The annual meeting of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) was held in Paris, France, from 28 September to 2 October 2026, bringing together representatives of ISO member countries and partners. The meeting was organized by ISO and hosted by the French Association for Standardization (Association française de normalisation – AFNOR).

This year’s meeting was held under the theme “Building trust in a changing world”.

The aim of this year’s meeting was to consider how international standards can contribute to building trust, resilience and sustainability in the context of accelerated technological, economic, social and climate change.

The central part of the governance programme was the 48th ISO General Assembly, which included discussions on ISO’s future direction. Particular emphasis was placed on the need to build trust in the international standardization system through cooperation, expertise and joint efforts among members.

In addition to the General Assembly, meetings of relevant ISO governance bodies were held, including the ISO Council and the Technical Management Board (TMB), as well as a session of the ISO Committee on Developing Country Matters (DEVCO).

During the meetings, issues of importance for the future development of international standardization were discussed, including member engagement, standards development, digital transformation and the strategic direction of ISO.

The 2026 programme was organized around four thematic areas, each exploring a different dimension of trust:

• People and planet – ensuring impact, inclusiveness and real value in practice; this area focused on climate change, sustainability, resilience and nature protection;
• Emerging technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) – with a focus on safety, security, responsibility and trust;
• Trade and development – strengthening resilience, transparency, circular economy and product integrity;
• Business model transformation – developing ISO’s operational and business model and the digitalization of standards.

One of the key topics of the meeting was the digital transformation of international standards. Within the Digital Hub programme, new concepts for digitally enhanced standards content were presented. The aim is to make standards more accessible, functional and adapted to the digital environment. This process is also important for national standards bodies, as it will require changes to how standards are distributed and used, as well as hoe information about them is provided. The digitalization of standards represents one of the important areas for the future development of the ISO system.

The key message of the 2026 ISO Annual Meeting, “Building trust in a changing world”, was that trust in the modern world can no longer be taken for granted, but must be built, demonstrated and maintained over time. This message is closely linked to ISO’s main areas of work, including sustainable development, climate change, technological development, artificial intelligence, trade, digitalization and governance.

In this context, particular emphasis was placed on the role of international standards as common and consensus-based frameworks that ensure consitent application of requirements relating to quality, safety, responsibility, sustainability and reliability.

The need for continued international cooperation and the active participation of national standards bodies in the development of international standards was also emphasized.

The Institute for Standardization of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a full member of ISO, was represented by Director Aleksandar Todorović, Deputy Director Dragan Brković and Assistant Director for Conformity Assessment Goran Tešanović, who actively participated in the event (ISO AM 2026).