Open to first time attendees and new members. Please join us for information on what to expect during the week, meet other first timers and new members and also hear about ICPHSO and the various programs we run. This session also provides an opportunity for our supporters to self identify their commitment to supporting different stakeholder perspective during our Symposium and beyond. This introductory session for new members and first time conference attendees also provides ICPHSO an opportunity to introduce its robust program of inclusion and diversity to advance product safety from all stakeholder perspectives..
Manager, Global Affairs and Public Policy, AI, Google LLC
Alejandra Barceló is a specialist in political risk, international affairs, and public policy. Currently leading Google's AI policy portfolio for Platforms and Devices (including Chrome, Android, Play, and Pixel). Her career spans the private sector and international organizations... Read More →
Transparency, collaboration, and communication are three principles underlying a good market surveillance policy. The example of how these principles have been included in the European General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) and how they will change the approach to market surveillance and evaluation of the safety of products sold online, will show up in EU in December 2024. While waiting for this important date, we'll discuss the challenges market surveillance authorities were facing in the past, how these challenges will be mitigated by the GPSR, how providers of online marketplace will contribute to solve past challenges and how consumers will benefit from a clearer set of rules on online sales. These innovations can be taken as inspiration from other policy makers, to potentially develop an aligned approach to increasingly regulate online commerce using the same tools available for market surveillance, agreeing on the responsibilities of online marketplace’s providers and consumer rights.
From industry, to consumers, to agencies across the globe, product recalls present unique and shared challenges. Those challenges include, the decision-making process around issuing a recall, determining remedies, recall execution and ultimately announcing and ensuring consumer participating in a recall, and more. In this panel featuring representatives from retail chains, manufacturers, and regulatory agencies, attendees will hear stakeholder reflections on lessons learned from recall events and how its shaped their approaches. Panelists will engage in dialogue on common challenges and opportunities, including leveraging technology, to reduce barriers to increase recall effectiveness. There will be ample time devoted to responding to attendee questions.
Creating safer consumer products is a noble pursuit bestowing benefits to society and makes business sense because it reduces potential health risks; the risk of legal liability; the risk of product recalls and the attendant costs and reputational damage; and the risk of product failure. From a health risk perspective, potential adverse health effects are evaluated throughout the lifecycle of a product:
•From the early development stage when considering the product’s ingredients and formulation •To the post-market stage when the product is in use by consumers. This guidance is provided by various jurisdictions and industry groups. From a human factors or user experience perspective, one and the same iterative formative testing processes can be leveraged to: •Decrease product risk •Improve usability •Enhance user experience.
The FDA’s human factors guidance provides a blueprint for a process that could be translated to the consumer product world.
Consumers and municipalities are poorly equipped to deal with the types and volume of waste that is generated when products and packaging have reached their end of life. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations/programs are one of the solutions that are many countries globally are turning toward to better manage this problem. When retailers, brands, and manufactures are assigned responsibility to fund and engage in management of these wastes, recycling can increase, while reducing resource consumption and emissions.
The intent of this session is to: raise awareness of these important regulations, help attendees get a better idea of how EPR may be applicable to them, provide visibility into future regulations, and share ideas about how to address these requirements.
The panel will share their knowledge, perspectives, and insights from their different position in the product life cycle, within, a major retailer, an IT/electronics company, and skilled service provider focusing on EPR.
Each of the ICPHSO strategic committees will host one open meeting as a breakout session throughout the symposium, where attendees can attend and get first-hand insight and experience what the committees do and how they serve ICPHSO and further our mission in preparation for the open call for volunteers to join the 2025 strategic committee groups that will be formed shortly after the symposium concludes. This will also present an opportunity to showcase one of our "member only" activities in the hopes of encouraging an interested non-member in joining ICPHSO to be eligible to serve on an open committee slot.
Changing consumer rights are impacting product recall implementation but are they also changing outcomes? Panellists will discuss how they are seeing approaches to recalls and consumer remedies change to meet new legislative expectations and the impact that they may or may not be seeing.
