The Nanotechnology Industries Association (NIA) has announced a very nifty-sounding database, from the Nov. 4, 2013 news item on Nanowerk (Note: A link has been removed),

The Nanotechnology Industries Association (NIA) today launched its Regulatory Monitoring Database (you need to be a registered NIA member to access the database). This Database is a comprehensive tool that allows its users to monitor nano-specific regulations and standards around the world.

Here’s more from the Nov. 4, 2013 NIA news release, which originated the news item,

As legislative texts across the globe increasingly include provisions related to nanotechnologies, it is becoming ever more crucial for businesses to understand and anticipate both what policy-makers are developing, and what standards could apply to them. NIA’s Regulatory Monitoring Database sets out to improve its users’ understanding of these and aid them in taking the appropriate courses of action for their businesses.

Colour-coded so as to be easy-to-use and simple to navigate, the Database informs users of the latest developments, their importance and their expected impact. Specially-tailored Analysis Pages are also made for each item, and information about key actors, main dates, nano-relevant quotes from the text, and the history of the development are also provided.

Here’s a look at the video promoting the database,

As anyone who’s been following the regulatory scene will tell you, this cannot have been a small project to start and I imagine maintenance is going to be expensive, so, there is a cost associated with access to the database, from the news release,

Non-NIA Members are invited to subscribe to this new service. Access to the database is provided free of charge to NIA Corporate and Associate Members, while NIA Affiliate Members are eligible for a discount on the fee equal to the cost of their annual membership fee.

Given that the NIA has offices in Brussels (Belgium), Lisbon (Portugal), and London (UK),, this effort might be seen as Eurocentric. The video never does mention any specific jurisdictions. Personally and despite the claim that the database is a “comprehensive tool that allows its users to monitor nano-specific regulations and standards around the world,” I’m curious as to how much information they have about regulations in  China, Japan, India, and other places outside Europe and from linguistic families not found there.