Call for Chapters: Advancing Local Knowledge for a Brighter and Sustainable Future

2025-11-05

This forthcoming edited volume builds on the central question of our global conference: What does it mean for knowledge to serve society? It calls for contributions that reimagine scholarship beyond rankings and citations—toward models that are socially grounded, locally meaningful, and globally relevant.

We invite chapter proposals that explore one or more of the following goals:

  • Rethinking the Knowledge Ecosystem: How can universities sustain community-based, socially responsible knowledge systems?

  • Redefining Quality and Rigor: How can we expand academic rigor to include social impact, inclusivity, and contextual relevance?

  • Encouraging Cross-Boundary Inquiry: How do local insights and indigenous practices enrich global understanding?

  • Transforming Institutional Practice: What frameworks or reforms can guide higher education toward equitable, ethical, and sustainable futures?

Each chapter should demonstrate how scholarship can serve society—connecting research, education, and practice for tangible social benefit.

Genre Fit

The book is a collection of substantial scholarly write ups, so please develop chapter manuscripts that are closer to journal articles than to conference presentations. That may require additional literature review, a theoretical framework if that hadn’t fit a brief conference presentation, a deeper analysis of data if you had covered that, etc. Chapters should be scholarly but accessible to a multidisciplinary and international audience. Narrative clarity, grounded evidence, and reflective analysis are valued over jargon or technical density. Contributors may use qualitative, conceptual, or reflective methodologies, and may include visual elements as relevant.

Chapters should be approximately 2,500–4,000 words, not including references. Each chapter should be clearly organized with informative subheadings and a succinct argument that carries through from introduction to conclusion. Once again, your chapter must clearly contribute to the book’s broader theme and goal.

Format Fit | Use this chapter template

  • File type: .docx (please upload to the submission form at the end of this call)
  • Style: APA or Chicago Author-Date; consistent spelling and punctuation
  • Layout: Single-spaced, first-line indent, standard font (12 pt Times New Roman), 1-inch margins, etc
  • Figures and Tables: High-resolution, labeled, and cited as necessary
  • Author Bio: 50–75 words 

Suggested Chapter Outline

Adapted from the contributor model used for STAR and WAC Clearinghouse publications:

  1. Abstract (150–200 words): State the context, goal or argument, method and findings if relevant, and significance.
  2. Introduction: Situate the issue or case within the conference’s and book’s themes, as well as social context and disciplinary scholarship; articulate why this question or challenge matters for knowledge advancement and social impact;  then provide an overview of the rest of the chapter as appropriate.
  3. Theoretical Framing or Equivalent Section: Discuss the epistemic, institutional, or disciplinary concept and theory your chapter uses, develops, or seeks to contribute to. Reference debates, frameworks, or policies relevant to your argument.
  4. Methodology (if relevant) or Analysis: Describe your inquiry or practice as relevant. Or you may have an analysis or reflection, case study, policy proposal, or some kind of intellectual/practical intervention to report.
  5. Discussion/Implications: Link your findings or analysis to broader transformations in knowledge, education, or public engagement. Present your insights, results, or theoretical contribution, emphasizing implications for both local and global audiences.
  6. Conclusion: Reinforce your chapter’s key points/findings/contributions, highlight its exigency if you haven’t done it yet, flesh out and articulate how your chapter contributes to the book’s overarching theme/goal.
  7. References (APA/Chicago).

Timeline and Review Process

  • Chapter submission deadline: December 1, 2025
  • Peer review completed by: December 15, 2025
  • Revised chapters due: December 31, 2025
  • Publication release: January 31, 2026

Each chapter will undergo a rigorous review. Reviewers will use the rubric below, demanding clarity of argument, thematic relevance, rigor, contribution, and accessibility.

Reviewer Rubric (for Authors’ Reference)

Reviewers will be provided the following rubric to decide whether to accept the chapter manuscripts and to offer feedback:

  1. Relevance and Contribution: Does the chapter directly address the book’s goals and advance understanding of how local knowledge can support sustainable futures?
  2. Argument and Organization: Is the central idea clearly stated in the introduction and developed logically throughout the body of the chapter manuscript?
  3. Evidence and Engagement: Are arguments supported by data, cases, analysis, theory/discussion, and/or literature review that is appropriately cited and interpreted?
  4. Accessibility and Tone: Is the writing clear, engaging, and suitable for a diverse readership? Can readers from different disciplines and from diverse backgrounds across the world understand and find value in the chapter?
  5. Impact and Originality: Does the chapter offer fresh insight, propose actionable ideas, or challenge dominant paradigms?

Constructive feedback will be provided to support revision, clarity, and coherence across the volume.

Note: AI-generated or AI-dependent slop will not be accepted. If you use AI assistance, such as to help you outline or draft, revise or condense, or edit or format your text, make sure that you take full intellectual accountability for every idea when you read your chapter, that there is no made-up source/citation or content, that the chapter reflects your professional expertise and voice from your own heart and mind. We will reject manuscripts that contain noticeable AI-generated probable-pattern substance.

For inquiries:

Email: unesco@aydin.edu.tr