Hardly ever have debates on the EU, its features, its future and its challenges, been so intensely waged as now – particularly in the UK. What is sorely missing from most of these, however, is an evidence-based, historically grounded and de-politicised weighing up of facts and arguments. This is precisely what our programme seeks to offer. In line with the objectives of a Jean Monnet cross-fertilisation project, we will harness the exceptional European expertise of UCL academics to inform a two-year programme of activities engaging policy communities, the interested public, and current and prospective university students. As such, we will examine, reflect upon and discuss some of the most pressing questions the EU and its Member States are currently confronting.We will particularly address issues that dominate UK public debates on the EU, covering not only policy-relevant issues, but also historical and normative questions. One flagship project, Britain & Europe, will produce seven roundtables, accompanying fact sheets and online resource collections, in order to examine Britain’s EU membership in the run-up to the planned referendum. The second, Capitalism & Democracy, will address this key area of popular disaffection with two public panels and a discussion paper on EU decision-making and EMU governance during and beyond the financial crisis. The third, a major public conference on Legacies of War and the European Project, will take place in the WWII anniversary year to re-assess the origins of integration and their influence on today's EU. In addition, we will host several high-profile individual events, including the first “UACES Lecture on the Future of Europe” and two Sakharov Debates with the European Parliament Office in the UK. We will also run EU Careers Talks for and Question Time events with UCL students and produce “TedTalk” videos on “Why Study Europe?”.