Call for Papers

The Journal of the Namibia Scientific Society (ISSN: 1018-7677) is a cross-disciplinary journal and publishes research in all fields related to Namibia. Published since 1925, it is the longest-standing academic journal in Namibia and is distributed to libraries in various countries, e.g. Germany, South Africa, Kenya, Australia, Switzerland and USA. In currently 70 volumes, articles have been published in research fields like

  • Architecture
  • Climate/Weather
  • Conservation
  • (Desert) Fauna/Wildlife
  • Geography
  • Heritage management
  • History (colonial time/independence struggle)
  • (Eco) Tourism
  • Vegetation.

All contributions must be based on original research and are subject to peer-review.
Articles of 2,000 words or less may be considered for publication as a short note, in which case no separate introduction, methods, results and discussion are necessary. Short notes must contain references, however, and acknowledgements may be made.
Articles of popular or anecdotal nature will be considered as non-reviewed contributions.
Still, those will be subject to editing.
Submissions in English, German and Afrikaans are welcome.
Currently, there are no article processing charges. In addition to the printed edition, the Journal of the Namibia Scientific Society is currently undergoing digitization and will soon appear as Open-Access eJournal.

Articles conforming to the Author Guidelines and Style Guide shall be submitted to journal@namscience.com.
Should you require more information do not hesitate to contact journal@namscience.com.

Guidelines for Authors

The Journal of the Namibia Scientific Society publishes articles related to Namibia. All contributions must be based on original research and should constitute a definite advance in knowledge in that field.

Authors bear sole responsibility for the entire content of their papers (accuracy of facts, data and language, as well as their deductions and opinions expressed). If applicable, authors must ensure the consent of third parties involved (e.g., in biographies, etc.). It is the responsibility of the authors to ensure that there are no pending copyright issues regarding their articles.

Our Editorial Board will lead the review of the papers submitted, and the single-blind process is strictly confidential. Based on the reviews received, the Editors will accept or reject contributions.

Articles of 2,000 words or less may be considered for publication as a short note, in which case, no separate introduction, methods, results and discussion are necessary. Short notes must, however, contain references, and acknowledgements may be included.

Nonreviewed articles of popular or anecdotal nature will also be considered. The latter will be edited to conform to the style required.

Presentation

Manuscripts can be submitted in English, German, or Afrikaans. Please submit the manuscript, including all drawings, graphs, and photographs in electronic format, preferably in a current version of MS Word via email or on a memory stick.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Text generated by AI may be used to improve grammar, style, or readability, but not to generate scientific content, bibliographic references, or arguments.

Images generated by AI may be included if they are the subject of research or for illustrative purposes, but never as substitutes for real data. Disclosure of all AI use is mandatory in the manuscript’s disclosure section and in the cover letter.

Responses to reviewers may be edited for style using AI, but substantive rebuttals must remain the responsibility of the authors.

Peer review must never involve uploading the manuscript being reviewed into an AI system or otherwise having it read by an AI system. Using AI to critique submissions constitutes a breach of confidentiality. Reviewers may only use such tools to edit their own original comments. Any use of AI requires full disclosure by the reviewers.

Authors are responsible for ensuring the quality and accuracy of any text generated or modified through AI tools or other services and must ensure that such edits reflect their original work.

Layout

The layout must follow the following sequence:

  1. Title page with title
  2. Full address of the author (Affiliation and email)
  3. An abstract shall be submitted in the language of the article, and another one in English should the article be written in a different language.
  4. Keywords: Maximum 8.
  5. The paper should consist of: Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, Acknowledgements, Disclosure, and References.
  6. Tables: The same data should not be duplicated in tables and graphs. Each table must be on a separate page, not as part of the text, and be numbered consecutively in order of appearance, using Arabic numerals. A caption must be included for every table.
  7. Figures: Photographs, figures, drawings, and graphs should be submitted in separate files (not embedded in the text file) either as JPG or as TIF with a resolution of not less than 300 dpi. A caption must be included for every table.
  8. Disclosure: conflicts of interest; author contributions; AI usage, etc.
  9. References: References in the text should be cited as in the following example: ‘Mendelsohn and Roberts (1974) stated ...’ or ‘... (Mendelsohn & Roberts 1997)’, when giving a reference simply as authority for a statement. In the list of References, authors’ names should be typed in capitals as indicated: JANKOWITZ, W.J. 1983. Die plantekologie van die Waterberg Platopark. PhD thesis, University of the Orange Free State, Bloemfontein.
  10. Biography: Please include a short author’s biography with a recent photo.

Manuscripts must be submitted to

The Editors
Journal of the Namibia Scientific Society
Email: journal@namscience.com

or by other electronic means as eventually stipulated below.

Reference copies

After publication, the author will receive reference copies of their article and the respective volume of the Journal of the Namibia Scientific Society.