as a quarter of the project calls are related to standardization. This means that many projects will be expected to:

• Develop new standards,
• Collaborate with European standardization organizations,
• Or include standards experts in their project teams.

Some of the exciting topics for participation include:

• Development of quantum technologies
• Advanced materials and their applications
• Support for the development of energy communities
• Circular economy in the automotive industry
• Battery information management

For more information, see the full list of topics relevant to standardization and Annex I with the technical bodies working in these areas.

Also, if you're unsure how to incorporate standardization into your project or need assistance, contact the CEN-CENELEC research helpdesk or read the Frequently Asked Questions.

We encourage everyone with ideas, projects, or research to take advantage of this opportunity and get involved in the new cycle of the Horizon Europe programme. Standards are not just technical specifications – they are a bridge between science and the market. If you want your ideas to become part of Europe’s future, now is the right time!

For more details, feel free to contact the Institute at infocentar@iss.rs or reach out directly to CEN-CENELEC.