In Memoriam John Hudson
Dear colleagues,
It is with deep regret that we have learned of the death of our dear and longstanding EURAS colleague John Hudson. John was Emeritus Professor of Economics at the University of Bath, UK. Standardisation was one of the main topics he addressed in his work. Moreover, it was an interest which he shared with his life companion, Professor Marta Orviska, who co-authored many standardisation papers.
Just an impression of first reactions from fellow EURAS Board members: ‘I gratefully recall advice and support’; ‘John was always a great contributor to EURAS, a rigorous thinker and always proactive. I am still grateful for the advice he gave during my first steps in EURAS. I missed him these last meetings’.
We will remember John with fondness and sincere respect. Our heartfelt thoughts are with Marta and their two children, Chris and Romanko.
Henk de Vries – President EURAS
Tineke Egyedi – Immediate Past President EURAS
What is EURAS?
EURAS, the European Academy for Standardisation e.V., was founded in Hamburg in 1993 by researchers from various academic fields (i.e. economics, engineering, social sciences, law, and information sciences). It is a registered society under German civil law, and a non-profit organization. The foundation of EURAS was prompted by a common desire to promote and achieve progress in the academic treatment of standardisation, involving the widest possible range of disciplines.
Objective: "EURAS' objective is to promote research, education and publication in the field of standardisation."
The society's activities focus on:
- promoting standardization research,
- a critical evaluation thereof in the interest of scientific education,
- improving opportunities to publish research results, and
- supporting the development and professionalization of standards education.
EURAS and standardization research
EURAS wants to promote interdisciplinary research on standards of all kinds and in all fields. In the past, papers at EURAS Workshops addressed standardization of scientific methods, IT and telecom standards, accountancy standards, standards for water quality, standards for gas, infrastructure standards, etc.
To support researchers, EURAS provides
- opportunities for knowledge exchange and feedback among peers (that is, colleagues from the academic world, from industry and, not in the least, from the standards world),
- information about ongoing research projects, and
- information about funding opportunities
by means of EURAS Workshops (this includes organising discussants for paper presenters where possible), the EURAS Workshop proceedings, the EURAS Yearbook, the EURAS Newsletter and the mailing list.
EURAS education objectives
Standardization is a much neglected topic in higher education. EURAS wants to help change this situation and supports the development of standardization curricula by providing a platform and opportunities for the discussion, development and exchange of teaching material.
Collaboration among EURAS members has led inter alia to interdisciplinary EU-funded education projects and articles.
EURAS actively participates in and supports the International Committee for Education about Standardization (ICES). EURAS president Henk de Vries is Vice-Chair of ICES. He also represents EURAS in the CEN/CENELEC/ETSI Joint Working Group on Education about Standardization and in the Working Group Education and Training established by the International Federation of Standards Users (IFAN).