Celebrating 25 years of bringing the environmental voice to standards
2026 is a special year for ECOS. It marks a quarter century of bringing the environmental voice to standards. This important milestone has also been an opportunity to reflect on our journey and the way forward – and of course, to celebrate. From reflecting on our impact to our annual meeting with members to spotlighting the faces behind ECOS or learning about our partners experiences with us.
A few words from our Executive Director, Justin Wilkes
ECOS was founded to address a critical gap. Standards were being increasingly recognised as essential to the functioning of the EU internal market, but environmental NGOs were missing the technical expertise needed to engage effectively in their development. Twenty-five years on, we are doing far more than filling that gap. We have an A-to-Z approach, using our technical expertise to push for ambition to be set in policies and laws, and making sure that ambition is supported by environmentally sound standards.
We are now internationally recognised as a trusted and meaningful voice in standardisation, while empowering our network to do the same. Having been a part of this journey for a decade, I am immensely proud of what we have achieved together. . Read on to learn more about how we made 2026 a year to remember.
Celebrating with members, partners, and friends
Following our General Assembly, members, partners, and friends of ECOS gathered in Brussels to celebrate all that we have achieved together. Our Executive Director, Justin Wilkes, and Member of European Parliament, Anna Cavazzini, kicked us off with a conversation on the way forward to inclusive standards making.
Our journey, year by year
In 2001, ECOS was founded as a small, technically-minded organisation. Fast forward to today and we are a go-to international organisation in the field of environmental policies and standards. Those 25 years have been filled with their own milestones and successes too – from spearheading the work on ecodesign and energy labelling in 2009 to launching our Africa office in 2024. That is why we developed a timeline to look back on a few highlights that stand out, year by year.
Hearing from members, partners, and friends about ECOS
Collaborating with our members and partners has been at the core of our journey. That is why we collected testimonials from those who have worked closest with us over the years. Learn more about our journey, in their words.
Spotlighting some of the faces behind ECOS
How familiar are you with the faces behind our team? Every day colleagues from across departments – from operations to programmes – work together towards a healthy and clean environment that is protected by strong rules. Get to know them in our mini interviews on LinkedIn!
