CALL FOR FULL PAPERS / MANUSCRIPTS

Following the call for abstracts for the 2019 Climate Change & Population Conference on Africa, the Local Organising Team is pleased to invite Abstract Submitters to now contribute to the two categories of publications:

(1) Conference Proceedings

This will be made up of an Extended Abstract or Short Papers of not more than 3,000 words including all texts with the exception of the References / Bibliography. All papers are expected to demonstrate how they contribute to knowledge on climate change and population in Africa, and the associated policy implications. We are accepting both empirical and non-empirical manuscripts including intervention projects and policy issues which are of high quality but with limited scope and depth.  The format may not follow the strict research guideline as in instructions below. However, an Abstract, Body and Conclusion will be required. Send completed manuscript to: loc@ccpopghana.org

(2) Special Issue

The manuscripts of the conference Special Journal Issue (between 12 and 15 papers) will be made up of detailed empirical analytical papers of both very high quality quantitative and qualitative studies. Modelling, GIS applications and Applied Statistics are highly encouraged and will receive priority attention. Authors of manuscripts would adhere to strict structures such as Abstract, Introduction / background, Methodology, Results, Conclusion and Recommendations for the African Continent. Clear contributions to knowledge must be demonstrated. Papers for this special issue will have ceiling of 5,000 words excluding References / Bibliography. Those wishing to contribute to the Special Issue will first have to prepare an Extended Abstract and indicate consideration for the Special Issue. Descriptive work and studies made of frequencies alone will not be considered. Send completed manuscript to: loc@ccpopghana.org

Manuscripts for both types of calls should not have been published or in the process of publishing anywhere and solely meant for this conference. There are no publication fees attached.

Only authors who physically present themselves at the conference will have their manuscripts processed further.

TIMELINES / DEADLINES

WRITING STYLE

This is mostly of Elsevier Science Origin. If you choose to use own guidelines, please ensure consistency with one particular style.

[1] Clarity is everything

• Our audience is the general and international policy, academic, professional and practitioner reader, so clarity in language and syntax is important, especially for readers who do not speak English as their first language.
• Informal language is not acceptable. And, consider that “ [L]iterary devices, metaphors and the like, divert attention from the substance to the style [and]…should be used rarely in scientific writing” (Day 1998).

[2] Avoid jargon

In general writers (and speakers) should avoid the use of jargon. But because we are targeting a broad and international readership, it is even more important for authors to avoid it.

[3] Abbreviations, acronyms, and initializations

• Do not begin a sentence with an abbreviation.
• Use them sparingly. Overuse of these devices makes reading and comprehension difficult. One or two abbreviations for terms particular to your paper or topic used throughout is acceptable, but many more is questionable. The text needs to be understandable to a reader who is not a specialist in the subject matter at hand. Define all abbreviations, initializations, and acronyms at first use, e.g., analysis of variance (ANOVA).

[3] Use active voice most of the time

Use we or I regularly (e.g., “We converted all GIS data to raster format.”, not “All GIS data were converted to raster format.” Or, “Trained technicians surveyed the plots.”, not “The plots were surveyed by trained technicians.”) In particular, your methods should not be written entirely in passive voice.

[4] Tense

• Past tense: use it in the methods (telling what you did) and results (telling what your results were) sections. Also use it in the Discussion when you refer to your results. This helps the reader differentiate between your findings in this study and findings from other studies (referred to in present tense, see next item).
• Present tense: use it when you refer to previously published findings.

In general, most of the abstract, methods, and results should be in past tense, and most of the introduction and discussion should be in present tense. “When a…paper…has been published…in a primary journal, …it becomes knowledge. Therefore, whenever you quote previously published work, ethics requires you …treat that work with respect. You do this by using the present tense …The principal exception to this rule is in the area of attribution and presentation. It is correct to say “Smith showed [past] that ….” (Day 1998).

[5] Title

Must remain the same as the original in the book of Abstracts.

[6] Abstract

• An abstract is a mini version of your paper: 1-2 sentences of introduction (justification for your study), methods, results, and discussion (to include general policy and management implications if they are not obvious).
• Length should not exceed 250 words and must not be too different from the original abstract in the book of meeting programme. It should not contain literature citations, much data, or meaningless clauses such as “We discuss results…” or “We summarize implications…”

[7] Keywords

Maximum five words or phrases are sufficient.

[8] Acknowledgments

Do not fully spell out first names. Provide the first initial (even if the initial starts a sentence). Authors of the manuscript should be referred to in initials only (e.g., S.T.W. was supported by a Torry Foundation grant).

[9] References

(a) In-text citations

• In most cases, enclose citations in text in parentheses.

“Human-modified habitats that look suitable but provide poor reproductive rewards are called ecological traps (Gates & Gysel 1978).” Instead of “According to Gates and Gysel (1978), human modified habitats…”

• Use an ampersand (&) between author surnames (Gates & Gysel 1978) when the citation is parenthetical.
• When a citation is not parenthetical use and e.g., “Our results agree with predictions made by Wolf and Rhymer (2001).”
• For citations with more than two authors use et al. (Hatchwell et al. 1996). Do not italicize et al.
• List parenthetical citations chronologically (from oldest to newest) and separate entries with a semicolon (Zorenstein et al. 1991; Waddell & Fretwell 2001).
• Multiple papers by the same author: (Cox et al. 1991, 1992; Chapman 2001, 2002)
• In press papers: ( In press means the paper being cited has been officially accepted for publication. Provide the year the paper will be published in the text and in the Literature Cited use in press (…in landscapes. Global Environmental Change 6: in press).
• Papers in review: These papers must be cited as unpublished until the paper has been officially accepted and should not appear in the Literature Cited.
• Unpublished data: (C.S.C. & L.K., unpublished data) for the authors of the article and (R. Fowler, unpublished data; M. E. Soulé, personal communication) for others.
• Make sure all references cited in text are listed in Literature Cited and vice versa. When text citations do not match contents of Literature Cited publication is delayed.
• Avoid “in. lit.” citations. Provide the original citations whenever possible.

(b) Literature Cited section

• Spell out all journal titles in full. Titles are not italicized.
• “Submitted” papers, papers in review, and personal communications should not be in the Literature Cited (see above).
• Remove “Inc.,” ” Co. ,” etc. from reference in text and Lit. Cited: (SAS Institute 1998) not (SAS Institute, Inc. 1998).
• Conference proceedings and conference abstracts can be cited in Literature Cited only if they have a “publisher” and the location of said publisher can be provided. If not formally published, the publisher is the organization from which a copy can be obtained.
• Issue number: Do not use an issue number unless every issue in a volume begins with page 1 (i.e., pages in a volume are not numbered consecutively from the first issue to the last, as they are with Global Environmental Change).
• If there are more than 10 authors, use et al. (e.g., Howard, G., et al.) instead of listing all the authors.

(c) Sample citations

• Institutions as authors: Spell out name of the institution and include location of publisher.

Example: World Wildlife Fund (WWF). 2002. Giant panda home ranges. WWF, Washington , D.C.

or WWF (World Wildlife Fund). 2002. Title of work. WWF, Washington , D.C. How the institution is cited in Lit. Cited needs to match how it is cited in the text: WWF vs. World Wildlife Fund.

• Journal articles: Christensen, N. D., and J. Eu. 2003. Ecology of cranberry bogs: Ecology 59: 1147–1167, 1178–1187. For a supplement citation: … 13 (supplement 1) : 172–180. If a paper is in press, the “in press” follows the journal title (i.e., Ecology: in press.).
• Edited books : Cran, B., C. Boy, and L. Shi. 1911. Native forest birds of Guam . Pages 4-8 in T. Wu and L. Lee, editors. Flora and fauna of Guam . 2 nd edition. Tell Books, Ace, Ohio .
• Reports : Barnes, J., and S. Craig. 2003. Conservation status of riparian areas in south-eastern Oregon . General technical report N-24. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Portland , Oregon .
• Web-based journals : Sandringham , J. 2006. Effects of urbanization of agricultural land on an endemic moth, rosemary pink. Conservation Ecology 3: http://ConservationEcology…./ESA.org. (No access date needed.)
• Web sources other than journals (e.g., reports): Include the name of the organization sponsoring the Web site and their physical location and an access date. Example: Carne, A. 2003. The art of leaving well enough alone. National Science Teachers Association, Washington , D.C. Available from http:www.nsta.org/art2/scienceandchildren (accessed March 2002).
• DOI numbers: Boscastle, C. 2006. Tree management in the River Valency Valley . Conservation Today DOI: 23674xxi21.

CONFERENCE CONVENER
DELALI B. DOVIE (PHD)
REGIONAL INSTITUTE FOR POPULATION STUDIES
UNIVERSITY OF GHANA, LEGON
GHANA