Croatian Accession to the European Union: Economic and Legal Challenges

Reform of the Croatian legal system and the adjustment of its legislation to EU law is one of the main conditions for the Republic of Croatia to be able to join the Union. This paper analyses the existing requirements for gender equality inside the EU, the current situation in the applicant countries and the existing problems and challenges for states that are only on the way towards European integration. In the Republic of Croatia gender equality is not guaranteed to a sufficient extent, which has resulted in negative public reactions from NGOs and organisations for the protection of human rights and the rights of women. In addition, individuals are exposed everyday to various forms of sexual harassment in the workplace, in schools, universities and public places. So far, except at the constitutional level, no kind of legal approach has been adopted to guarantee gender equality or freedom of sexual orientation, which is an obligation of Croatia according to international treaties and the SAA.gender equality, sexual orientation, equal opportunities principle,equal procedure principle, sexual harassment, European Union, Copenhagen criteria, Council of Europe, Stabilisation and Association Agreement, European Community Treaty, acquis communautaire.

Realizing Learner Autonomy in a Foreign Language Class

This paper introduces an example of a university language programme developed around the idea that autonomy is an inherent component of true learning. After a brief introduction to the learning context, real-classroom example of how learner autonomy can be fostered over the course of an academic year is presented. Samples of worksheets used for strategy training and the examples of students’ work at the planning, information integration and reflection stages are shared. The paper also discusses some of the challenges that the teacher and the learners faced in their efforts to transform a university language class into an opportunity for true self-actualization and personal growth

The legal aspects of the protection of minorities in the process of stabilization and association

Among the main conditions for joining the European Union (EU) is the protection of human rights, particularly the protection of minority rights. This paper will consider the protection of minority rights in Croatia since independence in 1991. In four chapters the paper analyses some of the essential segments of the protection of minorities in the international context as well as the obligations of Croatia in this context. The analysis centres on the Constitutional Law on the Rights of National Minorities adopted in December 2002. The position of minorities before and after this law came into force is compared

Civic education as a potential for developing civil society and democracy : (the case of Serbia)

This study aims at analyzing the potential of the school subject "Civic Education" for the creation of democratic and civil society in Serbia, and its implications for building a sustainable peace in the region. Civic Education is discussed in the framework of Democracy and Civil society, and its aims and goals are analyzed from the perspective of its stakeholders (teachers and pupils). The results show there is a partial congruence between the stated objectives in the Civic Education curriculum and pupils' and teacher's perspective on it. The possible outcomes of this program, competences hypothesized to be relevant for democratic behavior, are accessed through pupils' attitudes expressed on the Ethnic distance scale and the scale of Authoritarianism, where two groups of pupils are compared (those who attend Civic Education and those who attend Religious Education). A statistically significant, although moderate difference between these groups is found on the later scale, implying that the Civic Education program can decrease authoritarianism/traditionalism. However, strong traditional structures in family and society, as well as visible illiberal tendencies in the Serbian politics are undermining the real potential of the Civic Education for further democratization and developing of civil society in Serbia. Key words: civic education, civil society, democracy, peace, ethnic distance, and authoritarianis

Flying an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle: Key Factors for Risk Management

Only theoretical training of drone operators is not sufficient for safe integration and use of drone aircraft both in controlled and uncontrolled air space.Based on research and analysis of incidents caused by the use of drone aircraft during 2018. The global level can conclude that most of the incidents have been performed because of unskilled handling of drones, even though the persons who managed them were theoretically trained and possessed of drone management licenses.Purpose – for the purpose of mitigation of the risk of adverse effects of human and material resources in the work, the analysis of the Drone management.Design/methodology/approach – decision on which of the following key factors for risk assessment achieves the greatest impact on the safe handling of drone aircraft has been carried out by using the methods of analytical hierarchical processes, i.e. “fuzzy”Expanded AHP method based on”fuzzy”triangular numbers.Findings – Based on the results of the research, it concludes that the alternative – “a terrorist and practical training for the safe handling of drone aircraft” is essential for the safe handling of drone aircraft in the second place The ranked alternative “the need for knowledge and skills of sports pilots” in third place is the ranked alternative “only practical training is needed,” in the fourth place the alternative is “only theoretical training is needed” and the fifth match is a ranked alternative “is not Theoretical or practical training. “Practical Implications – established frames to increase the security of flying drones through an obligatory theoretical and practical training of drone operators.Social Implications – reduced risks of occurrence of adverse effects on human and material resources

Insulin Inclusion into a Tragacanth Hydrogel: An Oral Delivery System for Insulin

Nanoparticles or microparticles created by physical complexation between two polyelectrolytes may have a prospective use as an excipient for oral insulin administration. Natural polymers such as tragacanth, alginate, dextran, pullulan, hyaluronic acid, gelatin and chitosan can be potential candidates for this purpose. In this research, insulin particles were prepared by the inclusion of insulin into a tragacanth hydrogel. The effect of the pH and concentration relationship involving polyelectrolytes offering individual particle size and zeta potential was assessed by zetasizer and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Insulin–tragacanth interactions at varying pH (3.7, 4.3, 4.6, or 6), and concentration (0.1%, 0.5%, or 1% w/w) were evaluated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and ATR Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) analysis. Individual and smaller particles, approximately 800 nm, were acquired at pH 4.6 with 0.5% of tragacanth. The acid gelation test indicated that insulin could be entrapped in the physical hydrogel of tragacanth. DSC thermograms of insulin–tragacanth showed shifts on the same unloaded tragacanth peaks and suggested polyelectrolyte–protein interactions at a pH close to 4.3–4.6. FTIR spectra of tragacanth–insulin complexes exhibited amide absorption bands featuring in the protein spectra and revealed the creation of a new chemical substance