At the end of February, the EEAC Board and Secretariat met for the annual in-person board meeting in Brussels. During their time together the Board focused on finalising and approving plans for the year and preparing for external collaboration opportunities. Day one centred on evaluating the progress made in 2024 as well as approving the planned Working Group activities for 2025. Furthermore, the meeting participants took the time to analyse and discuss the internal structure of the EEAC and its main purpose for member councils. The result of these discussions then helped to refine the EEAC Handbook, an official guide to the network, which will be available soon.
Given last year’s successful internal conference, the EEAC has decided to host another internal conference in fall. Therefore, day two was dedicated to brainstorming the structure and focus of this upcoming conference. Some time was also set aside to explore the potential collaboration with an important EU stakeholder as part of the conference programme. More information on this will be shared once the details have been worked out. The day concluded with a session preparing for a meeting with the Cabinet of Vice President Teresa Ribera the following day.
The meeting with Ribera’s cabinet on day three took place on the day of the publication of the Clean Industrial Deal. The meeting therefore presented a great opportunity to discuss timely matters and the plans of the Commission. Additionally, it left the board and secretariat with a better understanding of the role the EEAC and its member councils can play in supporting the Commission and its priorities.