Counting down to the 2024 NBN Thank You Event

The entire standards system is founded on cooperation. From identifying the need for a standard, through rounds of drafts and feedback, to its publication and use, the process is a truly collective effort. It requires the input of experts sitting on standards committees, the coordination of sectoral operators and standardization bodies, and the trust of the businesses and organisations that use standards to help them offer the best possible products and services. At NBN, we don't take this incredible cooperation for granted.

Our way of saying 'thank you'

Our annual Thank You Event, now in its 8th edition, is our way of thanking all those involved in bringing standards to life, whatever their role. It's a once-a-year celebration of our vibrant standardization community and a chance to reconnect, reflect on our shared successes, and look forward to future collaborations.  

This year's event takes place on Thursday, November 28 in an iconic Brussels venue, the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, with a cocktail reception, walking dinner, and even a private tour of the impressive dinosaur gallery.  

As always, the highlight of the evening will be our awards ceremony, in which we officially recognize those who have made outstanding contributions to the development and awareness of standards.

2024 NBN awards - a call for nominees

Standards wouldn't be possible without the tireless work of experts - from every sector imaginable - who generously devote their time and knowledge to be part of standards committees. With our awards, we want to shine a spotlight on this invaluable and often under-recognized work, celebrating outstanding contributions in four key categories:

• Young experts (≤ 35 years)

• SMEs (≤ 50 workers)

• Large enterprises (> 50 workers)

• Non-profit-making organizations, academia or public authorities

When choosing the laureates for the NBN awards, we're looking at the following criteria:

• Active engagement in standardization activities: Participation at a national level (20%) in roles such as chairman, secretary, active or passive member, as well as at European or international levels (30%) in roles such as convenor, secretary or Belgian expert.

• Promoting and raising awareness of standardization: Delivering presentations and publishing work that promotes general awareness about standardization or delves into the technical content of standards (50%).

From experience, we know that much of the work done by experts is "behind the scenes" and often not fully understood by their colleagues.  

Which is why we're inviting experts to nominate themselves!

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Important dates

• Deadline for nominations: Sunday, October 27

• Award ceremony: Thursday, November 28, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. 

If you have any questions about the awards or the event itself, please contact Martin Libert at marketing@nbn.be.