Inspiredd by Biodiversity Research is published by K&DM International Publishers in co-operation with ALTER-Net.

 

Never before has our planet's biological diversity been so threatened by human activity. Yet it plays a vital role in maintaining the health of ecosystems, as well as providing us with many valuable resources essential for our survival. For these reasons alone it is important that we understand biodiversity and the pressures it faces, so that we can develop credible responses. This requires effective scientific research.

European biodiversity research is rich and varied. It is also dispersed and disconnected and cannot be easily marshalled to deliver the information and knowledge required to address major biodiversity issues at a European scale. ALTER-Net is a five year project funded by the European Union's Framework VI programme. ALTER-Net is a Network of Excellence: its 24 partner institutes from 17 European countries are aiming to build lasting integration of biodiversity research, monitoring and communication capacity.

www.alter-net.info

 

Inspiredd by Biodiversity Research accepts submittals for the following manuscript categories. Number of words includes all text from the Abstract through the Literature Cited; it does not include tables or figure legends. Manuscripts that significantly exceed the word count will be returned without review.

• Research manuscripts
• Peer-reviewed papers that present the results of original research in the field of science-policy interfaces linked to biodiversity related research. The core article should not exceed 5000 words but may contain a reasonable number of appendices of any kind (e.g. traditional items such as tables, graphs, and written expansions on the main text, as well as less familiar items such as downloadable models or statistical software, computer animations of model output, and original data bases). The manuscript should present the core of the research in a brief and readable form, and make details at an appropriate depth available in the appendices.
• Standard headings should be used in the order given below. Additional headings and modifications to those heading suggestions are not acceptable.
• Title page. This should contain:
  (1) A concise and informative title (as short as possible).
  (2) A list of authors' names with names and addresses of Institutions. Author first names should be provided in full.
  (3) The name, address and e-mail address of the correspondence author to whom decisions, and if appropriate, proofs will be sent.
  (4) A running headline of not more than 45 characters.
• Abstract. This must not exceed 300 words and should list the main results and conclusions, using simple, factual, numbered statements. The final point of your Abstract must be headed 'Synthesis', and must emphasize the key findings of the work and its general significance, indicating clearly how this study can be used by those setting policy and taking decisions.
• Keywords. A list in alphabetical order not exceeding ten words or short phrases.
• Introduction. The motivation or purpose of your research should appear in the Introduction, where you state the questions you sought to answer, and then provide some of the historical basis for those questions.
• Materials and methods. This should provide sufficient details of the techniques to enable the work to be repeated. Do not describe or refer to commonplace statistical tests in Methods but allude to them briefly in Results.
• Results. Results should be stated concisely and without interpretation.
• Discussion. This should point out the significance of the results in relation to the reasons for doing the work, and place them in the context of other work.
• Conclusion. Conclusion must emphasize the key findings of the work and its general significance, indicating clearly how this study can be used by those setting policy and taking decisions. The author(s) should intend to maximize the impact of their paper, by making it of as wide interest as possible. This final point should therefore explain the importance of your paper in a way that is accessible to non-specialists.
• Acknowledgements. If authors refer to themselves as recipients of assistance or funding, they should do so by their initials (e.g. J.B.T.).
• Literature cited: The list of Literature Cited should be included after the final section of the main article body. A blank line should be inserted between single-spaced entries in the list.
• Tables. Each table should be on a separate page, numbered and accompanied by a legend at the top. They should be referred to in the text as Table 1, etc. Do not present the same data in both figure and table form or repeat large numbers of values from Tables in the text.
• Figure legends (and Figures).Figures and their legends should be grouped together at the end of the paper, before the appendices (if present). If figures have been embedded into the text file, they should appear above their respective legend. In the main text, the word 'Figure' should be abbreviated (e.g. Fig. 1; Figs 2 and 3), except when starting a sentence. Photographic illustrations should also be referred to as Figures.
• Appendices / Supporting Information. A limited amount of essential supporting information may be published in electronic form. In order to promote the advancement of science through the process of documenting and making available the research information and supporting data behind published studies, the editors of this journal strongly encourage authors to make arrangements for archiving their underlying data.
• Science-Policy Interface manuscripts
• Those manuscripts form the core of Inspiredd by Biodiversity Research. Peer-reviewed papers that present the translation of peer-reviewed research in the field of biodiverstity towards policy makers. The core article should not exceed 2000 words but may contain a reasonable number of appendices of any kind (e.g. traditional items such as tables, graphs, and written expansions on the main text, as well as less familiar items such as downloadable models or statistical software, computer animations of model output, and original data bases). The manuscript should present the core of the research and its use in a policy related context in a brief and readable form, and make details at an appropriate depth available in the appendices.
• Standard headings should be used in the order given below. Additional headings and modifications to those heading suggestions are not acceptable.
• Title page. This should contain:
  (1) A concise and informative title (as short as possible).
  (2) A list of authors' names with names and addresses of Institutions. Author first names should be provided in full.
  (3) The name, address and e-mail address of the correspondence author to whom decisions, and if appropriate, proofs will be sent.
  (4) A running headline of not more than 45 characters.
  (5) Full reference to the peer-reviewed article on which the paper is based
• Abstract. This must not exceed 200 words and must emphasize how the key findings of the scientific paper referred to can be used by those setting policy and taking decisions.
• Keywords. A list in alphabetical order not exceeding ten words or short phrases.
• Introduction.The introduction must emphasize the key findings of the scientific paper referred to.
• Geographical scope. If applicable describe the geographical scope of the scientific paper referred to.
• Ecosystems. If applicable describe the ecosystems of importance mentioned in the scientific paper referred to.
• Species/populations. If applicable describe the species/populations of importance mentioned in the scientific paper referred to.
• Materials and methods. This section should list the material, methods and statistics used in the scientific paper referred to, using simple, factual, and numbered statements. For each of the methods listed reference should be made to a full description of the methodology. Where possible reference should be made to other papers where the same or a similar methodology is applied. Describe short differences/similarities between the methods used in the basic paper referred to and other papers mentioned.
• Data. Describe the dataset generated by the scientific paper referred to. Make reference how the data are stored and where the data can be found.
• Discussion. Discusses the relevance of the scientific paper referred to indicating clearly how this study can be used by those setting policy and taking decisions. When relevant the following subheadings should be used: (1) Management relevance. Discuss how the scientific results could be used in a management context (conservation, restoration, preservation, …). Discuss the applicability of the results within a wider geographical scope. The discussion should also point out the evidence of effectiveness , the reasons for variation of effectiveness and the limitation of this study; (2) Policy/management relevance. Discuss how the scientific results could be used in a policy and/or management context (local, national, regional or international).
• Conclusion. Conclusion must emphasize the implications for management and policy. It should also state the implications for research. Describe the key findings of the work and its general significance, indicating clearly how this study can be used by those setting policy and taking decisions. The author(s) should intend to maximize the impact of their paper, by making it of as wide interest as possible. This final point should therefore explain the importance of your paper in a way that is accessible to non-specialists.
• Acknowledgements. If authors refer to themselves as recipients of assistance or funding, they should do so by their initials (e.g. J.B.T.).
• Potential conflicts of interest and Sources of support. List potential conflicts of interest and sources of support for as well the scientific paper referred to as for the present paper.
• Literature cited. The list of Literature Cited should be included after the final section of the main article body. A blank line should be inserted between single-spaced entries in the list.
• Tables. Each table should be on a separate page, numbered and accompanied by a legend at the top. They should be referred to in the text as Table 1, etc. Do not present the same data in both figure and table form or repeat large numbers of values from Tables in the text. Tables will only be accepted if they maximize the impact of your paper, by making it of as wide interest as possible.
• Figure legends (and Figures).Figures and their legends should be grouped together at the end of the paper, before the appendices (if present). If figures have been embedded into the text file, they should appear above their respective legend. In the main text, the word 'Figure' should be abbreviated (e.g. Fig. 1; Figs 2 and 3), except when starting a sentence. Photographic illustrations should also be referred to as Figures. Figures will only be accepted if they maximize the impact of your paper, by making it of as wide interest as possible.
• Appendices / Supporting Information. A limited amount of essential supporting information may be published in electronic form. In order to promote the advancement of science through the process of documenting and making available the research information and supporting data behind published studies, the editors of this journal strongly encourage authors to make arrangements for archiving their underlying data.
• Letters: Communications regarding topics of immediate interest to readers, including observations on controversial subjects, on previously published papers, or on other items of note. The core article should not exceed 1000 words. Appendices can be allowed after consultation with the editor.
• Invited manuscripts:
  Only authors who have been specifically invited to submit one of the following manuscript types should use this category. The submissions will be re-categorized by the editors of the journal and will appear under specific sections if published. It is essential that the author(s) include a detailed cover letter when using this category, naming the editor who made the invitation and describing the nature of the submission.
• Perspective
  Opinion editorials invited by the Editor-in-Chief to highlight important topics of science, policy, and/or practice. At times the Perspective essay will stand alone. At other times, the Perspective will launch a series of commentaries and an on-line conversation. Length: 4000 words.
• Updates
  Depending on new policy needs the Editor-in-chief can invite authors of articles published in Inspiredd by Biodiversity Research to update their articles with more recent information.
• Commentary
  An invited response to a Perspective article. Length: 2000 words.
• Book Review
  Inspiredd by Biodiversity Research does not accept unsolicited book review submissions. However, if you are aware of a particular book for which a review would be of interest to our readers, we welcome your suggestions. Please direct all communications regarding book reviews to the editor-in-chief. Length: 1000 words.