One and half years after joining the Union the prolonged recession in Croatia has thrown a shadow on the impacts of its EU membership. There is a lack of knowledge and understanding of dynamic developments within the EU policies. Analytical material and expert’s responses which would enable stronger involvement of all potential actors in policy development and promote active citizenship are also insufficient. The overall objective of project is to enhance, extend, innovate and make more visible IRMO’s research activities in the area of European Studies. Specific objectives are to: (i) analyse dynamic developments in selected EU policies and their impact to Croatian policies; (ii) identify key gaps in implementing EU policies in Croatia and recommendations for Croatian decision makers for more efficient measures to reach European goals, based on experiences and best practices of selected new EU member states; (iii) increase the dialogue between the researchers, policy-makers and civil society on EU policies; (iv) train young IRMO researchers on selected EU policies through learning-by-doing in research with the supervision of their mentors. The project will serve as the observatory of the EU policies in Croatia. It will give response to the need in Croatia for high quality analytical work (economic policy and European Semester; social policy, youth unemployment; cohesion policy and management of EU funds; energy policy; competitiveness, investment, smart specialisation; environmental protection). Research and events the project will contribute to better understanding of selected EU policies and the need for continuous implementation of economic and social reforms within reformed Europe 2020 Strategy, leading towards economic growth, employment and improved standard of living. Outputs: policy papers, periodical comments, web page and eight events (kick-off meeting, 6 roundtable debates and international conference) and a book.