Complaints & Appeals Policy

Complaints & Appeals Policy

Nature and Procedure of Complaints

The Contemporary Sustainability Development (CSD) adheres to ethical publishing standards and follows Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines where applicable in handling complaints.

Allegations of Misconduct

If an author, reviewer, or third party suspects academic misconduct—such as plagiarism, data falsification, or data fabrication—they may file a formal complaint with the Editor-in-Chief. The journal will acknowledge receipt and initiate an investigation following COPE procedures.

General Complaints   

Any individual with concerns related to journal policies, editorial processes, or ethical matters may submit a written complaint with a detailed description and supporting evidence to:主编邮箱

Appealing a Publication Decision

The Editor-in-Chief holds the discretion to assess the suitability of a manuscript for publication. While rejection decisions are made with due diligence, editors will always provide a valid statement explaining the reason for rejection.

Rejection appeals are generally not permitted. However, if an author believes the decision was based on an error in the review process, they may formally appeal. Appeals must be submitted in writing with a detailed explanation of the specific error that affected the manuscript’s review process.

If an author suspects that the rejection was influenced by a breach of publication ethics, they may file a formal complaint with the Editor-in-Chief, providing supporting evidence.

  1. Repository Policy

The Contemporary Sustainability Development (CSD) is an Open Access journal, and authors are encouraged to make their articles publicly available under the CC BY 4.0 license. Authors publishing under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license may share and distribute their articles on non-commercial platforms and repositories.

Pre-Publication Posting Restrictions

Authors should not upload or share manuscripts on institutional repositories or personal websites before or during submission to the journal. Posting preprints prior to submission is discouraged in order to maintain the integrity of the journal’s peer-review process.

Post-Publication Sharing & Archiving

Authors may deposit the PDF version of the publisher's final format in institutional repositories without embargo after publication. When sharing or redistributing published Open Access articles, authors must attribute Journal of Advanced Supply Chain Management as the original source and provide accurate citation details. The URL/DOI of the published article should always be included when posting or depositing the article in any repository.

Maximizing Citation & Impact

To enhance visibility and citation, authors are encouraged to link their Author Accepted Manuscript (AAM) to the final version of record, including the DOI. Tracking citations and repository deposits can help authors assess the impact of their research and improve its accessibility.

  1. Licensing & Copyright Policy

All articles published in Journal of Advanced Supply Chain Management are Open Access and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0 license) International License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. This license allows unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work and source are properly cited.

Copyright Policy

The Contemporary Sustainability Development (CSD) follows a non-exclusive publishing agreement, meaning the journal retains the right of first publication, but authors retain full copyright of their work.Authors may subsequently republish their work without restriction. Users are permitted to use, reproduce, disseminate, or display the articles, including for commercial purposes, as long as proper attribution is given to the original authors.

Use of Trade Names & Trademarks

The mention of trade names, trademarks, or general descriptive names in publications does not imply that they are unprotected by relevant laws and regulations.

Author Responsibility

Authors are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Creative Commons licensing framework to understand their rights and the permitted uses of their work.

  1. Conflict of Interest Policy

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The Contemporary Sustainability Development (CSD) is committed to transparency and ensuring that all competing interests are disclosed in published manuscripts. Authors must declare any potential conflicts of interest that could influence or be perceived to influence their submission. This declaration must be included during manuscript submission and recorded in the published article when applicable.

Definition of Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest arises when authors have relationships, allegiances, or financial ties that may excessively influence their judgments, research findings, or conclusions. This issue is particularly critical when such interests are private and may lead to personal or financial gain.

Examples of Potential Conflicts of Interest

Authors must disclose any potential conflicts of interest that could be perceived to influence the research or its interpretation. Conflicts of interest may include, but are not limited to:

  1. Receiving consulting fees, honoraria, or other payments from a related company or organization.
  2. Research funding or grants provided by commercial entities.
  3. Employment, stock ownership, or other financial interests in organizations that could be affected by the research.
  4. Travel support, reimbursements, or sponsorships for attending related conferences, symposiums, or events.
  5. Any personal, professional, or financial relationships that may bias the study or affect peer perception.

Authors are responsible for disclosing any additional competing interests that a reasonable reader might perceive as potentially influencing the research, prior to manuscript acceptance.

Editorial and Peer Review Disclosure

Manuscripts are evaluated fairly, regardless of declared competing interests, unless the conflict significantly affects the integrity of the research.

The editorial team does not require full financial disclosure but expects a general declaration of relevant competing interests.

Editors, guest editors, and peer reviewers must also declare any potential conflicts of interest if applicable.

Author Responsibilities

Authors must certify in the Author Agreement Form that:

  1. All financial support is appropriately acknowledged in the manuscript.
  2. Any commercial or financial involvement related to the manuscript is disclosed.
  3. Potential conflicts of interest are discussed with the Editor-in-Chief, who will determine if disclosure in the manuscript is necessary.
  4. Authors have not signed any agreements with sponsors restricting their ability to publish both positive and negative results, or requiring sponsor approval before publication.
  5. Authors have reviewed the Manuscript Submission Guidelines and comply with the journal's conflict of interest policies.

Conflict of Interest Statement in Manuscripts

All manuscripts must include a Declaration of Conflicting Interests section at the end of the paper, positioned after the Acknowledgments and before Funding Statements, Notes (if any), and References. If no conflicts exist, authors must explicitly state:“The author(s) declare(s) no conflict of interest.”