Focus and Scope

  • All aspects of land use and land cover change
  • Land systems science
  • Land-related issues in climate, ecology, the environmental sciences and the geosciences
  • Land management, including the application of ecosystem services approaches
  • Livelihoods, food security and supply chains in relation to land issues
  • Land tenure, including disputes and land grabs
  • Landscape planning, conservation and management
  • Geography and Geology
  • Rocks, minerals, soil, hydrology, atmosphere and vegetation

Peer Review Process 

We use a double-blind system for peer review; both reviewers’ and authors’ identities remain anonymous. The submitted manuscript will be reviewed by at least two experts: one editorial staff member as well as one to three external reviewers. The review process may take 4-12 weeks.

a) Editor Assigns Reviewers

Reviewer Selection: The editor chooses reviewers based on their expertise in the relevant field. Reviewers are usually external experts who are knowledgeable about the topic of the manuscript. The reviewers are not given the author’s identity, affiliation, or other identifying details.

Conflict of Interest Check: Reviewers must disclose any potential conflicts of interest that might bias their review, such as previous collaborations with the authors or professional rivalry. If conflicts are detected, the editor assigns alternative reviewers.

b) Reviewing Process

Evaluation Criteria: Reviewers assess the manuscript’s originality, methodology, data quality, analysis, conclusions, and overall contribution to the field.

Feedback and Recommendation: Reviewers provide detailed comments, suggest necessary revisions, and recommend one of the following decisions: accept, minor revisions, major revisions, or reject.

c) Feedback to Authors

Anonymous Reviewer Comments: The editor consolidates and anonymizes the reviewers' comments. Authors receive this feedback without seeing the reviewers’ names or affiliations, along with specific editorial guidance for revisions if applicable.

Revision and Resubmission: Authors revise the manuscript based on the feedback and resubmit it. The revised manuscript may go through additional rounds of review if significant changes were made.

d) Final Editorial Decision

The editor weighs the reviewers’ comments and recommendations before making the final decision. This might involve further consultation with the reviewers if discrepancies exist in their evaluations.

Publication Frequency 

2025, annual, published in December

2024, annual, published in December

2023, annual, published in December

Article Processing Charge

To cover the costs of the academic publisher for ensuring the normal operation, we charge an Article Processing Charges (APC). If your paper is accepted for publication, you will be asked to pay an Article Processing Charges (APC) 200.00USD/article.

We accept Credit Card, PayPal, Bank Transfer, Wire Transfer, Western Union and Alipay.  Paypal is preferred. If you have any questions regarding payment, please do not hesitate to contact the editorial assistants.

If you need hard copies, please find Journal store.

Index/List/Archive

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Open Access Policy

This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.

Copyright Policy

Copyright for this article is retained by the author(s), with first publication rights granted to the journal.
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution License .

Privacy Statement

The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for the stated purposes of this journal and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.

AI Usage Policy

Authors must disclose any involvement of AI tools in writing, analysis, or data processing within their manuscripts. This disclosure should include specific details about the AI tools, algorithms, or models utilized.

Content Review & Editing:
All content generated with AI tools must undergo thorough author review and editing to ensure quality, accuracy.

AI Role Specification:
Authors should clearly specify the tasks performed by AI tools and their impact on the research and writing process. This includes detailing where and how AI was utilized in the creation of the manuscript.

Authorship Integrity:
Authors are responsible for all content, including AI-generated sections, and should not attribute authorship to AI tools. AI tools should not be listed as co-authors or contributors.

Data Analysis Transparency:
If AI is used for data analysis or chart generation, authors must declare its usage and explain the methodology employed.

Ethical Consideration:
Maintain transparency regarding AI usage and address any ethical issues related to AI-generated content. Uphold ethical standards throughout the research process to ensure integrity.

Authors are encouraged to use AI tools to enhance their research but must adhere to these guidelines to ensure ethical and transparent use of AI tools in academic publishing.