WECF finalises work on NanoRigo programme – an overview of activities
WECF has been a partner in the research project funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program “NANORIGO” for “Nanotechnologies Risk Governance”. This 4-year project (2019-2022) was a collaboration between 27 partners and a coordinator from 14 different European countries and a global advisory committee. The Nanorigo project came to an end in February 2023 and during the 4 years of the project both Wecf France and WECF International participated to several activities.
The aim of NANORIGO was to deliver a Risk Governance Framework for the safety of nanomaterials, for risk assessment, hazard and exposure, human health and environment, and risk mitigation including regulatory aspects of safe-by-design. The Risk Governance Framework has been developed through engagement with stakeholders across research, industry, regulation, and civil society, and has been based on high-quality scientific data and tools to characterize and to assess the exposure, hazard and risk for health & the environment.
Our specific role as WECF was to be a critical partner in the consortium, bringing in a gender perspective and putting the precautionary principle first to protect the health of women and workers at the workplace and as consumers. Here are some of the highlights of our work. In June 2020, answering a questionnaire on the quality of data as a civil society organization, we asked that all used data should be high quality, one of the key priorities is public funded research; a better integration of the gender dimension on health related research on nanomaterials https://wecf-france.org/nanorigo-wecf-repond-a-un-questionnaire-sur-la-qualite-des-donnees/
We participated in the 6 User Committee Meetings that were organized during the 4 years of the project. The User Committee is a group of diverse stakeholders (scientists, civil society members, industry and public authorities) who give their opinion on the progress of the NMBP 13 consortium, which included the 3 EU funded scientific Nanotechnology projects, Nanorigo, Gov4Nano and RiskGone . The last meeting of this committee was held in Lisbon in October 2022. The objective was to issue criticisms and recommendations on the work done. The topics discussed were the creation of a committee for the governance of nanomaterials risks. Several models were proposed to the committee, and it was discussed how to improve these models. The second part of the discussion focused on the general results of the project and how these could be concretely implemented. Previous User Committees have focused on the following themes: – Reflections on governance needs based on daily practice (2019) ; Data, uncertainty and risk governance (2020); Nanomaterials, EU chemicals strategy, assessment of concerns and risk governance (2021).
From 2019 to 2022 we supported the development of a Nano Risk Governance Framework and we took part in several workshops and an interview was conducted on the topic. Our aim was to include concerns and the voice of citizens in risk governance framework. From 2019 to 2022 we supported the dissemination of the results of the project and continued our awareness raising campaigns on the dangers of nanomaterials: during the time span of the project WECF continued its work on the dissemination of information to the general public on risks related to nanomaterials in a variety of consumer products, such as period products and cosmetics.
Last year we organized a presentation of the Nanorigo project at ANSES (June 2022) in Paris. ANSES is the French authority in charge of evaluating dangerous chemicals and communicating to the public the dangerous properties of certain chemicals. In its mission to communicate with the public, it holds every year, a meeting with French stakeholders (NGOs, industries, trade unions, academia) on nanotechnologies. During this committee, the French agency presents the latest regulatory and scientific developments on nanotechnologies. It is during this Committee that WECF had the opportunity to present the Nanorigo project and its different tools. You can read more about our presentation here https://www.wecf.org/anses-invites-wecf-to-present-nanorigo-project-at-nanomaterials-health-committee/
Different articles have been published on our French, English and Dutch language website pages on regulatory questions like the definition of nanomaterials revised in June 2022, the presence of nanographene substances in face-masks (January 2021), the presence of nanomaterials in cosmetics (September 2021), in Period protections (2020), in Sun screens, etc… See for more information our NanoRigo overview pages.
The NANORIGO project
WECF France has been a partner in the research project funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program “NANORIGO” for “Nanotechnologies Risk Governance”. This 4-year project (2019-2022) is a collaboration between 27 partners and a coordinator from 14 different European countries and a global advisory committee. The ultimate aim of NANORIGO was to deliver a Risk Governance Framework for the safety of nanomaterials, for risk assessment, hazard and exposure, human health and environment, and risk mitigation including regulatory aspects of safe-by-design. The Risk Governance Framework has been developed through engagement with stakeholders across research, industry, regulation and civil society, and has been based on high-quality scientific data and tools to characterize and to assess the exposure, hazard and risk for health & the environment. Our specific role as WECF has been to be a critical partner in the consortium, bringing in a gender perspective and putting the precautionary principle first to protect the health of women and workers at the workplace and as consumers.