An interactive giving context to the conflict in Syria

Five years on, and the conflict in Syria is still raging. But what have the impacts of the civil war been in Syria and its neighbours, Iraq, Lebanon, Turkey, Israel and Jordan? Since 2012, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) programme has been funding research into the impact of the conflict in the area, with the aim of educating both the public and policy makers. But with a new wave of research released every 3 months, how best to present the information in a way that's easy to maintain, when situations and players are changing so rapidly?

We worked closely with Chatham House to develop a repository for the research which did justice to the serious tone of the work. We developed a stylised ‘glitchy’ feel for the site and designed a scrolling introduction sequence, that set the context of the research and presented the interconnectivity of the various states and their impacts on each other. The Craft CMS allowed the Chatham House team to update the new site when needed. It also gives the options of uploading video content and blog style updates whenever the department has a podcast or update to share. The site was completed with a newsletter signup that allowed the most engaged users to keep their finger on the pulse.

The research continues to be uploaded in both Arabic and English by team members at Chatham House, and is visited by staff from international government, the media, UN agencies and think tanks and universities worldwide.