Dear TOJDE Readers Welcome to this special issue of the Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education, in which we focus largely on distance education research and practice within the newly enlarged European Union. On May 1st 2004, ten new countries were admitted to the EU, increasing the number to 25 member states, ensuring that the EU is now set to become the largest and most influential economy on the planet. This is both an exciting and daunting time for all those who live in the EU.