Publication Ethics

STEPX (Sustainable Technology, Energy, and Policy Exchange) is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics and integrity. The journal follows the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Core Practices, and all parties involved—editors, authors, reviewers, and the publisher—are expected to adhere to ethical standards of scholarly publishing.

Duties of Editors

  • Ensure fair, unbiased, and timely review of all submissions based on academic merit without discrimination regarding authors’ gender, ethnicity, institutional affiliation, religion, or political beliefs.
  • Maintain confidentiality of all submitted manuscripts and ensure content is not disclosed beyond the editorial and peer review team.
  • Avoid conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where such conflicts exist.
  • Take appropriate action in cases of suspected ethical misconduct, including plagiarism, data fabrication, or citation manipulation.

Duties of Authors

  • Submit only original works that have not been published elsewhere and are not under consideration by another journal.
  • Provide accurate and verifiable data, methods, and findings, and ensure proper citation of sources.
  • Avoid plagiarism, data falsification, fabrication, redundant publication, or unethical manipulation of images and results.
  • Disclose any conflicts of interest, funding sources, or financial support related to the research.
  • Ensure all authors have made significant contributions to the work, and that all contributors are properly acknowledged.

Duties of Reviewers

  • Provide constructive, fair, and timely peer review of submitted manuscripts.
  • Maintain confidentiality of the manuscript and not use unpublished information for personal advantage.
  • Declare any potential conflicts of interest that could affect objectivity.
  • Report suspected ethical issues such as plagiarism, duplicate publication, or data manipulation.

Duties of the Publisher

  • Ensure the editorial process is managed transparently and independently from commercial influence.
  • Uphold the integrity of the academic record by publishing corrections, clarifications, retractions, or apologies when necessary.
  • Support the journal in following COPE guidelines for handling cases of misconduct.
  • Ensure free and open access to published content, in line with the journal’s commitment to global knowledge dissemination.

Handling of Misconduct

  • Allegations of research misconduct will be investigated promptly and fairly.
  • Authors found guilty of misconduct may face rejection, retraction of published work, and notification of their institution or funding body.
  • Retractions will follow COPE Retraction Guidelines and be clearly indicated in the journal record.