The International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development’s (IJERD) Conflict of Interest (COI) Policy shall provide best practice guidelines which support their responses to such matters.
All IJERD editors, reviewers, and other stakeholders must disclose and declare any real or perceived COI with IJERD immediately upon identification of the COI. A COI Declaration Statement must be submitted to IJERD.
All IJERD authors must disclose and declare any real or perceived COI at the time of content submission to IJERD. A COI Declaration Statement must be submitted at that time with details of the real or perceived COI, OR with a statement that no COI exists. IJERD shall accept the COI Declaration Statement of the author’s sponsoring organization.
If a real or perceived COI is identified post content submission, the author must disclose this to IJERD within ten (10) business days of the conflict being identified. A de novo COI Declaration Statement be submitted at that time.
IJERD will review all COI Declaration Statements in a timely manner. IJERD reserves the right to request additional information to clarify the COI matters and to support its decision-making process.
IJERD shall adjudicate all COI matters in a timely manner and determine if a COI exists. If a COI is deemed real and credible, IJERD will determine if the COI can be rectified with specific and detailed guidance provided to the individual including a timeline for COI resolution. If IJERD determines that a COI cannot be resolved or that a COI does not exist, IJERD will close the matter with no further actions required.
The IJERD COI decisions shall be final and without the possibility of appeal.
Conflict-of-Interest Policy
The Conflict-of-Interest (COI) Policy applies to all parties associated with IJERD, including authors, editors, reviewers, and staff. The Policy’s aim is to maintain the integrity and credibility of published research in alignment with ISERD’s mission of advancing rural and environmental sustainability through fair and transparent academic and research practices.
Disclosure Requirements
- Authors must disclose any and all financial, personal, or professional relationships that could influence the research, interpretation, or conclusions of their work.
- Editors and reviewers must recuse themselves from managing manuscripts when an actual or perceived conflict exists, such as recent co-authorship, institutional ties, or having personal relationships with any author.
- Conference organizers and peer-reviewers must disclose any interests that could potentially bias their independent decision-making on abstracts, acceptance of presentations, or refereeing of manuscripts.
Review and Editorial Independence
- Editorial decisions are made solely on academic and research merit and relevance to the journal’s scope, independent of any business or personal relationships with authors, sponsors, or other stakeholders.
- Peer-reviewers evaluate manuscripts based on scientific quality and relevance, free from external pressures or incentives.
- The Editorial Board maintains transparency by publishing this Policy and by updating disclosures on the IJERD website.
Handling Conflicts
- All real or perceived Conflicts of Interest must be reported. All reports will be reviewed by the Editorial Board, and its actions and decisions, such as reassignment of manuscripts, disclosure statements in publications, or exclusion from decision-making; will be taken as necessary.
- In cases where undisclosed Conflicts of Interest are reported, including post-publication, IJERD will issue corrections, retractions, or statements as appropriate.
Compliance and Accountability
- All authors, reviewers, and editors must abide by this Policy upon participation in IJERD publications and related activities
- Failure to disclose real or perceived Conflicts of Interest, or attempts to unfairly influence decisions may result in rejection of manuscripts, removal from Peer Review or editorial positions, and other corrective actions as deemed necessary by ISERD leadership.