Along with its annual review, Merchants Quay Ireland launched its re-designed website (www.mqi.ie)  MQI has had an online presence for some years but the new site is a significant development in terms of design, content, navigation and accessibility.  The site is rich in content that is clearly and logically organised; all parts of the site are within the maximum ‘3 clicks’ recommended in contemporary web design.  Navigation is further aided by the high level of consistency in navigation devices, font styles and headings, colour and page structure across all parts of the site. 

Photos of anonymous figures in various parts of Dublin used as background to the main pages work well aesthetically and reflect the nature of the site’s content.  Thumbnails of these portraits are used to form an alternative menu on the home page, which has the affect of softening an otherwise busy and content-heavy page.  Images are used to highlight both the news stories and items selected for display on the front page, which reduces the crowding and noise often found on sites that use contemporary content-management systems. 

The website’s contents menu neatly delineates the various aspects of MQI’s work.  The organisation’s extensive and diverse research output over the past ten years is available to download and the research page also contains links to many other organisations’ publications on drugs and homelessness.  The site also has a short guide to MQI services in Polish and Russian translation. The Media page is a very useful source of concise factual information on drug use, homelessness and the work of MQI for those who need information quickly and who may not be familiar with these subjects. 

The new MQI website is an impressive addition to the growing collection of online resources available to those interested in the drugs area.  It manages to present a considerable amount of documentation and other information in an attractive and easily-navigable resource.