Call for Papers: Environmental Justice in Nepal
Details
Call for Papers
Environmental Justice in Nepal
Special issue of Studies in Nepali History and Society
The Idea: Mixed Environmental/Social Analysis
Over the last two generations, few countries have seen more environmental change than Nepal, both in the countryside and its exploding urban areas. At the same time, few countries are as deeply hierarchical as Nepal, especially along class, caste, and gender lines. This collision is producing long-term and worsening environmental conflicts that are further overburdening already marginalized populations. Environmental justice studies in Nepal is a relatively new but vibrant field and this special issue seeks to highlight this innovative scholarship.
SINHAS Special Issue
This special issue of Studies in Nepali History and Society (SINHAS) will build on our recent edited volume on environmental justice (Environmental Justice in Nepal: Origins, Struggles, and Prospects, 2024) to analyze the overlap of environmental challenges with social hierarchies in Nepal. SINHAS reaches a broad Nepal audience but also has online access.
Possible topics include (but not limited to):
- climate change
- agriculture (sustainable, urban, conventional)
- urban issues
- protected areas, buffer zones (and 30x30 goals)
- community forestry
- air quality
- drinking water access and quality
- roads
- energy transitions, electrification, hydropower
- sustainable agriculture
- green youth social movements
- disability rights
- multi-species justice
- transboundary issues
- unhoused populations
- landlessness
- government and democracy
- gender and caste
- history or contemporary
- connections to Gen-Z movements
The papers should have a primary Nepal focus but can also address transboundary issues.
Research Articles and “Perspectives” Articles
- Research articles/case studies (6,000-8,000 words)
- “Perspectives” articles (2,000-4,000 words) – from scholars/activists/practitioners reflecting on the EJ research and writing and connections with EJ movements in Nepal.
Conferences and Workshops
For our last volume we organized two in person-conferences and an online writing workshop. Pending funding, we’d like to do something similar again.
Timeline
- Abstracts due: March 31, 2026 (Tips for A Great Abstract)
- Invitations for full article submission: April 15, 2026
- Full articles due: July 15, 2026
- Peer Review Process: Reviews returned to authors by September 15, 2026
- Revised versions: October 30, 2026
- Publication: June 2027
Style guide: We will use SINHAS style guide for all formatting and other questions.
Guest Editorial Team
Thomas B. (Tom) Robertson (Lead editor, best for contacts)
- Visiting Associate Professor, Macalester College, editor of Mitho Lekhai, tbrobert@gmail.com
Jagannath Adhikari, Ph.D.
- Independent Researcher based in Perth, Australia, jagannath.adhikari@gmail.com
Jonathan K London, Ph.D.
- Professor and Program Director, Community and Regional Development/Human Ecology, University of California-Davis. Geography and Community Development Graduate Groups, jklondon@ucdavis.edu