Journal of Peacebuilding & Development
Peace Studies/Conflict Resolution
Aiming to develop theory-practice and South-North dialogues, JPD examines critical peacebuilding and development topics that challenge our era, including:
- Building resilient states, societies, and livelihoods
- Infrastructures for peace and violence prevention
- Political economy of violence, conflict, and peacebuilding
- Peacebuilding and statebuilding in fragile and conflict-affected contexts
- Economic dimensions of justice, reconciliation, and social cohesion
- Identities and relationships in conflict and development
- Natural resources, the environment, and peacebuilding
- Human rights and human security
- Nonviolence and social change
- Aid coherence and coordination in peacebuilding and development
- Paradigmatic approaches and theories underpinning policy and practice
- Peace and conflict sensitive planning, policy making, programming, and monitoring and evaluation
- Cross-cutting issues: governance, national and local ownership, hybridity, capacity development, power and empowerment, the role of culture, targeting special groups (i.e. women, youth, and minorities).
JPD foregrounds qualitative methodologies, especially empirically based case studies that facilitate grounded and fresh analysis to serve theory, policy, and strategy development. JPD offers a space for scholars and practitioners to examine the logic and impacts of dominant policies and practices, and to cultivate visionary, holistic approaches striving to advance collaboration between the fields of peacebuilding and development. Our authors, advisors, and editorial staff represent global scholarship, practice, and activism.
| Ghassan Elkahlout | Doha Institute, Qatar |
| Julie Rouge | American Public University System, USA |
| Margarita Tadevosyan | George Mason University, USA |
| Erin McCandless | University of Witwatersrand, South Africa |
| Charity Butcher | Kennesaw State University, USA |
| Sherrill Hayes | Kennesaw State University, USA |
| Brandon D. Lundy | Kennesaw State University, USA |
| Hogr Tarkhani | Kennesaw State University, USA |
| Mohammed Abu-Nimer | American University, USA |
| Erin McCandless | University of Witwatersrand, South Africa |
| Eric Abitbol | Universalia, Canada |
| Mohammed Abu-Nimer | American University, USA |
| Stephen Baranyi | University of Ottawa, Canada |
| Patrick Bond | University of Johannesburg, South Africa |
| Henk-Jan Brinkman | United Nations Peacebuilding Support Office, USA |
| Kevin P. Clements | University of Otago, New Zealand |
| Sam Gbaydee Doe | United Nations Development Program, Sierra Leone |
| Comfort Ero | International Crisis Group, Brussels |
| Arturo Escobar | University of North Carolina, USA |
| Ibrahim Freihat | Doha Institute, Qatar |
| Mary E. King | University for Peace, Costa Rica |
| Erin McCandless | University of Witwatersrand, South Africa |
| Alina Rocha Menocal | Overseas Development Institute (ODI), UK |
| Orzala Ashraf Nemat | Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit, Afghanistan |
| Ozonnia Ojielo | United Nations Development Programme, Ethiopia |
| Thania Paffenholz | Center on Conflict, Development and Peacebuilding, Switzerland |
| Angelika Rettberg | Los Andes University, Colombia |
| Mary Hope Schwoebel | Nova Southeastern University, USA |
| Dan Smith | Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), UK |
| Yadira Soto | Organization of American States, USA |
| Necla Tschirgi | Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, USA |
| Marie-Joelle Zahar | University of Montreal, Canada |
| Craig Zelizer | Peace and Collaborative Network, USA |
Manuscript Submission Guidelines: Journal of Peacebuilding & Development
This Journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics
Any correspondence, queries or additional requests for information on the manuscript submission process should be sent to the Journal of Peacebuilding & Development editorial office as follows:
jpd.production@gmail.com or +1 (470) 578-2452
Please read the Journal of Peacebuilding & Development guidelines, the guidelines below, and then visit the Journal’s submission site https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/rjpd to upload your manuscript. Please note that manuscripts not conforming to these guidelines may be returned.
Only manuscripts of sufficient quality that meet the aims and scope of Journal of Peacebuilding & Development will be reviewed.
There are no fees payable to submit or publish in this Journal. Open Access options are available - see section 3.3 below.
As part of the submission process you will be required to warrant that you are submitting your original work, that you have the rights in the work, that you are submitting the work for first publication in the Journal and that it is not being considered for publication elsewhere and has not already been published elsewhere, and that you have obtained and can supply all necessary permissions for the reproduction of any copyright works not owned by you.
1. What do we publish?
- Aims & Scope
- Article types
- Writing your paper
2. Editorial policies
- Peer review policy
- Authorship
- Acknowledgements
- Funding
- Declaration of conflicting interests
- Data
3. Publishing polices
- Publication ethics
- Contributor’s publishing agreement
- Open access and author archiving
4. Preparing your manuscript
- Formatting
- Artwork, figures and other graphics
- Supplementary material
- Reference style
- English language editing services
5. Submitting your manuscript
- ORCID
- Information required for completing your submission
- Permissions
6. On acceptance and publication
- Sage Production
- Online First publication
- Access to your published article
- Promoting your article
7. Further information
1. What do we publish?
1.1 Aims & Scope
Before submitting your manuscript to Journal of Peacebuilding & Development, please ensure you have read the Aims & Scope.
JPD is a refereed journal providing a forum for the sharing of critical thinking and constructive action at the intersections of conflict, development and peace. As a refereed journal with a unique mission, JPD offers a professional and respected tool for promoting dialogue and expanding networks on critical peacebuilding discussions towards coherent, constructive action. Our networks of scholar communities, policy-makers and advisors, practitioners and activists across the North and South that we serve and seek to better serve engage in dialogue around critical issues at the heart of our collective global search for peace. JPD’s capturing of innovative practices, policy analysis and recommendations, and theory derived from the on-the-ground realities that people in conflict and fragile contexts face, offers holistic, practical and visionary approaches that seek to influence policy and practice in ways that support transformative processes globally.
1.2 Article types
The Journal of Peacebuilding & Development accepts the following types of articles:
• Articles address critical themes or analyzes on the peacebuilding–development nexus and usually have a practice or case study component. They must be contextualized within the scholarly and policy literature and existing debates (8,000 words maximum, including endnotes and bibliographical references).
• Briefings are country, practice or policy reviews and analysis of current events and topical issues (2,500 words maximum). They do not need to refer to the literature, but should be properly sourced.
• Policy Dialogues short policy briefings engaging key topics on the international policy agenda, such as the interactions and/or implications for peacebuilding and development. Key topics include, i.e. Agenda 2030, migration, climate change (2,500 words maximum).
• Book reviews are critical assessments of new books that integrate peacebuilding and development concerns into a thematic review of 3 books minimum (1,000 words maximum).
• Resources include notices of new books, reports, videos, e-communications and websites that link peacebuilding and development (150 words maximum), and declarations – communications and other relevant statements by NGOs or multilateral organizations (1,000 words maximum).
There is no limit on the number of references allowed, although authors should bear in mind that the word count per article includes references.
1.3 Writing your paper
The Sage Author Gateway has some general advice and on how to get published, plus links to further resources. Sage Author Services also offers authors a variety of ways to improve and enhance their article including English language editing, plagiarism detection, and video abstract and infographic preparation.
1.3.1 Make your article discoverable
When writing up your paper, think about how you can make it discoverable. The title, keywords and abstract are key to ensuring readers find your article through search engines such as Google. For information and guidance on how best to title your article, write your abstract and select your keywords, have a look at this page on the Gateway: How to Help Readers Find Your Article Online.
2. Editorial policies
2.1 Peer review policy
The Editor or members of the Editorial Board may occasionally submit their own manuscripts for possible publication in the journal. In these cases, the peer review process will be managed by alternative members of the Board and the submitting Editor/Board member will have no involvement in the decision-making process.
2.2 Authorship
All parties who have made a substantive contribution to the article should be listed as authors. Principal authorship, authorship order, and other publication credits should be based on the relative scientific or professional contributions of the individuals involved, regardless of their status. A student is usually listed as principal author on any multiple-authored publication that substantially derives from the student’s dissertation or thesis.
Please note that AI chatbots, for example ChatGPT, should not be listed as authors. For more information see the policy on Use of ChatGPT and generative AI tools.
2.3 Acknowledgements
All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in an Acknowledgements section. Examples of those who might be acknowledged include a person who provided purely technical help, or a department chair who provided only general support.
2.3.1 Third party submissions
Where an individual who is not listed as an author submits a manuscript on behalf of the author(s), a statement must be included in the Acknowledgements section of the manuscript and in the accompanying cover letter. The statements must:
- Disclose this type of editorial assistance – including the individual’s name, company and level of input
- Identify any entities that paid for this assistance
- Confirm that the listed authors have authorized the submission of their manuscript via third party and approved any statements or declarations, e.g. conflicting interests, funding, etc.
Where appropriate, Sage reserves the right to deny consideration to manuscripts submitted by a third party rather than by the authors themselves.
2.3.2 Writing assistance
Individuals who provided writing assistance, e.g. from a specialist communications company, do not qualify as authors and so should be included in the Acknowledgements section. Authors must disclose any writing assistance – including the individual’s name, company and level of input – and identify the entity that paid for this assistance”).
It is not necessary to disclose use of language polishing services.
Please supply any personal acknowledgements separately to the main text to facilitate anonymous peer review.
2.4 Funding
Journal of Peacebuilding & Development requires all authors to acknowledge their funding in a consistent fashion under a separate heading. Please visit the Funding Acknowledgements page on the Sage Journal Author Gateway to confirm the format of the acknowledgment text in the event of funding, or state that: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
2.5 Declaration of conflicting interests
Journal of Peacebuilding & Development encourages authors to include a declaration of any conflicting interests and recommends you review the good practice guidelines on the Sage Journal Author Gateway.
It is the policy of Journal of Peacebuilding & Development to require a declaration of conflicting interests from all authors enabling a statement to be carried within the paginated pages of all published articles.
Please ensure that a ‘Declaration of Conflicting Interests’ statement is included at the end of your manuscript, after any acknowledgements and prior to the references. If no conflict exists, please state that ‘The Author(s) declare(s) that there is no conflict of interest’.
For guidance on conflict of interest statements, please see the ICMJE recommendations here.
2.6 Research Data
At Sage we are committed to facilitating openness, transparency and reproducibility of research. Where relevant, JPD encourages authors to share their research data in a suitable public repository subject to ethical considerations and where data is included, to add a data accessibility statement in their manuscript file. Authors should also follow data citation principles. For more information please visit the Sage Author Gateway, which includes information about Sage’s partnership with the data repository Figshare.
3. Publishing Policies
3.1 Publication ethics
Sage is committed to upholding the integrity of the academic record. We encourage authors to refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics’ International Standards for Authors and view the Publication Ethics page on the Sage Author Gateway
3.1.1 Plagiarism
Journal of Peacebuilding & Development and Sage take issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism or other breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. We seek to protect the rights of our authors and we always investigate claims of plagiarism or misuse of published articles. Equally, we seek to protect the reputation of the journal against malpractice. Submitted articles may be checked with duplication-checking software. Where an article, for example, is found to have plagiarized other work or included third-party copyright material without permission or with insufficient acknowledgement, or where the authorship of the article is contested, we reserve the right to take action including, but not limited to: publishing an erratum or corrigendum (correction); retracting the article; taking up the matter with the head of department or dean of the author's institution and/or relevant academic bodies or societies; or taking appropriate legal action.
3.1.2 Prior publication
If material has been previously published it is not generally acceptable for publication in a Sage journal. However, there are certain circumstances where previously published material can be considered for publication. Please refer to the guidance on the Sage Author Gateway or if in doubt, contact the Editor at the address given below.
Submission of a manuscript implies commitment to publish in the journal:
· Authors submitting manuscripts to the journal should not simultaneously submit them to another journal.
· Authors should not submit manuscripts that have been published elsewhere in substantially similar form or with substantially similar content.
· If another manuscript drawing on the same dataset has been submitted or published previously, please explain how it differs from this manuscript in your cover letter.
· Authors in doubt about what constitutes prior publication should consult the Journal of Peacebuilding & Development editorial office (email jpd.production@gmail.com).
3.2 Contributor’s publishing agreement
Before publication, Sage requires the author as the rights holder to sign a Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement. Sage’s Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement is an exclusive licence agreement which means that the author retains copyright in the work but grants Sage the sole and exclusive right and licence to publish for the full legal term of copyright. Exceptions may exist where an assignment of copyright is required or preferred by a proprietor other than Sage. In this case copyright in the work will be assigned from the author to the society. For more information please visit the Sage Author Gateway
3.3 Open access and author archiving
Journal of Peacebuilding & Development offers optional open access publishing via the Sage Choice programme and Open Access agreements, where authors can publish open access either discounted or free of charge depending on the agreement with Sage. Find out if your institution is participating by visiting Open Access Agreements at Sage. For more information on Open Access publishing options at Sage please visit Sage Open Access. For information on funding body compliance, and depositing your article in repositories, please visit Sage’s Author Archiving and Re-Use Guidelines and Publishing Policies.
4. Preparing your manuscript for submission
4.1 Formatting
The preferred format for your manuscript is Word. There is no need to follow a specific template when submitting your manuscript in Word. However, please ensure your heading levels are clear, and the sections clearly defined. LaTeX files are also accepted. Please download the Sage LaTex Template, which contains comprehensive guidelines. The Sage LaTex template files are also available in Overleaf, should you wish to write in an online environment.
If you have used any .bib or .bst files when creating your article, please include these with your submission so that we can generate the reference list and citations in the journal-specific style. If you have any queries, please consult our LaTex Frequently Asked Questions.
British English spelling is preferred.
4.2 Artwork, figures and other graphics
Illustrations, pictures and graphs, should be supplied in the highest quality and in an electronic format that helps us to publish your article in the best way possible. Please follow the guidelines below to enable us to prepare your artwork for the printed issue as well as the online version.
Format: TIFF, JPEG: Common format for pictures (containing no text or graphs).
EPS: Preferred format for graphs and line art (retains quality when enlarging/zooming in).
Placement: Figures/charts and tables created in MS Word should be included in the main text rather than at the end of the document.
Figures and other files created outside Word (i.e. Excel, PowerPoint, JPG, TIFF, EPS, and PDF) should be submitted separately. Please add a placeholder note in the running text (i.e. “[insert Figure 1.]")
Resolution: Rasterized based files (i.e. with .tiff or .jpeg extension) require a resolution of at least 300 dpi (dots per inch). Line art should be supplied with a minimum resolution of 800 dpi.
Colour: Please note that images supplied in colour will be published in colour online and black and white in print (unless otherwise arranged). Therefore, it is important that you supply images that are comprehensible in black and white as well (i.e. by using colour with a distinctive pattern or dotted lines). The captions should reflect this by not using words indicating colour.
Dimension: Check that the artworks supplied match or exceed the dimensions of the journal. Images cannot be scaled up after origination
Fonts: The lettering used in the artwork should not vary too much in size and type (usually sans serif font as a default).
Figures supplied in colour will appear in colour online and in the print issue. There is a charge of $800 for the first colour figure in print and an additional $200 charge for each subsequent colour figure.
4.3 Supplementary material
This journal is able to host additional materials online (e.g. datasets, podcasts, videos, images etc) alongside the full-text of the article. For more information please refer to our guidelines on submitting supplementary files.
4.4 Reference style
Bibliographic references must be supplied for all articles – please follow the journal’s (author: date) system – a complete guide to references is available here. References should be complete and listed in alphabetical order. The reference section must only include resources specifically cited in the text and vice-versa. Notes should be limited to 10, and placed at the end of the paper as endnotes.
4.5 English language editing services
Authors seeking assistance with English language editing, translation, or figure and manuscript formatting to fit the journal’s specifications should consider using Sage Language Services. Visit Sage Language Services on our Journal Author Gateway for further information.
5. Submitting your manuscript
Journal of Peacebuilding & Development is hosted on Sage Track, a web based online submission and peer review system powered by ScholarOne™ Manuscripts. Visit https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/rjpd to login and submit your article online.
IMPORTANT: Please check whether you already have an account in the system before trying to create a new one. If you have reviewed or authored for the journal in the past year it is likely that you will have had an account created. For further guidance on submitting your manuscript online please visit ScholarOne Online Help.
5.1 ORCID
As part of our commitment to ensuring an ethical, transparent and fair peer review process Sage is a supporting member of ORCID, the Open Researcher and Contributor ID. ORCID provides a persistent digital identifier that distinguishes researchers from every other researcher and, through integration in key research workflows such as manuscript and grant submission, supports automated linkages between researchers and their professional activities ensuring that their work is recognised.
The collection of ORCID iDs from corresponding authors is now part of the submission process of this journal. If you already have an ORCID iD you will be asked to associate that to your submission during the online submission process. We also strongly encourage all co-authors to link their ORCID ID to their accounts in our online peer review platforms. It takes seconds to do: click the link when prompted, sign into your ORCID account and our systems are automatically updated. Your ORCID iD will become part of your accepted publication’s metadata, making your work attributable to you and only you. Your ORCID iD is published with your article so that fellow researchers reading your work can link to your ORCID profile and from there link to your other publications.
If you do not already have an ORCID iD please follow this link to create one or visit our ORCID homepage to learn more.
5.2 Information required for completing your submission
You will be asked to provide contact details and academic affiliations for all co-authors via the submission system and identify who is to be the corresponding author. These details must match what appears on your manuscript. At this stage please ensure you have included all the required statements and declarations and uploaded any additional supplementary files (including reporting guidelines where relevant).
5.3 Permissions
Please also ensure that you have obtained any necessary permission from copyright holders for reproducing any illustrations, tables, figures or lengthy quotations previously published elsewhere. For further information including guidance on fair dealing for criticism and review, please see the Copyright and Permissions page on the Sage Author Gateway.
6. On acceptance and publication
6.1 Sage Production
Your Sage Production Editor will keep you informed as to your article’s progress throughout the production process. Proofs will be sent by PDF to the corresponding author and should be returned promptly. Authors are reminded to check their proofs carefully to confirm that all author information, including names, affiliations, sequence and contact details are correct, and that Funding and Conflict of Interest statements, if any, are accurate.
6.2 Online First publication
Online First allows final articles (completed and approved articles awaiting assignment to a future issue) to be published online prior to their inclusion in a journal issue, which significantly reduces the lead time between submission and publication. Visit the Sage Journals help page for more details, including how to cite Online First articles.
6.3 Access to your published article
Sage provides authors with online access to their final article.
6.4 Promoting your article
Publication is not the end of the process! You can help disseminate your paper and ensure it is as widely read and cited as possible. The Sage Author Gateway has numerous resources to help you promote your work. Visit the Promote Your Article page on the Gateway for tips and advice.
7. Further information
Any correspondence, queries or additional requests for information on the manuscript submission process should be sent to the Journal of Peacebuilding & Development editorial office as follows:
jpd.production@gmail.com or +1 (470) 578-6299