All manuscripts submitted to Nakhara: Journal of Environmental Design and Planning (NJEDP) are processed in the following 8 steps:

 

1. Paper submission

The corresponding author first submits the manuscript to NJEDP via the journal’s online system. In rare occasions, for authors who may have difficulty in accessing the online system, the journal may accept submissions by email.

2. Preliminary check by the Editorial Office

Once the manuscript is successfully submitted, the NJEDP Editorial Office checks the paper’s composition, arrangement, and formatting and citation styles, according to the Author Guidelines.

3. Screening by the Editor in Chief

In consultation with other members of the Editorial Board, the Editor in Chief assesses whether the submitted paper is appropriate and in line with the journal’s aims and scope, whether it is sufficiently original, and whether there is no potential plagiarism. If not, the Editor in Chief may decline the paper submission without sending it for further review. In this case, the Editor will notify the author(s) right away. If the submitted manuscript does not fit with the aims and scope of the journal, the Editor may also suggest the author(s) to resubmit elsewhere.

4. Assignment of reviewers

The Editor in Chief then assigns and sends invitations to scholars, researchers, or practitioners who she or he believes would be appropriate to review the paper. The invited reviewers are expected to be affiliated to different institutions from one another and from the author(s). Potential reviewers consider the invitation according to their expertise, conflicts of interest, availability, and other criteria. Once the responses are received, the Editorial Office issues further invitations until the required number of two acceptances is obtained. NJEDP is committed to assigning the reviewers within two weeks since the paper is submitted.

5. Review

The reviewer first reads the paper to gauge whether there are major problems with the submitted work. If there are, the reviewer may reject the paper without further work. Otherwise she or he will read the paper carefully to provide detailed review. The reviewers are usually given one month to review the paper. The reviewer then submits the review result to the journal, with a recommendation to accept or decline the paper. The reviewer may recommend that the paper be accepted with a condition of minor revision, i.e., Revisions Required. In the case of major revision, the reviewer may suggest the author to resubmit the paper for reconsideration, i.e., Resubmit for Review, once the manuscript is revised.

6. The Editor evaluates the reviews

The Editor in Chief evaluates all the responses from the reviewers to make an overall decision. If the responses differ significantly, the Editor in Chief may invite an additional individual to review the paper so as to obtain another opinion before making the final decision.

7. Revision decision

The Editor sends a decision to the author via the online system, with any relevant comments from the reviewers. As NJEDP adopts the double-blind peer review principle, all comments and suggestions remain anonymous.

8. Revision

Once the authors receive the review results, comments, and suggestions, they will proceed accordingly. Those who are required to revise the paper will do so and will submit the revised version within one month. In the case of Revisions Required, the Editor in Chief or the handling Editor will review the revisions without sending the revised paper to reviewers. However, in the case of Resubmit for Review, the Editor in Chief will assign the paper to be reviewed again by one or two reviewers before making a final decision.