General Information

Manuscripts submitted for publication should be of high academic merit and are accepted on condition that they are submitted solely to the International Journal of Sustainable Future for Human Security. Manuscripts, parts of which have been previously published in conference proceedings, may be accepted if they contain additional material not previously published and not currently under consideration for publication elsewhere.Submission of a multi-authored manuscript implies the consent of all the participating authors. All manuscripts considered for publication will be peer-reviewed by independent referees.

Sustainability connections

The Journal of Sustainable Futures for Human Security (J-SUSTAIN) aims to be a more integrative and applied journal than many journals currently in the field. We accept contributions from a wide range of fields – natural sciences and engineering through to social sciences – with the recognition that sustainability is both multi-faceted and requires the skills and knowledge of researchers in each of these fields in order to create more secure and sustainable futures on the broadest level.  However, one of the key challenges for sustainability, and for the authors submitting to this journal, is to consider deeply how their niche area of research may support sustainable futures. In recognition that this is a highly unnatural process for many researchers, we have put down these “tips” in order to help better fit with the journal’s aims prior to submission.

What is the connection to sustainability?

Sustainability may be thought about in various ways – it is a complex and highly interconnected subject area, and there are various frameworks and principles that have been developed to help deal with this. (Authors are directed to the final paper of our first issue which deals with this matter as well as the paper on cultural sustainability in Tehran). The various areas of human endeavour invariably have some part to play in the sustainable future for humanity, but the connection is not always clear. Hence, J-SUSTAIN requires authors to draw out this sustainability linkage – to point the reader to where this might be applicable, and how the research supports sustainable development. In some cases this may be through description of phenomena or policy that are unequivocally unsustainable.
Following as the most basic framework, a triple bottom line (TBL) approach, we ask that authors seek to answer at least the three following questions:
1.    What is the environmental implication or impact that their research implies?
2.    What is the social implication or impact that their research implies?
3.    What is the economic implication or impact that their research implies?
(impacts may be positive or negative)

Other aspects of sustainability – for example, environmental or social limits to growth / uptake, cultural, governance, human capital, institutional aspects, etc. – are welcomed and encouraged – but the TBL is the minimum. Where possible, we ask authors to attempt to quantify these aspects or provide indicators or metrics that might help in quantification.

How could this process or study’s results be scaled-up?

Secondly, but equally importantly, J-SUSTAIN requests that authors attempt to highlight the possibilities and limitations for uptake of the described technology or approach that is the subject of their research. The aim of J-SUSTAIN is to look towards the world as the ultimate boundary for sustainability considerations, but regions, cities and countries are all component elements. Authors may like to ask themselves a series of questions on the scope for scale-up, e.g.:
1.    If a technology is applicable in a house, can it apply to the city?
2.    If it is applicable for a city, is it applicable across the whole country?
3.    If it is applicable for a country, what about a region or the world?
Various factors should be taken into account and highlighted – especially with regards to the limitations for scale-up. For example: is climate important (tropical vs frigid for instance), geographical features (seaside vs land-locked), technology mix, cultural make-up and demographics, etc.  We ask that authors seek to identify what the barriers and enablers for uptake might be – in their own case study as well as more broadly.

Manuscript Preparation

To expedite the review process, please format the manuscript in ways as follow: 

1. All manuscripts must be submitted via the online submission through email: secretariat@j-sustain.com. Manuscript should not exceed 10 pages. 
2. Prepare your manuscript as a single MS Word document (.docx). The file should include the complete text, references, tables and figures.
3. Manuscripts should be written in English and include title page, a max. 200 words abstract, keywords, contents, acknowledgments, reference list and appendices (if necessary).
4. Make sure all the characters in the text, tables, figure legends, footnotes and references are in a single typeface and point size.
5. Submit all figures or photographs as jpg or tif files with distinct characters and symbols at 500 dpi (dots per inch).
6. Tables and equations should be in an editable rather than image version. Tables must be edited with Word. Equations must be edited with Equation Editor. Tables and figures should each be numbered consecutively.
7. Manuscript must be written using high - quality language. For non-native English language authors, the article should be proof - read by a language specialist. Poor use of English could result in immediate rejection of the paper.
8. All measures should be reported in SI units .

Download Manuscript Template

Submission of Manuscript

The entire submission and review process for the JOURNAL is handled electronically, which shortens publication times. All papers should be submitted electronically through email: secretariat@j-sustain.com. Prior to submitting your paper, please follow the instructions. Please note that you must have an e-mail address to use the online submission system. Authors submit their article online by simply registering, logging-in, and submitting. Editors will then invite potential reviewers by e-mail.

Special Guideline for SustaiN Society Members

These guidelines are written for all SustaiN conference participants who wish to submit an extended version of their conference paper for consideration to the International Journal for Sustainable Future for Human Security (J-SustaiN)

The journal contribution should to be substantially different from the one presented at the conference. It is important to adhere to following guidelines:

1. The title of the paper, its abstract, introduction and conclusions ought to be substantially different.
2. It ought to describe in more detail the methodology employed as well as the results.
3. The journal paper is expected to contain more results or case studies.
4. As a rule, should not contain more than 60% of the material contained in the conference paper.
5. The journal paper should not contain more than 50% of the illustrations included in the original conference paper.
6. The paper should be formatted in accordance with the template and guidelines
7. Included a reference from the conference paper 

Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement

(based on COPE's Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors)

Ethical guidelines for journal publication

J-SustaiN is fully committed to ensure that all articles published adhere to the highest quality and ethical standards. Hence, conformance to standards of ethical behavior is expected from all parties involved in the review process, namely the Authors, Editors, Reviewers and the Publisher themselves.

In particular; 

Authors: Authors should attempt to present an objective discussion of the significance of their work, together withsufficient references and detail to allow other researchers to replicate their research. Fraudulent or inaccurate statements are unethical and unacceptable. For the case of review manuscripts, authors should ensure that they arecomprehensive, objective, and accurate accounts of the state of a given subject at the time they are written. The authors should in all cases ensure that their research is entirely original, and if the work and/or words of others have been used, that this has been appropriately referenced. Plagiarism in all its forms, including self-plagiarism, is completely unethical and thus unacceptable. Submitting the same article to two or more journals simultaneouslyalso constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. Authors should not submit manuscripts that essentially describe the same research to two or more journals. The corresponding author should make sure that all co-authors fully consent to the final version of the manuscript and that it is ready to be submitted for publication.

Editors: Editors will evaluate manuscripts solely on the basis of their academic merit. An editor must not use unpublished information in for his/her research without the express written consent of the author. Editors should take reasonable responsive measures when ethical complaints have been submitted concerning a manuscript or published paper under their review.

Reviewers: manuscripts received for review will be treated as confidential documents. Thus, privileged information or ideas that are obtained through peer review must be kept confidential and in no case be used for personal advantage. The journal will request that all reviews are conducted objectively, and that observations and comments will be clearly supported by arguments, in order that the authors can use such feedback to help them  improve their manuscript. The journal will allow any reviewer who feels unqualified to review a manuscript (for any reason, including conflicts of interest, inability to promptly conduct the review, or any other pertinent reason) to excuse himself from the review process, by notifying the editor at any stage of the process. Reviewers should not consider manuscripts that can represent a conflict of interest arising from collaborative, competitive or other connections orrelationships with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the research. 

The publisher and journal have a policy of “Zero Tolerance on the Plagiarism”. We check the plagiarism issue through two methods: editorial check and plagiarism prevention tool.

All manuscript required to attach certification of proof reading by an experienced native or equivalent science writer prior to final publication. For your information we provide proof reading services. For further information, please contact us. 

Here we attach a sample article after use our proof reading services.