About

Weather Matters is an independently edited, student-led publication with the goal of fostering conversation within the social sciences and humanities on issues related to climate change and the environment.

Originally emerging out of the RAI Anthropology’s ‘Weather and Climate Change’ conference at the British Museum in May 2016, Weather Matters hopes to liaise across scholarly disciplines and institutional boundaries and to contribute to a diverse cultural discourse about the manifold ways in which people across the globe give meaning to, foretell, address, and adapt to climate change, local weather patterns, and environmental change.

Weather Matters puts forward one to two thematic Call for Papers each year. We welcome submissions that draw from ethnographic fieldwork, scientific and social science research, and personal reflections and encourage creative formats including images, visual ethnographies, and film.

Format: Two Call for Papers per year that are thematic (topically cross-cutting) in nature and related to climate change and the environment. (Summer- Winter or Fall-Spring)

Call for Papers Instructions:

The author(s) must include: “Name, Title, Affiliation, Date” at the top of their submission
The author(s) must include an abstract of one paragraph
The author(s) must include one photo (limit of seven)
Works cited must be in APA style.
It is requested that no links be embedded in an authors submissions (any relevant websites can be indicated in the Works Cited)
We encourage ethnographic writing, however, it is also expected that submissions provide scholarly analysis and address relevant research in the academic literature.
The authors must include this sentence at the bottom of their submission (prior to the Works Cited): “Declaration of competing interests: The author(s) has no conflicts of interest to declare.” If not true, author(s) must explain any conflicts.

Further author requirements:

The author(s) cannot submit writings that have already been published in whole or in part in another outlet. An author can adapt parts of a submission from previous writings, however this must be clear and sufficiently distinct. The author must also note then that it is “adapted from previous work” at the top of their submission and cite their previous work.

Editorial Process:

The author(s) can expect that their submission will be judged on the following criteria: 1.) that the piece is well-written and structurally sound; 2.) that the piece provides conceptual analysis that is scholarly in nature (i.e. relating to relevant literature); 3.) that the piece is relevant to the theme and topics profiled in the Call for Papers.
The author(s) will hear back from editors within two weeks of the submission deadline.
Publication will typically occur within one month of submission deadline.
The author(s) should be expected to be available for revisions during this time period. Authors will always have at least ten days to complete requested revisions.
Acceptance of a submission is always contingent on the final result following revisions.
The author(s) should generally expect two rounds of revisions (both substantive and proofreading). However, in some cases more rounds may be required if authors do not sufficiently address editor’s comments in the first instance. Editors reserve the right to request additional revisions at any point in the process.
At least two editors will be involved in the revision process for a submission.
Any decisions not to accept a submission will be taken by the entire editorial team. If there are differences of opinion within the team, majority vote will rule.
While editors will generally attempt to provide feedback to authors whose submission is not accepted, editors reserve the right to not accept a submission without explanation.

Further editorial requirements:

Current editors may not author or submit publications for Weather Matters during their tenure, but are free to do so afterwards.

Please send contributions to our editorial team: contact.weathermatters@gmail.com

Weather Matters is generously supported by the University of Oxford’s Institute for Science, Innovation, and Society (InSiS)