Advances in Biology & Earth Sciences provides its policies on submission, editorial and publishing processes and guidelines for authors and reviewers. The polices introduce all parties with their rights and responsibilities to provide smooth and ethical publishing process.
Publication Ethics and Malpractice Statement
Advances in Biology & Earth Sciences is fully committed to maintaining the highest standards of publication ethics and integrity. The journal strictly follows COPE’s “Code of Conduct and Best Practice Guidelines for Journal Editors.”
All parties involved in the publication process - authors, editors, reviewers, and publishers - are expected to behave ethically and professionally. The journal enforces strict policies against plagiarism, data fabrication, falsification, and unethical research practices.
Authors must ensure that:
• Submitted manuscripts are original and not under consideration elsewhere.
• Data are presented truthfully and without manipulation.
• All sources are accurately cited.
• Proper permissions are obtained for the use of copyrighted material.
• Ethical approval has been obtained for studies involving humans or animals.
• All potential conflicts of interest are declared.
Editors are responsible for ensuring an impartial and timely review process. Editorial decisions are based exclusively on scientific merit, originality, clarity, and relevance to the journal’s scope, without discrimination based on gender, nationality, institution or political beliefs.
Reviewers are expected to provide objective, constructive, and confidential evaluations, free from conflicts of interest. They must not use unpublished information for personal gain.
Research Involving Humans and Animals
All studies involving human participants must conform to the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Authors must state that informed consent was obtained from all participants. Studies involving animals must comply with institutional and national ethical standards for animal welfare. The approval number and institution of the ethics committee must be included in the Methods section.
Peer Review Policy
The journal uses double-blind peer review (Reviewers remain anonymous to authors, and authors’ identities are concealed from reviewers). After submission all articles are evaluated by the editorial office. The paper may be immediately rejected if it is considered to be out of the journal's scope or otherwise unfit for consideration. Articles which passed initial evaluation will be sent to external review process. Reviewer reports with a decision from the editor will be returned to the authors.
After review, the Editor-in-Chief makes one of the following decisions: reject, accept, or revise (major or minor). If a decision of revision is made, authors are asked to make their revisions in two weeks. In some cases after the author’s request, this period can be expanded. Revised articles will be sent to the reviewer for the final reviewer decision. Editor-in-Chief will make the final acceptance/rejection decision. The Editor-in-Chief can reject the article, if after minor/major revision decision the authors do not revise their articles satisfactorily after receiving reviewer reports.
As in some cases, it is difficult to find suitable reviewers, and sometimes they can delay in providing reviewer reports the review and decision-making period is not exactly fixed. But the Editor-in-Chief and editorial office will try to accelerate the review process and minimize the time from submission to first decision. The journal aims to make a first decision (after review) within 30-40 days, but it cannot be guaranteed.
Open Access Policy
Advances in Biology & Earth Sciences is an open-access journal, providing free and immediate access to all published content. The journal operates under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction, provided that the original author and source are properly credited.
Authorship and Contribution Policy
Authorship is limited to individuals who have made significant contributions to the conception, design, execution, or interpretation of the research. All authors must approve the final version of the manuscript and agree to its submission.
Contributors who do not meet authorship criteria should be acknowledged appropriately.
Ghost, guest, or honorary authorship is strictly prohibited. The corresponding author is responsible for ensuring that all listed authors meet authorship criteria and that no qualified individuals have been omitted.
Plagiarism and Research Misconduct
All manuscripts submitted to Advances in Biology & Earth Sciences are screened using iThenticate plagiarism detection software.
Submissions with a similarity index above 15% (excluding references) are rejected before review.
If plagiarism or data fabrication is detected post-publication, the article will be retracted following COPE guidelines.
Forms of misconduct include:
• Plagiarism (direct or self-plagiarism)
• Data fabrication or falsification
• Duplicate publication
• Improper authorship
• Undisclosed conflicts of interest
• Unethical experiments or data manipulation.
Data Availability and Research Integrity
Authors are encouraged to deposit datasets in publicly accessible repositories. A “Data Availability Statement” must be included in the manuscript specifying how and where the data can be accessed.
The journal supports FAIR data principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable).
Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools
Authors must disclose if AI-assisted tools were used in writing or analyzing content.
AI tools cannot be listed as authors. The responsibility for all content generated using AI remains with the human authors.
Copyright and Licensing
Authors retain copyright of their published articles and grant Advances in Biology & Earth Sciences the right of first publication.
All works are licensed under CC BY 4.0 allowing unrestricted reuse with proper attribution.
Authors may distribute their published articles elsewhere with acknowledgment of the original publication in Advances in Biology & Earth Sciences .
Conflict of Interest Policy
The purpose of the Conflict of Interest Policy is to ensure transparency and maintain the integrity of the peer review and publication process. All participants involved in manuscript submission, review, and publication, including authors, reviewers, and editors, must disclose any potential conflicts of interest that could influence the evaluation, interpretation, or publication of a manuscript.
A conflict of interest exists when professional judgment concerning a primary interest (such as the validity of research) may be influenced by a secondary interest (such as financial gain, personal relationships, or academic competition). Conflicts may be financial, personal, professional, or institutional in nature.
Authors and Reviewers must disclose all potential conflicts of interest related to the submitted work. Editors will take all necessary steps to avoid handling manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest (e.g., recent collaboration with authors, shared institutional affiliation, or personal relationships).
Publication Fees and Open Access Charges
Along with the official acceptance letter, the authors will be also asked to pay the publication fee of USD 500.
Corrections, Retractions, and Editorial Notes
If an error is discovered after publication, it will be corrected by an erratum, retraction or in-line (dated) correction. Authors and readers are encouraged to inform the publisher and Editor-in-Chief if they notice anything that should be corrected.
Reported errors will be investigated by the publisher and Editor-in-Chief, and discussed with the authors. The appropriate correction will be made after this consultation.
Articles will be retracted if there is evidence of unethical research, unreliable data, misconduct or plagiarism, or if there are sufficient mistakes to invalidate the article.
Complaints and Appeals Process
Authors who disagree with editorial decisions may file an appeal by contacting the Editor-in-Chief with detailed justification.
All appeals are reviewed objectively, and a final decision is communicated within 30 days.
Complaints regarding ethical misconduct are investigated according to COPE procedures.
Environmental and Sustainability Policy
The journal supports environmentally responsible publishing. Advances in Biology & Earth Sciences operates entirely in electronic format, reducing paper waste and minimizing its environmental footprint. Authors are encouraged to adopt sustainable research practices and report environmental impacts where relevant.
Editorial Board Transparency
The complete list of editorial members, including their full names, institutional affiliations, countries, and ORCID IDs, is published on the journal’s official website.
The composition of the editorial board reflects a broad international and disciplinary diversity.
Special Issue Policy
Special Issues of Advances in Biology & Earth Sciences are devoted to specific and emerging topics within the journal’s aims and scope. They provide an opportunity to present high-quality research contributions from conferences, workshops, or thematic academic collaborations.
Each special issue must align with the journal’s editorial standards, scope, and peer-review policies.
Proposal and Approval
All proposals for a special issue must be submitted to the Editor-in-Chief for evaluation and approval.
The proposal should include:
• The proposed title and thematic focus of the issue
• The names, affiliations, and contact details of the proposed Guest Editors
• A short description of the topic and its relevance to the journal’s scope
• The potential source of submissions (e.g., a specific conference or research network)
• Expected number of papers and timeline for review and publication
The Editorial Board reserves the right to approve, revise, or reject any proposal to ensure scientific quality and transparency.
Role of Guest Editors
Guest Editors are responsible for managing the peer-review process for submissions within their special issue under the supervision of the Editor-in-Chief.
They must:
• Ensure that all submitted manuscripts meet the journal’s ethical and quality standards
• Avoid any conflict of interest in handling manuscripts
• Follow a fair, independent, and double-blind peer-review process
• Submit a short editorial introduction summarizing the issue’s theme
Guest Editors cannot guarantee acceptance of any paper, including those from their own institution or conference.
Peer Review and Editorial Process
All manuscripts in a special issue are subject to the same peer-review procedures as regular submissions:
• Each paper is reviewed by at least two independent reviewers
• Reviewers are selected based on expertise and absence of conflict of interest
• Final decisions are made by the Editor-in-Chief in consultation with the Guest Editors
If any submitted paper does not meet the journal’s quality or ethical standards, it will be rejected regardless of its inclusion in the conference or proposed collection.
Ethical Standards
Special issues must comply with the journal’s general Publication Ethics and Malpractice Policy and COPE guidelines.
All manuscripts must be original, unpublished, and not under consideration elsewhere.
Authors and Guest Editors must disclose any potential conflict of interest related to funding, authorship, or institutional affiliation.
Transparency and Acknowledgment
For every special issue published, the journal will clearly indicate:
• The title and description of the special issue
• The Guest Editors’ names and affiliations
• The source of submissions (e.g., “Selected papers from … Conference”)
• The dates of submission and publication
This information will be publicly available on the journal’s website.
