International Journal of Sustainable Development and Planning (IJSDP) is an interdisciplinary journal covering the subjects of environmental design and planning, environmental management, spatial planning, environmental planning, environmental management and sustainable development in an integrated way as well as in accordance with the principles of sustainability. At the beginning of the 21st century, despite major scientific and technological accomplishments, the struggle for a cleaner environment as well as for the rational organization of space is not settled. It is clear to us that environmentalists, planners, policy makers, engineers and economists have to work together in order to ensure that environmental protection, spatial co-ordination and economic development could all be achieved without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own requirements.

In recent years, an increase in spatial and environmental problems in many countries has led to a crisis in environmental planning and management. The increasing urbanization of the world coupled with the issues of environmental pollution, resource shortages and economic restructuring demand that a lot of effort will be required in order to make our cities sustainable. Moreover, problems of sustainable planning and management are not restricted to urban areas, since rural areas face serious environmental challenges.

The aim of the International Journal of Sustainable Development and Planning is to inform its readers about all aspects of environmental planning and management. The journal includes subjects ranging from social to technical environmental management issues, having always as an axis the concept of sustainable planning and development.

Focus and Scope

Papers on the following topics, in accordance with the aims and objectives of the journal, are welcome:

Sustainable development
Environmental legislation and policy
Ecosystems analysis and protection
Natural resources management
Coastal planning and policy
Waste management
Environmental infrastructure
Air, water and soil pollution
Remediation and recovery
Geo-informatics and the environment
Environmental impact assessment
Public safety and security
Environmental economics
Tourism and environment
Social issues
Rural planning
Urban planning
Urban and regional design
Planning in less-favoured areas
Regional economics
Utilities and networks
Energy resources
Education and health
Cultural heritage and architectural issues
Visual impact and noise pollution
Publication Frequency

The IJSDP is published regularly by the IIETA, with eight regular issues (excluding special issues) and one volume per year.

Peer Review Statement

The IIETA adopts a double blind review process. Once submitted, a paper dealing with suitable topics will be sent to the editor-in-chief or managing editor, and then be reviewed by at least two experts in the relevant field. The reviewers are either members of our editorial board or special external experts invited by the journal. In light of the reviewers’ comments, the editor-in-chief or managing editor will make the final decision over the publication, and return the decision to the author.

There are four possible decisions concerning the paper: acceptance, minor revision, major revision and rejection. Acceptances means the paper will be published directly without any revision. Minor revision means the author should make minor changes to the manuscript according to reviewers’ comments and submit the revised version to the IIETA. The revised version will be accepted or rejected at the discretion of the editor-in-chief or managing editor. Major revision means the author should modify the manuscript significantly according to reviewers’ comments and submit the revised version to the IIETA. The revised version will be accepted or rejected at the discretion of the editor-in-chief or managing editor. Rejection means the submitted paper will not be published.

If a paper is accepted, the editor-in-chief or managing editor will send an acceptance letter to the author, and ask the author to prepare the paper in MS Word using the template of IIETA.

Plagiarism Policy

Plagiarism is committed when one author uses another work without permission, credit, or acknowledgment. Plagiarism takes different forms, from literal copying to paraphrasing the work of another. The IIETA uses CrossRef to screen for unoriginal material. Authors submitting to an IIETA journal should be aware that their paper may be submitted to CrossRef at any point during the peer-review or production process. Any allegations of plagiarism made to a journal will be investigated by the editor-in-chief or managing editor. If the allegations appear to be founded, we will request all named authors of the paper to give an explanation of the overlapping material. If the explanation is not satisfactory, we will reject the submission, and may also reject future submissions.

For instructions on citing any of IIETA’s journals as well as our Ethics Statement, see Policies and Standards.