Call for Proposal Ideas for Issues in Ecology
We invite submission of ideas for Issues in Ecology for development in 2008 and 2009. Please send a title, a half page idea synopsis that emphasizes audience and potential impact, and a sentence or two describing yourself and your team’s interest and qualifications to Aleta Wiley, ESA Science Programs Assistant (aleta@esa.org).
Deadline for submission of ideas is June 30, 2008. Topics will be discussed in August by the Issues in Ecology Scientific Advisory Board; decisions and requests for full proposals will be announced shortly thereafter.
Issues in Ecology is an Ecological Society of America publication that uses commonly–understood language to report the consensus of a panel of scientific experts on issues related to the environment. The audience for Issues in Ecology includes decision-makers at all levels for whom an objective presentation of the underlying science will increase the occurrence of ecologically-informed decisions. Issues in Ecology aims to build public understanding of the links between ecosystem services and society.
Why consider developing an Issue in Ecology?
The ESA 2004 Visions Report stated that “Environmental issues will define the 21st Century, as will a world with a large human population and ecosystems that are increasingly shaped by human intervention.” The Ecological Society of America can and does play an important role in integrating advances in ecological knowledge into policy and management decisions that affect ecological sustainability. Issues in Ecology are widely used by educators, policy makers, and resource managers as an unbiased source for information that can communicate complex issues affecting global, national, and local environments and societies. By engaging in the development of an Issues in Ecology you will be helping to increase and promote the understanding of ecological science among the public.
A typical Issues in Ecology will be 12-16 printed pages with ample photographs and illustrations, and available in both electronic format for downloading and printed copy. Topics represent important ecological information in a balanced, unbiased way. Text for Issues will be synthesized from a published body of knowledge, produces an overview of the state of the science, and is typically a product of a team of authors and a professional science writer that represent the breadth of interpretation for the given topic. An Issues in Ecology can, but need not be, a synopsis of more detailed synthesis published in a scholarly journal such as Ecological Applications. Past Issues in Ecology can be viewed or downloaded at http://www.esa.org/science_resources/issues.php.
The text for Issues in Ecology is reviewed for technical content by external expert reviewers. While each Issue will stand alone, ESA will also consider publishing up to four Issues under one theme that address different aspects of broad ecological issues, such as the carbon cycle, ecology and agriculture, or causes or effects of climate change. Issues in Ecology will be published four times per year.
