Plans in place to keep Brandeis' Journal of Animal and Environmental Law 'ahead of technology curve'

As Editor-in-Chief of Brandeis School of Law's Journal of Animal and Environmental Law, Caitlin McQueen, 3L, is the Journal's liaison to both the law school and the community.

As Executive Editor, Matthew Dutcher, 3L, intends on elevating the publication’s profile this year and has a comprehensive plan to do so.

The Journal, which has been in existence since 2009, is the only one of three Brandeis publications that is published online only. Dutcher plans to leverage this feature by creating a cleaner, updated look and by making the website (jael-online.org/) more mobile user-friendly – adding a responsive drop-down navigation bar, for example.

Responsive design basically means that content will be readable regardless of what device you’re on – a PC, tablet or phone. Websites without responsive design don’t translate well to mobile devices, so content can become cumbersome to read.

“The objective is just to make our articles mobile-friendly. Only about 5 percent is now read on mobile, but that number is increasing and we want to make sure we’re staying ahead,” Dutcher said.

“Especially because we are online only and always have been, we really try to be ahead of the technology curve,” Dutcher said.

The site’s redesign is also geared toward making the publication’s content more available for visitors on various mobile platforms. JAEL moved to a Blogger platform last year specifically so it could integrate Google's services (Blogger is powered by Google).

"Google strives to reduce the impact their data centers have on the environment and it is this policy that also drove the Journal to utilize more of Google's services," McQueen said.

Another goal for the Journal is to incorporate Material Design Lite, also via Google, which is a layout system that incorporates 3D layering elements and that Dutcher calls “a modern feel that optimizes the user experience across device platforms.”

Finally, Dutcher would eventually like to get JAEL’s publications available via sites such as Kindle Store, Google Play, and iBooks. This goal will be determined by whether or not there is a cost incurred.

“All of our publications are free, so from the user end, there will be no fee. But we need to look and see if there is any cost on our end,” Dutcher said. “This is another means to get our content out there and, even if it isn’t a huge audience, I just want to give our readers the option to choose a format that best suits their needs.”

"Every year each Editorial Board sets goals to further the development of the Journal. The goals that we have set this year, I feel will keep the Journal on an upward trajectory," said McQueen.