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Accessible Europe 2025: ICT 4 All

Accessible Europe 2025 banner with EC, ITU, IDPD logos, 2–3 Dec, Brussels. Visit itu.int/go/EUR_ICT4ALL

The Regional Forum for Europe “Accessible Europe: ICT 4 ALL" took place in Brussels, Belgium, on 2-3 December 2025. The Forum was organized by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the European Commission (EC), with the support of key European stakeholders, including Fundación ONCE and the European Federation of Hard of Hearing People (EFHOH).

Accessible Europe: ICT4ALL is a multistakeholder regional knowledge development forum held within the framework of the ITU Regional Initiative for Europe on “Digital inclusion and skills development." The 2025 edition was held in tandem with the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD), a globally recognized annual observance taking place on 3 December 2025, dedicated to promoting the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities. This two-day event leveraged regional capacity on the topic of ICT accessibility and enabled interactive discussions to share best practices.

With the European Accessibility Act (EAA) requirement for Member States to have implemented their transposed national laws by June 2025, unification of accessibility and innovation has become crucial. The EAA mandates a range of products and services, including numerous ICTs, to adhere to an accessibility standard.

The first day focused on the intersection of innovation, inclusive design, and accessibility in the public and private sectors. The sessions were tailored to address Europe-specific challenges and opportunities aimed at fostering a digitally inclusive future. Sessions covered international and regional perspectives on policies, strategies, and targets for digital accessibility, as well as implementing policies into practice in the European context. A multisectoral dialogue on digital accessibility in the public and private sectors also took place. The second day featured a Pitching Competition on Digital Innovative Solutions for Accessible Europe, showcasing innovative European digital solutions dedicated to assisting persons with disabilities and enhancing accessibility. Attendees had the opportunity to participate in a public vote to recognize the most impactful solutions presented. Sessions centred on digital innovation for accessible Europe, featuring discussions on accessible smart cities, accessibility in virtual worlds, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) for accessibility.

The 2025 Forum continued to advance valuable multistakeholder collaboration and dialogue to effectively reimagine digital innovation and transition towards a society that is inclusive by default, amplifying positive impact through the European Accessibility Act.

Accessible Europe as an inclusive platform welcomed participation from all stakeholders including policymakers, academic scholars, civil society members, and the general public from Europe.

Accessible Europe 2025 photos

AGENDA

ACCESSIBLE EUROPE: ICT 4 ALL

2-3 DECEMBER 2025 | Brussels, Belgium

The Regional Forum for Europe "Accessible Europe: ICT 4 ALL" jointly organised by the
International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the European Commission (EC)

Meeting features: Face-to-Face Meeting, Captioning, International Sign Language

More information available at itu.int/go/EUR_ICT4ALL

Tuesday, 2 December 2025

08:00-09:00		Registration and Networking
09:00-09:30		Welcome Remarks Mr. Jaroslaw Ponder, Head, ITU Office for Europe Ms. Ana Carla Pereira, Director, Equality and Non-discrimination, Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST), European Commission Mr. Alejandro Moledo del Río, Deputy Director, European Disability Forum
		Technical Break
09:30-10:30		Session 1: International and Regional Perspective on Policies, Strategies, and Targets for Digital Accessibility Moderator: Mr. Jaroslaw Ponder, Head, ITU Office for Europe Ms. Roxana Widmer-Iliescu, Head, Digital Inclusion Service, ITU Ms. Inmaculada Placencia Porrero, Senior Expert, Disability and Inclusion, Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST); Member of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) Dr. Lodovico Folin Calabi, Director of the Brussels Office, UNESCO Ms. Sarah Malelu, Team Lead & Secretariat Global Disability Summit, GIZ, Germany Dr. Sachin Pavithran, Executive Director, US Access Board
10:30-11:00		Networking Break
11:00-12:00		Session 2: Digital Accessibility in Europe: Turning Policies into Practice and Advancing Implementation Moderator: Ms. Inmaculada Placencia Porrero, Senior Expert, Disability and Inclusion, Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST); Member of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) Mr. Robin Massart, Directorate-General for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (DG Connect), European Commission Dr. Jesús Hernández Galán, Director, European Accessibility Resource Centre (Accessible EU) Ms. Lidia Best, President, European Federation of Hard of Hearing People (EFHOH) Dr. Mario Hernandez Ramos, Professor and Chair of the Committee on Artificial Intelligence, Council of Europe Ms. Susanna Laurin, Representative to the EU, International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP)
12:00-14:00		Networking Lunch
14:00-15:30	Session 3: Digital Accessibility in the Public Sector Moderator: Ms. Roxana Widmer-Iliescu, Head, Digital Inclusion Service, ITU Mr. Tonko Obuljen, President, Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries (HAKOM), Croatia Dr. Dusan Caf, Chairman, Electronic Communications Council of the Republic of Slovenia; Director, Digitas Institute Mr. Vitalie Boboc, Head, Electronic and Postal Communications Policy Directorate, Ministry of Economic Development and Digitalisation, Moldova Mr. Rafał Kanarek, Main Specialist, Ministry of Digital Affairs, Poland
15:30-16:00	Networking Break
16:00-17:00	Session 4: Digital Accessibility in the Private Sector Moderator: Ms. Valentina Stadnic, Programme Officer, ITU Office for Europe Ms. Karen Massin, Head, Government Affairs and Public Policy - EU Institutions, Google Mr. Klaus-Peter Wegge, Head, Accessibility competence Center, Siemens Mr. Roel Van Gils, Founder, Eleven Ways Ms. Alexia Papadimitriou, Senior Research and Innovation Manager, Digital Europe Dr. Mārcis Pinnis, Chief AI Officer, Tilde, Latvia
17:00	Closing of the First Day

Wednesday, 3 December 2025

08:30-09:00	Badging and Networking
09:00-09:30	High-Level Session: International Day of Persons with Disabilities Co-Moderator: Mr. Jaroslaw Ponder, Head, ITU Office for Europe, Ms. Inmaculada Placencia Porrero, Senior Expert, Disability and Inclusion, Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST); Member of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) Dr. Cosmas Zavazava, Director, Telecommunications Development Bureau, ITU Ms. Ana Gallego, Director General, Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST), European Commission Mr. Ioannis Vardakastanis, President, European Disability Forum Mr. Daniel Casas,* Accessibility Policy Officer, European Disability Forum Mr. Georges van Montfort, Deputy Director, UN House in Brussels *Dr. Tawfik Jelassi, Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, UNESCO Dr. Lodovico Folin Calabi, Director of the Brussels Office, UNESCO Dr. Jesús Hernández Galán**, Director, European Accessibility Resource Centre (Accessible EU)
	Technical Break
09:30-10:30	Session 5: Accessibility in Smart Cities & Virtual Worlds Moderator: Ms. Viktoriia Omelianenko, Project Officer, ITU Office for Europe Dr. Pilar Orero, FG-MV WG8 Co-Chair; Professor, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain Mr. Karl-Filip Coenegrachts, Chair of the Board of Directors and Executive Director, Open & Agile Smart Cities (OASC), Belgium, (Vice-Chair of ITU Global Initiative on Virtual Worlds) Mr. Klaus Höckner, CEO, Austrian Association for Blind and Visually Impaired (Hilfsgemeinschaft) Dr. Carlos Duarte, Associate Professor, Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon, Portugal
10:30-11:00	Networking Break and Number Draw for Pitching Competition
11:00-12:00	Session 6: Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Digital Accessibility Moderator: Mr. Guillem Martinez Roura, AI and Robotics Programme Officer, ITU Mr. Manel Alcaide Dias, CEO and Co-founder, Visualfy Ms. Antonella Candiago, Policy Officer, European Network on Independent Living (ENIL) Mr. Boris Radanović, Head of International Development, SWGfL, UK Mr. Jamie Knight, Director, Jamie + Lion, UK Ms. Chiara Giovannini, Senior Manager, Policy & Innovation, Deputy Director-General, European Association for the Co-ordination of Consumer Representation in Standardisation AISBL (ANEC)
12:00-14:00	Networking Lunch
14:00-15:50	Session 7: Pitching Competition: Digital Innovation for Accessible Europe Moderator: Ms. Hanhee Yoon, Junior Accessibility Policy Analyst, ITU Office for Europe 15 Total Finalists 5 Categories: Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing Persons with visual impairments Persons with speech impairments Persons with cognitive and intellectual disabilities Persons with physical disabilities
15:50-16:00	Networking Break
16:00-16:40	Session 8: Fireside Chat on Driving Innovation for Digital Accessibility Moderator: Mr. Alejandro Moledo del Río, Deputy Director, European Disability Forum Dr. Lourdes Gonzalez Perea, Head, Technological Accessibility Department, Fundacion ONCE Ms. Anna Königseder, Director, Business Partnerships & Operations, Zero Project Dr. Klaus Miesenberger, Head, Institute Integriert Studieren, Johannes Kepler University Linz Mr. Ashod Derandonyan, Representative, Migam.AI
16:40-17:00	Announcement of Pitching Competition Winners
17:00	Closing of Accessible Europe 2025 Mr. Jaroslaw Ponder, Head, ITU Office for Europe Ms. Inmaculada Placencia Porrero, Senior Expert, Disability and Inclusion, Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers (DG JUST); Member of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)

pitching competition annoucement

It is our pleasure to announce the results of the Pitching Competition for Innovative Digital Solutions for an Accessible Europe, an integral part of the ITU-EC Accessible Europe event held on 2-3 December 2025 in Brussels. Thirteen finalists presented their solutions on the 3rd of December. As a result of a public vote by participants of Accessible Europe, five stakeholders were announced as the competition’s winners, while others were recognised as runners-up.

Category 1: Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing

Winner

Signly

Runners-up:

Deafcom Solutions

Turkish Deaf Association

Category 2: Persons with visual impairments

Winner

.lumen

Runners-up:

Mediavoice

PoiLabs

Category 3: Persons with speech impairments

Winner

Inclutech

Runners-up:

Funktionsrätt Stockholms stad

Voiceitt

Category 4: Persons with cognitive and intellectual disabilities

Winner

3Dthinks

Runner-up:

Happybots

Category 5: Persons with physical disabilities

Winner

SensePilot

Runner-up:

Asociación de Personas con Movilidad Reducida

Quick Links

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Please note that this event has been specifically designed for participants from the European region to ensure focused discussions and regionally relevant context. As such, We encourage interested participants from other regions to consult the relevant regional pages to find events tailored to their specific context.

Practical information
Invitation letter
Joint EC-ITU invitation letter
Date: 02-03 December 2025 
Venue: The Skyline,
Brussimmo building,
Rue de Trèves 74,
1040 Bruxelles,
Belgium
Agenda
PDF
Speakers
Transcripts
Day 1 AM
Day 1 PM
Day 2 AM
Day 2 PM
Please note that the forum was recorded. Should you wish to receive a copy, kindly contact eurregion@itu.int
Accessibility features:
International Sign Language

Captioning

Transcript

Pitching Competition: Call for submissions
Application form
Pitching Competition Announcement

Accessibility Features

For this forum, captioning and international sign-language (IS) interpretation will be provided. Participants requiring other types of accessibility accommodations are kindly requested to contact the ITU Office for Europe at eurregion@itu.int by 01 October, 2025. Please note that provision of any additional accommodations is subject to availability of resources and funding.