Welcome to the second issue of Volume 38 (2022). This is a smaller issue, nested in between two big special issues (SIs). Issue 1 was the SI about the School Strikes for Climate, co-guest edited by Blanche Verlie and Alicia Flynn. We held a formal launch event on the 22nd March 2022. We will share video from this great event soon (see AJEE social media on the AJEE site or @AJEnviroEd – Twitter or AustralianJournalofEnvironmentalEducation – Facebook).
Issue 3 and 4 will be published in October as a combined SI co-guest edited by Paul Hart and Peta J. White about Post-qualitative Inquiry: Theory and Practice in Environmental Education. Approximately 20 articles showcase Post-qualitative inquiry across a range of contexts in the field of environmental education. There is something for everyone in this special issue (SI)… a must for those wanting to explore Post-qualitative inquiry.
AJEE is hosting a biennial, online, Research Symposium (co-hosted with the Australian Association of Environmental Education and Deakin University – School of Education). This event will involve the launch of our double SI (Volume 38 – Issues 3 and 4) and will be held in October 2022. Presentations will be made by invited authors and group discussion will follow each cluster of presentations. This promises to be an exciting international event. Watch the AJEE social media and CUP site for details.
Did you know that AJEE has increased to four issues per volume this year, even though Volume 38 (2022) will only publish three times? The second SI (Issues 3 and 4) will be a combined ‘bumper’ SI. This increase to 4 issues a year is significant as AJEE will now return an Impact Factor (keep an eye on our CUP website (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/australian-journal-of-environmental-education).
Did you know that each volume of AJEE is published to a page limit? This page limit increases each year, reflecting the growth of our journal. This is one of the reasons we have recently reduced our article word length to 7000 words (please see soon the updated journal information (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/australian-journal-of-environmental-education/information)). This update will clarify the manuscript preparation, submission, and review processes for our authors. Details about our peer review process is also clarified. We are now requiring each revision to be submitted with a table indicating the suggestions made by reviewers and how they have been addressed in the revised manuscript. We require the manuscript to be highlighted, indicating where changes have been made (not tracked changes). These important changes in our protocols are to ensure our volunteer reviewers have an easier time conducting their important reviews.
We have also refined our manuscript types to include articles, communications, reviews, synopses. The updated Instructions for Authors (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/australian-journal-of-environmental-education/information/instructions-contributors) include the word limits and requirements for each submission type. Articles can be research, practice orientated, literature reviews, academic essays or other (test us out). Manuscript will proceed through a rigorous peer review process and be returned within a reasonable time frame (usually around 2 months). We note that our Editorial team are all volunteers, and we must take up our AJEE work as we can.
We’re pleased to announce that our reviews now venture well beyond contemporary books. We review film, art, children’s books, other media and artifacts, and music. If you have an ideas for a review that will add value to our field, please email our Review Editor – Dr Joe Ferguson (joe.ferguson@deakin.edu.au).
We have also reconceptualised our thesis synopsis to include Honours, Masters, PhD theses and Reports. If you have a recent graduate (within 2 years of completion) please encourage them to submit their synopsis. Details about the template and requirements can be found on the Author Instructions. You can also nominate your colleagues here (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScHtrQYvIu8m_YafDo9tfo_BPuZ9q-e5Pf3CQNDm8eFrGJQjw/viewform?usp=sf_link). You can contact our Synopsis Editor Dr. Kathryn Riley (kar598@mail.usask.ca).
AJEE will continue planning important SIs. For example we have an call open right now for a SI in Indigenous philosophy in Environmental Education: Relearning how to love, feel, hear, and live with place (https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-file-manager/file/6214af1c5769f5650fac6953/Indigenous-Philosophy-in-EE.pdf). The call for proposal abstracts closes at the end of June 2022 with manuscripts due at the end of February 2023. Please be sure to email the Editorial team with your proposals asap.
AJEE has an open call for SI proposals (https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-file-manager/file/5ee38c964398113fe9aeea58/AJEE-Call-for-Special-Issue-Proposals.pdf). If you and your colleagues would like to offer a SI, please read the information and prepare your proposal. We take proposals at any time and, if successful, we will weave your SI into our forthcoming volumes/Issues. We also offer a lot of support to ensure your Guest Editor experience is successful and enjoyable.
The big news for AJEE is that from Volume 39 we will be an Open Access journal. This is an incredible step for AJEE. Cambridge University Press (CUP) are to be commended for this initiative and their generous management of the transition and ongoing execution of Open Access for AJEE. It is important to note that all authors continue to be welcome and that not having funding to cover the Author Processing Charge is not an issue (CUP have offered to waive these charges when necessary for all manuscript types). We expect to see our citation rate increase as readers around the world will have access to our articles. We also hope that more authors will choose to publish with us as they will retain Creative Commons licences to their published work and enjoy the increased readership and citation rate.
Finally, it is obvious that AJEE is progressing well. We have a strong editorial team managing a high volume of manuscripts through the peer review process. We have many hundreds of reviewers volunteering for AJEE regularly. We have a large and active international editorial board. We are well supported by Cambridge University Press (CUP) to ensure our publications are processed quickly and to the highest quality. We thank all for their contribution to AJEE.
Issue 2
Issue 2 includes two research articles, two communication pieces offering different perspective on an important topic, a thesis synopsis where we congratulate a recent PhD graduate, as well as two book reviews offering valuable insight on two useful resources.
The first article by Francisco Miguel Martinez-Rodriguez and Alfonso Fernandez-Herreria explores the innovative socio-educational experience of Huerto Alegre (Spain) as a critical practice of Education for Sustainable Development. The context is the Earth Charter after a convincing argument is provided regarding the Sustainable Development Goals. The program delivered focusses on enquiry and experimentation in a critical theory approach and the educational philosophies are unpacked alongside the learning practices that offer an integrative and contextualised education experience.
The second article by Justyna Chodkowska-Miszczuk offers a new narrative for sustainability where biogas plants are described as the ‘first movers’ in raising energy awareness. This study was undertaken in Poland and connects to ideas important in the concepts of circular economies. They suggest that place-based opportunities (visits to renewable energy sources) in formal education to enable professional knowledge sharing by entrepreneurs.
The lethal control of non-native species in a primary education context is a topic for debate especially in a New Zealand context. Two communication articles present somewhat polarised views exploring this topic. Michael Morris offers several case studies where resources provide details about how to manage introduced species, including using lethal traps. Tim Kelly and Sally Birdsall contend that conservation education necessarily includes science and ethical capabilities about introduced species removal.
We congratulate Kevin Kezabu on the successful completion of their PhD and value the sharing of their thesis synopsis. Kevin’s thesis is called “Intersections of Indigenous Knowledge and place-based education: possibilities for new visions of sustainability education in Uganda”.
Two book reviews are offered to provide insight into the books and how they might be explored for environmental education. Therese Ferguson reviewed “Empowering Teachers through Environmental and Sustainability Education: Meaningful Change in Educational Settings” by Melissa Barnes, Deborah Moore, and Sylvia Almeida. We are grateful to Therese for her continued high quality book reviews, and we note that she has recently published her own book – which AJEE is currently reviewing.
The second review is conducted by Megan Floris on this important contribution to the field… “Green Schools Globally - Stories of Impact on Education for Sustainable Development” Edited by Annette Gough, John Chi-Kin Lee, and Eric Po Keung Tsang. Megan offers an engagingly narrated experience of her reading and engagement with this book.
Thanks for reading this editorial and finding out about what AJEE is up to and the details of Issue 2. To stay up to date check our social media and the CUP website for updates about upcoming events and opportunities.
