Submissions

This journal is not accepting submissions at this time.

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.
  • The submission file is in Microsoft Word, RTF, or WordPerfect document file format.
  • Where available, URLs for the references have been provided.
  • The text is single-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
  • The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines, which is found in About the Journal.
  • If submitting to a peer-reviewed section of the journal, the instructions in Ensuring a Blind Review have been followed.

Author Guidelines

Journal of Forest and Livelihood is a peer reviewed journal that documents and disseminates the insights, lessons and innovations taking place in socio-cultural, political and economic aspects of environmental governance and rural livelihoods in Nepal. The journal aims to inform environmental policy process by facilitating dialogue among politicians, professionals, activists, researchers and policy makers. In doing so, it documents and disseminates the insights, lessons and innovations taking place in socio‐cultural, political and economic aspects of environmental governance and rural livelihoods in Nepal. Original scientific papers, short communications and review articles are published in the journal. The authors are fully responsible for the originality of the paper and formal correctness and should ensure that the paper is not published previously.

Type of contribution: Contributors may consider two options:

  1. Long articles (up to 7000 words), or should not exceed 14 pages including tables, figures, references, and abstracts;
  2. Review articles (upto 6000 words) or should not exceed 12 pages including tables, figures, references, and abstracts;
  3. Opinions or short technical communications (upto 4000 words) or six printed pages.

Specify the type of your contribution while submitting the article.

Abstract and key words:  Abstract is a short summary of the whole paper. Authors are required to include an abstract not exceeding 250 words and 5 key words. It should describe all essential facts of a scientific paper. Keywords must be included and should not be the repeated words that are included in the title of the papers. Key words should be taken from the main body of the paper. The abstract is an important part of the paper and cited in world databases.

Introduction should outline the main reasons why the research was conducted; describe a brief review of literature consisting of refereed periodicals, journals and books, and the goal of the authors.

Language: Articles should be submitted in English (British), bear in mind that there should be uniformity in the language used.

Mode of submission: Articles should be submitted in electronic form in the e-mail address provided.

Formatting: Standard size of paper (A4 format), type size 12 font in Times New Roman, 2.5 cm margins on each edge of the page. The heading levels should be properly identified.

Author details: give full name, organizational affiliation and position, and email address. In the case of multiple authors, identify the corresponding author.

AI and Plagiarism: The use of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in scientific writing must be declared by adding a statement at the end of the manuscript upon initial submission.

All submitted manuscripts, including articles, commentaries, and opinions, will be subjected to a rigorous plagiarism screening process. Any submission found to contain plagiarised content will be rejected without further consideration. Authors are responsible for ensuring that their work is original and that all sources are properly acknowledged through appropriate citations.

Please note that simultaneous submission to multiple journals is strictly prohibited. Manuscripts submitted to this journal must not have been previously published or be under review elsewhere. Adherence to these guidelines is essential to uphold the integrity, authenticity, and academic standards of the publication.

References: All publications cited in the text should be given in a reference list following the text. Authors are strongly advised to follow the standard scientific conventions of referencing and should be formatted in the following way:

For Journal Articles

Format: Author(s), Year. Title. Journal Name Volume (Issue), Pages. https://doi.org/…

Examples:

Ostrom, E., 2009. A general framework for analyzing sustainability of social-ecological systems. Science 325(5939), 419–422. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1172133

Banjade, M.R. and Paudel, N.S., 2008. Economic potential of non-timber forest products in Nepal: myth or reality. Journal of forest and Livelihood, 7(1), 36-48.

Westerling, A.L., Hidalgo, H.G., Cayan, D.R., Swetnam, T.W., 2006. Warming and earlier spring increase western US forest wildfire activity. Science 313(5789), 940–943. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1128834

For Books

Format: Author(s), Year. Title. Edition (if not first). Publisher, Place.

 Examples:

Ostrom, E., 1990. Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

FAO, 2006. Global Forest Resources Assessment 2005. Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome.

Ojha H, Shrestha KK, Paudel NS, Karki R, Khatri D, Baral S, Banjade MR, Nuberg I, editors. 2025. Restoring Forests and Improving Livelihoods in Nepal: Four Decades of Community Forestry. 1st ed. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032705613

For Book Chapter

Format: Author(s), Year. Chapter title. In: Editor(s) (Eds.), Book Title. Publisher, Place, pp. Pages.

Examples:

Kanel, K.R., 2004. Twenty-five years of community forestry: contribution to millennium development goals. In: K.R. Kanel et al. (Eds.), Proceedings of the Fourth National Workshop on Community Forestry. Department of Forest, Kathmandu, pp. 4–18.

Agrawal, A., 2007. Forests, governance, and sustainability: common property theory and its contributions. In: Ostrom, E., Nagendra, H. (Eds.), The Future of the Commons. RFF Press, Washington DC, pp. 59–90.

Chhetri, R.B., 1999. The rhetoric and realities of people's participation in conservation and development in Nepal: reflections from Langtang National Park. In: Eldis, J., Skonhoft, A. (Eds.), Resource Conservation and Rural Livelihoods in the Mountain Areas of South Asia. ICIMOD, Kathmandu, pp. 63–78.

For Comments / Editorials / Opinion Pieces

Format: Author(s), Year. Title. Journal Name Volume (Issue), Pages. https://doi.org/…

Examples:

Hossain, M., 2022. Climate change impacts in the Himalayas: A call for global response. Nature Climate Change 12(3), 180–181. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-022-01234-9

Smith, J., 2020. Why we must act now on forest degradation. Science 368(6493), 544. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abc4567

Pokharel, B.K., 2018. Community forestry in Nepal: A success or stagnation? The Himalayan Times, 15 January, p. 5.

 For Grey Literature (Working Papers, Conference Papers, Project Documents)

Format: Author(s), Year. Title. Type of document, Institution, Place.

Examples:

Paudel, N.S., 2010. Emerging forest governance issues in Nepal. Working Paper, ForestAction Nepal, Lalitpur.

Devkota, R.R., 2023. Forest fire management in the Terai Arc Landscape: A community perspective. Conference Paper, Regional Dialogue on Forest Fires, ICIMOD, Kathmandu.

MoFE, 2021. REDD+ Strategy Implementation Framework (Draft). Government of Nepal, Ministry of Forests and Environment, Kathmandu.

For Reports

Format: Author(s)/Institution, Year. Title. Institution, Place.

Examples:

ICIMOD, 2020. Forest Fire Trends in the Hindu Kush Himalaya. ICIMOD, Kathmandu.

Ministry of Forests and Environment, 2022. National Forest Inventory Report. MoFE, Kathmandu.

WWF Nepal, 2018. Forest Fire and Biodiversity: A Policy Review. WWF Nepal, Kathmandu.

For Webpages / Online Sources

Format: Author/Organization, Year. Title. Available at: URL (Accessed: date).

Examples:

Ministry of Forests and Environment, 2024. Forest Fire Early Warning System. Available at: https://www.mofe.gov.np/fire-warning (Accessed: 3 July 2025).

NASA Earth Observatory, 2023. Fires in South Asia. Available at: https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/150207/fires-in-south-asia (Accessed: 1 July 2025).

ICIMOD, 2022. How Forest Fires Threaten the Himalayas. Available at: https://www.icimod.org/forest-fire-impact (Accessed: 5 July 2025).

Remuneration: No remuneration is available for the published articles.

Timing of publication: While we adhere to the planned timing, the exact date of publication depends on the availability of adequate and appropriate contributions in time, standard of writing and time availability of editors.

Right to accept or reject: Editorial board reserves the right to either accept or reject the submitted articles. Articles not selected for publication are not returned to the author.

Editing: Articles may be edited for clarity. Edited manuscript will be sent back to the author (s) for approval.

For further information please contact to

ForestAction Nepal,
Bagdol, Lalitpur, Nepal
fa@forestaction.org
www.forestaction.org
Our publications

Copyright Notice

Copyright is transfered to ForestAction Nepal.

Privacy Statement

Nepal Journals Online (NepJOL) is a member of the Ubiquity Partner Network coordinated by Ubiquity Press. According to the EU definitions, NepJOL is the data controller, and Ubiquity Press are the service providers and data processors. Ubiquity Press provide the technical platform and some publishing services to NepJOL and operate under the principle of data minimisation where only the minimal amount of personal data that is required to carry out a task is obtained.

More information on the type of data that is required can be found in Ubiquity Press’ privacy policy below.

Ubiquity Press Privacy Policy

We take seriously our duty to process your personal data in a fair and transparent way. We collect and manage user data according to the following Privacy Policy. This document is part of our Terms of Service, and by using the press portal, affiliated journals, book, conference and repository websites (the “Websites”), you agree to the terms of this Privacy Policy and the Terms of Service. Please read the Terms of Service in their entirety, and refer to those for definitions and contacts.

What type of personal data do we handle?

There are four main categories of personal data stored by our journal platform, our press platform, and our book management system; Website User data, Author data, Reviewer data and Editor data.

The minimum personal data that are stored are:

  • full name
  • email address
  • affiliation (department, and institution)
  • country of residence

Optionally, the user can provide:

  • salutation
  • gender
  • associated URL
  • phone number
  • fax number
  • reviewing interests
  • mailing address
  • ORCiD
  • a short biography
  • interests
  • Twitter profile
  • LinkedIn profile
  • ImpactStory profile
  • profile picture

The data subjects have complete control of this data through their profile, and can request for it to be removed by contacting info@ubiquitypress.com

What do we do to keep that data secure?

We regularly backup our databases, and we use reliable cloud service providers (Amazon, Google Cloud, Linode) to ensure they are kept securely. Backups are regularly rotated and the old data is permanently deleted. We have a clear internal data handling policy, restricting access to the data and backups to key employees only. In case of a data breach, we will report the breach to the affected users, and to the press/journal contacts within 72 hours.

How do we use the data?

Personal information is only used to deliver the services provided by the publisher. Personal data is not shared externally except for author names, affiliations, emails, and links to ORCiD and social media accounts (if provided) in published articles and books which are displayed as part of the article/book and shared externally to indexes and databases. If a journal operates under open peer review then the reviewer details are published alongside the reviewer details.

How we collect and use your data:

1. When using the website

1.1 what data we collect

  • When you browse our website, we collect anonymised data about your use of the website; for example, we collect information about which pages you view, which files you download, what browser you are using, and when you were using the site.
  • When you comment on an article or book using Disqus, we are not collecting, controlling or processing the data. More details on the DISQUS privacy policy can be found on their website.
  • When you annotate an article or book, this is done via a 3rd party plugin to the website called Hypothes.is. In using this plugin we are not collecting, controlling or processing the data. More details on the Hypothes.is privacy policy can be found on their website.

1.2 why we collect the data

  • We use anonymised website usage data to monitor traffic, help fix bugs, and see overall patterns that inform future redesigns of the website, and provide reports on how frequently the publications on our site have been accessed from within their IP ranges.

1.3 what we do (and don’t do) with the data

  • We do not collect personal information that can be used to identify you when you browse the website.
  • We currently use Google Analytics for publication reports, and to improve the website and services through traffic analysis, but no personal identifying data is shared with Google (for example your computer’s IP is anonymised before transmission).

1.4 what to do if you want to get a copy of your data, or want your data to be removed

  • Please contact info@ubiquitypress.com to request a copy of your data, or for your data to be removed/anonymised.

2. When registering as an author, and submitting an article or book

2.1 what data we collect

  • When registering an account we ask you to log in and provide certain personal information (such as your name and email address), and there is the option to register using an ORCiD which will pre-fill the registration form.
  • As part of submitting an article for publication, you will need to provide personally identifying information which will be used for the peer review process, and will be published. This can include ‘Affiliation’, ‘Competing interests’, ‘Acknowledgements’.

2.2 why we collect the data

  • Registering an account allows you to log in, manage your profile, and participate as an author/reviewer/editor. We use cookies and session information to streamline your use of the website (for example in order for you to remain logged-in when you return to a journal). You can block or delete cookies and still be able to use the websites, although if you do you will then need to enter your username and password to login. In order to take advantage of certain features of the websites, you may also choose to provide us with other personal information, such as your ORCiD, but your decision to utilize these features and provide such data will always be voluntary.
  • Personal data submitted with the article or book is collected to allow follow good publication ethics during the review process, and will form part of the official published record in order for the provenance of the work to be established, and for the work to be correctly attributed.

2.3 what we do (and don’t do) with the data

  • We do not share your personal information with third parties, other than as part of providing the publishing service.
  • As a registered author in the system you may be contacted by the journal editor to submit another article.
  • Any books published on the platform are freely available to download from the publisher website in PDF, EPUB and MOBI formats on the publisher’s site.
  • Any personal data accompanying an article or a book (that will have been added by the submitting author) is published alongside it. The published data includes the names, affiliations and email addresses of all authors.
  • Any articles published on the platform are freely available to download from the publisher website in various formats (e.g. PDF, XML).
  • Ubiquity Press books and articles are typeset by SiliconChips and Diacritech.This process involves them receiving the book and book associated metadata and contacting the authors to finalise the layout. Ubiquity Press work with these suppliers to ensure that personal data is only used for the purposes of typesetting and proofing.
  • For physical purchases of books on the platform Ubiquity Press use print on demand services via Lightning Source who are responsible for printing and distribution via retailers. (For example; Amazon, Book Repository, Waterstones). Lightning Source’s privacy policy and details on data handling can be found on their website.

2.4 why we store the data

  • We store the account data so that you may choose to become a reviewer and be able to perform those tasks, or to become an author and submit an article and then track progress of that article.
  • Published personal data that accompanies an article or a book forms part of the official published record in order for the provenance of the work to be established, and for the work to be correctly attributed.

2.5 what to do if you want to get a copy of your data, or want your data to be removed

  • You are able to view, change and remove your data associated with your profile. Should you choose to completely delete your account, please contact us at support@ubiquitypress.com and we will follow up with your request as soon as possible.
  • To conform to publication ethics and best practice any personal data that is published alongside an article or book cannot be removed. If you have a query about a publication to which you are attributed please contact info@ubiquitypress.com

3. When registering as a reviewer

3.1 what data we collect

  • To become a reviewer you must first register as a user on the website, and set your preference that you would like to be considered as a reviewer. No new personal data is collected when a registered user elects to become a reviewer.
  • When registering an account we ask you to log in and provide certain personal information (such as your name and email address), and there is the option to register using an ORCiD which will pre-fill the registration form.
  • Reviewers can also be registered by editors who invite them to review a specific article. This requires the editor to provide the reviewer’s First Name, Last Name, and Email address. Normally this will be done as part of the process of inviting you to review the article or book.
  • On submitting a review, the reviewer includes a competing interest statement, they may answer questions about the quality of the article, and they will submit their recommendation.

3.2 why we collect the data

  • The data entered is used to invite the reviewer to peer review the article or book, and to contact the reviewer during and the review process.
  • If you submit a review then the details of your review, including your recommendation, your responses to any review form, your free-form responses, your competing interests statement, and any cover letter are recorded.

3.3 what we do (and don’t do) with the data

  • This data is not shared publicly and is only accessible by the Editor and system administrators of that journal or press.
  • The data will only be used in connection with that journal or press.
  • Data that is retained post final decision is kept to conform to publication ethics and best practice, to provide evidence of peer review, and to resolve any disputes relating to the peer review of the article or book.
  • For journals or presses that publish the peer reviews, you will be asked to give consent to your review being published, and a subset of the data you have submitted will become part of the published record.

3.4 what to do if you want to get a copy of your data, or want your data to be removed

  • If you would no longer like to be registered as a reviewer you can edit your profile and tick the box ‘stop being a reviewer’. This will remove you from the reviewer database, however any existing reviews you may have carried out will remain.
  • If you have been contacted by an editor to peer review an article this means that you have been registered in the system. If you would not like to be contacted for peer review you can reply to the email requesting that your data be deleted.

4. When being registered as a co-author

4.1 what data we collect

  • Co-author data is entered by the submitting author. The submitting author will already have a user account. According to standard publishing practice, the submitting author is responsible for obtaining the consent of their co-authors to be included (including having their personal data included) in the article/book being submitted to the journal/press.
  • The requested personal data for co-authors are at the bare minimum; first name, last name, institution, country, email address. This can also include; ORCID ID, Title, Middle Name, Biographical Statement, Department, Twitter Handle, Linkedin Profile Name or ImpactStory ID.

4.2 why we collect the data

  • Assuming that it is accepted for publication, this data forms part of the official published record in order for the provenance of the work to be established, and for the work to be correctly attributed.
  • Author names, affiliations and emails are required for publication and will become part of the permanent cited record.

4.3 what we do (and don’t do) with the data

  • The co-author’s personal data is stored in the author database. This personal data is only used in relation to the publication of the associated article.
  • Any co-author data collected is added to the author database and is only used in association with the article the user is co-author on.

4.5 what to do if you want to get a copy of your data, or want your data to be removed

  • To receive a copy of your data, please contact info@ubiquitypress.com
  • To conform to publication ethics and best practice any personal data that is published alongside an article or book cannot be removed. If you have a query about a publication to which you are attributed please contact info@ubiquitypress.com

5. When signing-up to receive newsletters

5.1 what data we collect

  • We require you to include your name and email address

5.2 why we collect and store the data, and for how long

  • This data would be collected to keep you updated with any news about the platform or specific journal

5.3 what we do (and don’t do) with the data

  • We use mailchimp to provide our mailing list services. Their privacy policy can be found here

5.4 what to do if you want to get a copy of your data or want your data to be removed

  • All emails sent via our newsletter client will include a link that will allow you to unsubscribe from the mailing list

Notification about change of ownership or of control of data

We may choose to buy or sell assets. In the case that control of data changes to or from Ubiquity Press and a third party, or in the case of change of ownership of Ubiquity Press or of part of the business where the control of personal data is transferred, we will do our best to inform all affected users and present the options.

(Updated: 25 July 2025)