Content Guidelines

Instructions for Formatting Abstracts, Manuscripts & Other Content

  • Include the names and affiliations of all authors
  • Describe the focus of the article
  • Indicate how the work is relevant to an interdisciplinary audience of academics, practitioners, and/or policy makers
  • Select the type of content proposed, see content types
  • Develop a MS Word document with all tables and figures
  • Human Subjects: If your manuscript involves human subject research or would reveal intellectual property, please submit your manuscript only if you have all necessary approvals from your institution.

Formatting Your Content

Send a separate cover sheet document with the following information to the Editorial Board (email: mjsboardmembers@umich.edu):

  • Title of article, full name(s) and mailing address of authors
  • E-mail address for the corresponding (primary) author
  • Up to three suggested reviewers (colleagues or peers)
  • See: Review Process

Title/Abstract Page

On the first page, provide the article title and an abstract (no more than 250 words) that includes:

  1. Problem
  2. Research Strategy
  3. Findings
  4. Takeaway messages for practice (e.g., how your findings are relevant to and important for sustainability issues).
  5. Note the Type of Content, see: Content Types

Section headings

  • Section headings should be in bold, and in 14-point Arial font, with no colon afterward.
  • Sub-headings should be in italics, and in 12-point Arial.

Identifying information

Any information that might directly identify the author or their position (including in-text and bibliographic references by authors and funding information) should be redacted to allow for blinded peer review.

File Naming

In order to maintain anonymity during peer review, the file name for the manuscript should be the title of the article followed by the date, in YYYY-MM-DD format. If a colon is used in the title, please use only the first clause (e.g., Limits to Growth 2014-09-23.doc).

Tables and Figures

  • In the text, indicate the appropriate location of each table and figure on a separate line, after the paragraph where it first appears.
  • Place tables in numerical order at the end of the paper, followed by figures, with each table and figure on a separate page, each with complete title and notes.
  • Do not embed tables in the text, and supply only tables that can be edited in MS Word or Excel.
  • Use only low-resolution images in the manuscript file you submit.
  • Send separate high-resolution digital files for each figure, only after the manuscript has been formally accepted. Use eps, tiff, psd, or jpg image file formats only.

Type and Spacing

  • Use 12-point Times New Roman type. Double-space all text except for tables and figures.
  • Left justify the main text and indent first lines of paragraphs rather than adding spacing between lines.
  • Please include continuous line numbers.

Citations and References

Citations should be presented in the Chicago Manual of Style, 16th edition, and in the text should appear in author-date format example (Graham et al., 2014). Do not include footnotes.

Human Subjects Research

If your article uses direct quotes, it is the author’s responsibility to obtain permission to use the interviewee’s name.

  • Please indicate you have gained this permission by adding a disclaimer at the end of the piece that says the following: “All of the participants in our interviews gave us permission to use their names and direct quotes in this piece.”

Copyright Requirements

As an author, you are required to secure permission if you reproduce any figure, table, or extract from the text of another source. This applies to direct reproduction, as well as to “derivative reproduction” (where you have created a new figure or table which derives substantially from a copyrighted source).

Publishing and Creative Commons

Authors agree to grant the Michigan Journal of Sustainability (MJS) and Michigan Publishing a non-exclusive, perpetual license to publish content produced by an author under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND) License. MJS authors allow MJS and Michigan Publishing to make the content discoverable and accessible via third-party indexes, catalogs, etc. MJS authors grant MJS and Michigan Publishing permission to use their names in association with content in its published form, and in any advertising and promotional materials. MJS authors retain copyright to their content and may use their content in any way they lawfully wish. See the full Author Agreement Form.