This project is titled a ‘design lab’ initiative as it operates at the interface of public policy theory and practice; it seeks to provide an interface for users to ‘mix and match’ policy design tools as per the need and context. It also aims to provide an interactive platform for sharing and exchange of perspectives and experiences of diverse users and to help capture diverse policy situations that may require different and/or new policy design tools and processes. The intended users or audience for this project are policymakers and practitioners at the national, state and local levels, policy advisors and public policy researchers and students interested in the topics of policy instruments and policy design.

The project site can be accessed at http://policy-design.org/. The site has now 'gone live' and we are very interested in hearing your views and reaction to its format, content, ease-of-use, and any suggestions you might have for possible future changes or improvements we can make. We plan on adding much more content on tools and instruments in the coming year and will keep the site abreast of developments in the policy design area as they occur. Some of the content currently exists as a placeholder for future entries so is notuild final. And since the site is set up as a wiki we hope you will also help to build and improve the content.

As of now, the site includes links to various resources, bibliographies, a fortnightly blog, and, most importantly, a prototype policy tools wiki with information and links to materials dealing with a large number of specific policy instruments. The site also contains links to a new SSRN Working Paper Series on policy design issue and a new open-access Annual Review of Policy Design with Vol 1(1) which will be launched over the forthcoming week as a year-end review of important government reports, speeches and articles on policy design, as well as reprints of current and classic articles and reports on the subject.

Michael Howlett Policy Design Lab Project Director National University of Singapore