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Some of the nearly 60,000 IEEE members in Europe are individually involved in European Union (EU) public affairs and in EU-funded research programs, where topics like education, energy, and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) policies are discussed. However, as individuals they are not able to have the impact or visibility that they could have working through an international organization such as IEEE. The EPP allows members to develop and promote coordinated and consensus-based public policy position statements on these topics, and it gives IEEE a voice in Europe. The EPP seeks to empower IEEE members in Europe to have influence in Europe, as appropriate for Europe. This is performed by a combination of activities, such as the production of relevant technical statements and white papers. The topics have been selected based on the relevance to the current EU legislative process, the expertise in the group, and the potential impact on the topic.

Beginning in 2018, IEEE European members will be able to opt in to review and comment on draft public policy position statements.

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Public policy position statements

As the European Union (EU) continues to accelerate the energy transition from a small number of large centralized power stations to a larger number of decentralized and distributed energy sources, the stability and security of the electric power grid becomes challenged. With this position statement, the IEEE EPPC offers a number of recommendations to help maintain and further enhance an acceptable level of grid stability. In particular, the EPPC outlines the need for policy, regulatory, research and innovation, and standardization actions to ensure an adequate level of grid stability and security during this energy transition.

Clean and renewable hydrogen is expected to play an important role in decarbonising the EU in a cost-effective way and in achieving the EU objective to reach net zero emissions by 2050. With this position statement, the IEEE EPPC offers a number of policy recommendations to accelerate and foster the adoption and uptake of green hydrogen as a replacement for grey hydrogen, for grid scale storage, for heavy industries, and for the production of e-fuels.

As part of a larger effort to become a climate-neutral continent, the European Union set a target of a largely zero-emission vehicle fleet by 2050. With this position statement, the IEEE EPPC wants to offer a number of recommendations with a view to promoting the switch to alternative fuels in line with the uptake of electric and zero-emission vehicles. The position statement concludes that the large-scale deployment in Europe of smart charging infrastructures for electric vehicles, together with economic incentives, regulatory measures and standardization initiatives, represent key enablers to achieve decarbonization of the road transportation sector.

Over the past years, the European Union and its Member States have built the cybersecurity rules, structures, capabilities and culture which are necessary to tackle and respond to ever-changing cyber threats. In the efforts to promote the development of a stronger and more resilient digital Europe, the IEEE EPPC offers a number of recommendations to EU policy makers along six main lines of action, namely strengthening cyber resilience and response to cyber attacks, rationalising the European cybersecurity regime, supporting the development of cybersecurity certification schemes, facilitating regulatory compliance by stakeholders, promoting cybersecurity culture, and supporting research and innovation. The position statement concludes that securing Europe's digital future is essential for the prosperity of the EU as whole, as data becomes the new 'oil of the economy' and the number of consumer products and industrial devices connected to the internet increases.

The European Green Deal sets out the EU’s path to climate neutrality by 2050, including through the decarbonisation of all sectors of the economy and higher greenhouse gas emission reductions. In the efforts to achieve a more decarbonized and integrated energy system that realizes Europe's climate neutrality principles, this position statement offers a number of recommendations to EU policy makers with a view to accelerating the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources and to pursuing the ambitions of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55%. The position statement concludes that growth in the use of renewable energies in EU Member States depends on adequate standardization efforts, improved infrastructure development, storage systems integration, recycling, and second life technologies that improve sustainability.

About 50% of the final energy consumption in Europe is used for the heating needs of buildings, domestic hot water production, and heating in industrial processes. In addition, much of this supply comes from fossil fuels, meaning significant greenhouse gas emissions, as the heating sector alone causes about 38% of the overall EU emissions. Besides heating, in the last decade cooling has become a major factor in the share of energy consumption too, creating challenges for the electricity grid. Therefore, addressing the heating and cooling sectors is key to achieving the European climate goals, as well as increasing concerns with regards to security of supply. The IEEE European Public Policy (EPP) would like to look at this topic from an EU perspective and highlight the challenges that Europe will face, as well as the opportunities that may arise by optimally deploying new technologies.

Today, the public is generally more concerned with the environmental impact of technology than in any period of the modern industrial economy. The use of electricity to provide the energy to drive transportation is not a new idea: railways around the world have used electricity to drive trains and trams for many years. This was due to the nature of the railway, with defined routes allowing power to be routed effectively along the railway lines. The IEEE EPP, representing prominent European technologists, looks at this topic from an EU perspective and highlights the interests that electrification of transport can represent to current EU policies.

The development of sustainable power and energy systems in Europe is essential for ensuring the competitiveness and long-term development of the European economy. This has been expressed in various policy measures such as the 2020 climate and energy package, the 2030 framework for climate and energy policies etc. The IEEE EPP, representing European technologists, willing to contribute to the public debate, has identified potential changes aiming at enhancing the research and development efforts that are required in order to develop sustainable power and energy systems and solutions in Europe.

Ubiquitous electronics (including computers, communications, and entertainment systems), the adoption of LED lighting, and the emergence of electric vehicles are prominent among trends that are increasing the demand for DC power. In homes and businesses, this demand is usually met using AC to DC converters for each product or application; typically, these converters are inefficient while operating, and often consume power when not in service. Reducing these inefficiencies in supply, while taking advantage of the fact that most of the electric power provided by renewable sources is generated as DC power, represents a major opportunity to address European goals and aspirationd.

Technology policy whitepapers

Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), such as cancer and diabetes, impose a significant burden on societies and individuals. However, only approximately 3% of the healthcare spending is used for prevention and health promotion in the OECD countries on average. At the same time, information and communications technology (ICT) is transforming healthcare. This whitepaper describes the multiplicity of ICT systems and applications that are available for NCD prevention and health promotion. As background and motivation, the whitepaper includes an introduction to NCDs, their risk factors, and prevention. This whitepaper has been written from the European perspective. However, most of the matters also apply to developed countries elsewhere. This whitepaper serves as the background information for the IEEE European Public Policy Committee position statement “ICT for the Prevention of Noncommunicable Diseases and Health Promotion in Europe” adopted on 16 Jan 2018.

Public Policy Communications

The IEEE European Public Policy Committee (EPPC) and IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA) prepared this policy communication in response to the European Commission’s public consultation on the on the European Health Data Space, which was launched on 3 May 2021. This policy communication and the associated addendum (PDF, 215 KB) aims to provide guidance to the European Union to inform the development of the forthcoming legal framework for a European Health Data Space.

The IEEE European Public Policy Committee (EPPC) prepared this policy communication in response to the European Commission’s public consultation on the Review of the EU renewable energy rules, which was launched on 17 November 2020. This policy communication aims to provide guidance to the European Union to inform the development of the forthcoming Renewable Energy Directive.

The IEEE European Public Policy Committee (EPPC) and IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA) prepared this policy communication in response to the European Commission’s public consultation on the Review of the NIS Directive, which was launched on 7 July 2020. This policy communication aims to provide strong guidance to the European Union to inform the development of regulatory and non-regulatory approaches for cybersecurity.

The IEEE European Public Policy Committee (EPPC) and IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA) prepared this policy communication in response to the European Commission’s public consultation on the White Paper on Artificial Intelligence, which was launched on 19 February 2020. This policy communication aims to provide strong guidance to the European Union to inform the development of regulatory and non-regulatory approaches for AI.

Other publications

The following reports were published in collaboration with other partners:

The Parliament Magazine is an EU politics magazine covering the latest developments in EU politics, European Parliament news, opinions, and comments. The magazine is based upon contributions—both editorial and advertorial—from sitting members of the European Parliament, prominent European policymakers, NGOs, organizations, and other stakeholders on issues currently under discussion within the European institutions. IEEE has contributed in the past via its supplement articles on:

The following articles were published in The Institute- The IEEE News Source:

Marko Delimar, head of the IEEE European Public Policy, was interviewed by Karel Beckman, editor-in-chief at the Energy Post, on 6 November 2015 regarding the Initiative and related activities. Read the full interview.

Contact the IEEE European Public Policy Committee

If you have any questions and/or comments, please write to​ eppc@ieee.org:

Massimo Pellegrino
European Public Policy Program Manager
IEEE Technology Centre GmbH
Heinestrasse 38
1020 Vienna, Austria
m.pellegrino@ieee.org

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