Journal of Geographic Education and Studies (JGES) is committed to maintaining high standards of publication ethics and academic integrity. The journal recognizes that trustworthy academic research depends on integrity, transparency, accountability, and responsible scholarly conduct.

This statement outlines the ethical principles and responsibilities that guide authors, editors, reviewers, and other participants throughout the publication process.

Our Ethical Commitment

JGES is committed to:

• Promoting originality and academic honesty.
• Maintaining a fair, impartial, and confidential peer-review process.
• Encouraging transparency, equality, and unbiased scholarly reporting.
• Respecting intellectual property, copyright, and proper attribution.
• Maintaining the accuracy and integrity of the published scholarly record.
• Addressing suspected ethical violations fairly and promptly.

Any suspected violation of ethical principles is taken seriously and may be investigated in accordance with the journal's policies and recognized standards of responsible scholarly publishing.

Responsibilities of Authors

Authors submitting manuscripts to JGES are expected to:

Original Work

Submit original manuscripts that have not been previously published and are not simultaneously under consideration by another journal.

Accurate Representation

Report research findings accurately and honestly without fabrication, falsification, manipulation, or deliberate misrepresentation of data, maps, figures, images, datasets, methods, or results.

Proper Acknowledgment

Provide appropriate citations and acknowledgment for all sources, datasets, maps, figures, images, software, and other materials used in the research. Authors must obtain permissions where required.

Authorship Transparency

Include as authors only those individuals who have made substantial scholarly contributions to the research and manuscript. All listed authors should approve the final manuscript and agree to its submission.

Conflict of Interest Disclosure

Disclose any financial, institutional, professional, or personal conflicts of interest that could reasonably be perceived as influencing the research, analysis, interpretation, or publication process.

Research Ethics

Authors must comply with applicable ethical requirements for research involving human participants, communities, fieldwork, interviews, surveys, environmental research, geographic data, or other relevant research activities. Where required, appropriate ethical approval or informed consent should be obtained and reported.

Plagiarism, duplicate publication, fabrication, falsification, inappropriate data or image manipulation, and other unethical research practices may result in rejection, correction, withdrawal, retraction, or other appropriate editorial action.

Responsibilities of Editors

• Assess submissions according to academic merit, originality, relevance, and the journal's aims and scope.
• Maintain confidentiality throughout the editorial and peer-review process.
• Ensure that editorial decisions are based on scholarly considerations and are not influenced by personal or institutional characteristics.
• Identify and appropriately manage actual or potential conflicts of interest.
• Make timely, fair, and impartial decisions regarding publication.
• Handle suspected ethical concerns fairly, confidentially, and transparently.
• Take appropriate measures to protect the integrity of the journal's published content.

Responsibilities of Reviewers

• Provide constructive, objective, and professional feedback.
• Maintain strict confidentiality of manuscripts and unpublished information.
• Identify relevant published research that may not have been appropriately acknowledged, where applicable.
• Declare any actual or potential conflict of interest before accepting a review assignment.
• Complete reviews within the agreed timeframe or inform the editorial office if additional time is required.
• Evaluate manuscripts objectively based on their scholarly quality and relevance.

Reviewers must not use unpublished materials, data, maps, ideas, methods, or findings obtained through peer review for personal or professional advantage.

Peer Review Policy

JGES uses a double-blind peer-review process to promote impartiality and minimize potential bias.

• The identities of authors and reviewers are kept confidential throughout the review process, where practicable.
• Manuscripts are assessed for originality, scholarly contribution, methodological quality, clarity, and relevance.
• Reviewers evaluate the academic quality, research methodology, data and analysis, findings, and overall contribution of the manuscript.
• Editorial decisions are based on reviewer recommendations together with independent editorial judgment.

Possible editorial decisions include Accept, Minor Revision, Major Revision, or Reject.

Handling Ethical Misconduct

The journal may investigate suspected instances of research or publication misconduct. Depending on the circumstances, the editorial team may:

• Conduct an appropriate and impartial assessment of the concern.
• Request an explanation or clarification from the concerned parties.
• Request supporting documentation, data, or other evidence where appropriate.
• Consult relevant institutions or organizations when necessary.
• Take appropriate corrective action when an ethical violation is established.

Corrective actions may include rejection of a manuscript, publication of a correction or clarification, withdrawal of an article, retraction of published content, notification of relevant institutions, or restriction of future submissions where justified.

Artificial Intelligence and Research Integrity

Authors may use artificial intelligence tools for appropriate purposes such as language improvement, grammar correction, translation, formatting, or other limited editorial assistance, provided that such use does not compromise the originality, accuracy, or integrity of the manuscript.

Authors remain fully responsible for the content of their submissions, including AI-assisted text, citations, references, data interpretation, maps, figures, datasets, and research findings. Artificial intelligence tools must not be listed as authors.

Material use of AI tools should be disclosed where required by the journal's applicable policies. The use of AI does not exempt authors from responsibility for plagiarism, fabricated information, falsified data, inappropriate attribution, or other forms of research misconduct.

Final Statement

By submitting a manuscript to or participating in the peer-review process of Journal of Geographic Education and Studies (JGES), all participants are expected to respect these ethical principles and contribute to a responsible, transparent, and reputable scholarly publishing environment.

JGES is committed to supporting ethical research practices, academic excellence, responsible geographic scholarship, and the integrity of the scholarly record in geography, geographic education, environmental studies, and related interdisciplinary fields.