MDP Working Paper Series

The MDP-SDG working paper series is designed to serve several objectives:

• To raise the profile and visibility of outstanding research by Master’s in Development Practice (MDP) students, alumni, and faculty, often related to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. This may take the form of academic papers, case studies, or technical reports.

• To help enable students and others involved in the MDP program to publish their work in peer-reviewed journals by getting feedback from experts in the field associated with the network, with the goal of improving its quality and ultimately its chances of being accepted.

• Showcase potentially or publishable papers on an online repository of MDP publications.

• To contribute to sustainable development research through the publication of papers which are of interest to development practitioners and academics as a result of their original results, theoretical and/or methodological innovation and policy proposals and solutions.

Any MDP student or alumnus may submit a paper for consideration (co-authorship with a faculty member is also permitted and encouraged).

Please keep in mind the four deadlines for submission each year – the second Friday of January, April, July, and October (for 2020, Oct. 9th). For 2021 this means, January 8; April 9; July 9, October 8.

Once papers are submitted, they will be sent for peer-review. After review, they will be returned to the authors with a decision and comments.

Interested MDP Students or Alumni should,

• Select one of their best papers (generally their capstone or dissertation project) that they have written for their MDP courses, or another high-quality paper they would like peer-reviewed, which focuses on one (or more) of the six “clusters” of SDG themes, listed below. For research papers which have been written based on internships permission from the host organization to publish the results should be secured in advance.

• Prepare for submission. (Paper should be between 5,000 to 8,000 words, excluding references. They should follow a consistent and recognized formatting style, such as the Modern Language Association, Chicago Manual of Style or American Psychological Association. (This is to minimize work for authors if they then wish to submit the paper to a journal for consideration for publication; in which case they should follow that journal’s style). If the author(s) intend to submit to a journal for publication they should check that the journal’s publication policies allow prior publication as a working paper.) If you have questions you should contact one of the editors for the cluster you are interested in submitting to through the email addresses listed below.

• Submit to the email under each of the six clusters listed below. (Please do not submit directly to any of the MDP faculty members listed under each cluster. Only papers submitted to the email provided will be considered. Once your paper is submitted it will be reviewed by a handling editor who will make a decision whether or not to send it to members of the MDP faculty to review. If your paper is sent for review you will receive the referees’ reports with a recommendation (accept, reject or revise and resubmit). We aim to return decisions within two months of initial submission.

Thematic Areas

• 1. Education, Gender, and Inequality (Smriti Das, TERI School of Advanced Studies; Karen Brown, University of Minnesota).

• 2. Health, Well-being, and Demography (Lanre Olaniyan, University of Ibadan).

• 3. Energy Decarbonization and Sustainable Industry (Gopal K. Sarangi, TERI School of Advanced Studies; Aly Mbaye, UCAD, Senegal).

• 4. Sustainable Food, Land, Water, and Oceans (Glenn Galloway, University of Florida; David Wilsey, University of Minnesota; Carla Roncoli, Emory University).

• 5. Sustainable Cities and Communities (Kendal Stewart, Columbia University)

• 6. Digital Revolution for Sustainable Development (Pádraig Carmody, Trinity College Dublin; Hsieh Yi-Huan “Fishball,” National Taiwan University).