The Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence "The EU and its Citizens" starts its work today. The interdisciplinary Centre focuses on the relationship between the EU and its citizens with regard to European identity, European citizenship and the European public sphere. It will pool the expertise and research activities on European Integration at the Freie Universität Berlin and will sustain and further strengthen the outstanding position of the Freie Universität in EU studies. The Centre will put the relationship between the EU and its citizens center-stage, addressing one of the major challenges of European integration.