Agenda

What are the latest developments in e-commerce and the challenges they create for product safety? This panel will analyse the developments in the business models of e-commerce, such as sales via online marketplaces, direct imports, drop-shipping, e-commerce in social media. It will also look at how businesses active in e-commerce can improve the safety of products.

Speakers:

• Els Bruggeman - Head of Policy and Enforcement, Euroconsumers
• Christoph Busch, PhD - Professor of Law, European Legal Studies Institute, University of Osnabrück
• Stefan Naumann - Director, Legal Business Partner Team, Zalando
• Kristi Talving - Director General, Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority, Estonia

This panel will take stock of the latest developments and challenges in the market surveillance of products sold online. How well are authorities equipped to address these recent challenges? How can other players contribute, beyond their legal requirements, to ensuring that products offered for sale via online channels are safe for consumers?

Speakers:

• Thomas Berbach - Legal Officer, General Directorate for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control, France
• Thyme Burdon - Policy Analyst, Committee for Consumer Policy & Working Party for Consumer Product Safety, Directorate for Science, Technology & Innovation, Organisation for Economic Co-operation & Development (OECD)
• Delphine Dauba-Pantanacce - Director, Legal Counsel and Global Regulatory, eBay
• András Zsigmond - Legal and Policy Officer, Product Safety and Rapid Alert System Unit, European Commission

Speaker:

• Pinuccia Contino – Head of Product Safety and Rapid Alert System Unit, European Commission

In recent years, more and more connected and other new technology products have become part of consumers’ households and lives. While these innovative products offer many opportunities to consumers, they can also pose serious risks to their physical and mental health and safety. Are consumers sufficiently protected against these new risks? Does the industry adequately identify and mitigate these risks before releasing products on the market? How can regulators build and deepen capacities to tackle these new challenges?

Speakers:

• Leanda Barrington-Leach - Head of EU Affairs, 5Rights
• Raphaël de Cormis - Vice-President, Thales Digital Factory
• Birgitta Dresp-Langley, PhD - Research Director, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS)
• Rod Freeman - Legal Expert, Cooley LLP
• Treye Thomas, PhD - Program Manager, Chemicals Nanotechnology and Emerging Materials, S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)

New technologies can be a great ally for consumer product safety. This panel will present a range of cutting-edge tools designed to enhance consumer product safety, e.g. by detecting dangerous products online, identifying emerging product safety issues and improving product traceability.

Speakers:

• Alan S. Abrahams, PhD - Associate Professor and Associate Director of Executive PhD in Business, Virginia Tech
• Olivier Andrault, Policy officer on food, chemicals and cosmetics, UFC-Que Choisir
• Neville Matthew - General Manager, Australia Competition and Consumer Commission
• Petar Parushev - Policy Officer, Product Safety and Rapid Alert System Unit, European Commission
• Francesca Poggiali – Chief Public Policy Officer Europe – GS1
• Hugo Weber - Public Affairs Director, Mirakl

Protecting consumers from dangerous products requires a collective effort from all the stakeholders: regulators at national, regional and global level, businesses and consumers alike.  This session will showcase examples of recent product safety advances and the heroes behind them.

Speakers:

• Brigitte Acoca - Head, Consumer Policy Unit, Organisation for Economic Co-operation & Development (OECD); OECD Committee on Consumer Policy; OECD Working Party on Consumer Product Safety
• Vinciane Baudoin - Project Manager, Ligue des familles
• Trista Hamsmith - Founder, Reese’s Purpose
• Bogomil Nikolov - Member of the European Economic and Social Committee, Director of the Bulgarian Active Consumers Association
• Susana Pratt - Policy Senior Assistant, Unit Product Safety and Rapid Alert System, European Commission
• Luca Vahrenwald - CEO, TerrainQ Solutions
• Rudie Vella - Director, Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA)

The aim of this session is to start a discussion on whether gender and sex differences affect product safety. Are mainstream consumer products equally safe for men and women? Are there specific risks linked to differences in consumption patterns? Should gender aspects be taken into account in policy-making, product design and education campaigns?

Speakers:

• Rebekka Endler - Journalist
• Stefanie Glathe, PhD - Senior Manager, Scientific Communications Europe at Procter & Gamble
• Amarachi Okpala-Onwuamaegbu – Founder, House of Maramuna
• Chantal Van den Bossche, Communication Specialist Energy, Climate, Chemicals & Gender – Women Engage for a Common Future
• Kim van Sparrentak - Member of the European Parliament
• Deborah Wautier - Project Manager, Stakeholders Engagement and Diversity & Inclusiveness, CEN-CENELEC

Consumer organisations have a great multiplier effect when it comes to product safety. They are a bridge between authorities and consumers. Which best practices can they share? What is their experience working with regulators? How do they see the new horizons of product safety?

Speakers:

• Alma Laurence Contreras Garibay - Deputy Legal Attorney, Mexican Federal Consumer Protection Agency (Profeco)
• Shirish Deshpande - Chairman, Mumbai Grahak Panchayat
• Sylvia Maurer - Director, Sustainability and Safety, European Consumer Organisation (BEUC)
• Willard Mwemba - Director and Chief Executive Officer, COMESA Competition Commission
• Antonino Serra Cambaceres - Advocacy Manager, Consumers International (CI)

2022 being the European Year of Youth and to conclude the week on the new horizons of product safety, we will look at the new generation of product safety ambassadors. What do they see as the most important product safety topics? What is their advice for effective communication towards the younger population on product safety issues? What do they think should be looked at in terms of new horizons?

Speakers:

• Elizabeth Iberico Robles - Head of department, ASPEC (social organisation promoting consumer rights in Peru)
• Nina Križnik- Zveza potrošnikov Slovenije (Slovene Consumer Association)
• Mihaela-Magdalena Margel, Web communication consultant, Product Safety and Rapid Alert System Unit, European Commission
• Ugochi Obidiegwu- Social Development Strategist, Founder of The Safety Chic (a child safety social enterprise) and UGIP Foundation (non-profit organization)
• Akshay Yadav- Teaching Associate, National Law School of India University