UDRUGE CENTAR ZA MIROVNE STUDIJE

Their core work

Center for Peace Studies is a Zagreb-based Croatian civil society organization working on human rights, migration, and social integration. In EU research projects, they contribute ground-level expertise in working with migrant communities — particularly children — bringing practitioner knowledge that academic partners cannot replicate. Their work bridges policy and practice: they translate research findings into actionable approaches for schools, reception centers, and local communities dealing with migrant integration. They also have experience in media and public information projects, having participated in work related to communicating socioeconomic issues to broader audiences.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their first H2020 project (2016–2019), the organization worked on PIE News — a project about communicating poverty, income, and employment issues, likely involving media, civic education, or journalism. By 2019, their focus had clearly shifted toward direct migration and integration work: MiCREATE placed them squarely in the space of migrant children, reception communities, and inclusive education. This trajectory reflects the broader European context post-2015 refugee crisis, where organizations with social integration expertise were increasingly sought for research consortia.

The organization is moving deeper into migration and social inclusion research — likely a stable direction given the ongoing policy relevance of migrant integration across Europe.

How they like to work

Center for Peace Studies has participated exclusively as a consortium partner, never as coordinator, across both H2020 projects. Despite the small number of projects, they have accumulated 23 unique partners across 13 countries — an unusually broad network for an organization of this size, suggesting they are valued contributors in large European research consortia. This pattern indicates they are brought in for their civil society expertise and community access rather than for project management capacity.

23 unique consortium partners across 13 countries from just 2 projects — indicating engagement in large, geographically diverse European research consortia. No strong geographic concentration is apparent beyond their Croatian base.

What sets them apart

As a Croatian NGO with direct community access to migrant and refugee populations, Center for Peace Studies offers something most academic or technical partners cannot: practitioner legitimacy and field-level insight in Central/Eastern European reception contexts. For consortium builders working on migration, integration, or social cohesion projects, they fill the civil society and end-user representation role that EU funders increasingly require. Their combination of media literacy work (PIE News) and integration practice (MiCREATE) makes them relevant to projects that cross the information–inclusion boundary.

Highlights from their portfolio

• PIE News
  Largest budget of the two projects (EUR 122,937) and an unusual combination of socioeconomic journalism and digital media within a civil society context.
• MiCREATE
  Most thematically representative project — migrant children and communities across transforming Europe — directly reflecting the organization's core mission and generating the richest keyword profile.