1. Editorial Policy

Now that you've chosen Journal of Building Design and Environment for your submission, before publishing with us, please familiarize yourself with our Editorial Policies and the following a few important requirements.

1.1 Aim and Scope

The manuscript's topic must align within the journal's scope. For detailed information, please refer to the Aims and Scope.

1.2 Open Access

Journal of Building Design and Environment is an open access journal where all content is freely accessible to users and their institutions without any charges. Users are permitted to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, link to the full texts of articles, or use them for any other lawful purpose without needing prior permission from the publisher or author.

1.3 Licensing and Copyright

Journal of Building Design and Environment is published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Authors retain the copyright of their work and agree to make their original works freely available for use, copying, and redistribution in all formats without needing permission, provided that proper citation is given to the authors and the original source.

1.4 Peer Review

Journal of Building Design and Environment employs a single-blind peer review model, meaning that while reviewers’ identities are hidden from authors, the authors' identities are known to the reviewers. All accepted articles undergo a rigorous and thorough review process to assess their novelty, scientific content, academic integrity, and other criteria. Please refer to Editorial Policies for further details on peer review.

1.5 Article Processing Charges

Journal of Building Design and Environment adopts open access publishing model. When a paper is accepted for publication, authors are required to pay Article Processing Charges (APCs) to cover editorial and production costs. Until the end of 2028, all APCs will be covered by the publisher Science Exploration. For more details, please refer to the Science Exploration Article Processing Charges.

1.6 Archiving Policy

All published contents will be archived on the Portico platform to ensure long-term digital preservation.

1.7 Repository Policy

Journal of Building Design and Environment allows authors to deposit versions of their work in an institutional or other repository of their choice without embargo.

1.8 AI and AI-assisted Technologies Policy

Generative AI and AI-assisted technologies are influencing and transforming academic research and paper writing. To maintain research integrity, prevent academic misconduct, and ensure the authenticity, accuracy, and transparency of the research process and results, Journal of Building Design and Environment makes the statement regarding the use of AI in scientific writing: 1) When submitting a manuscript, authors must clearly describe the use of AI or AI-assisted technologies during the research or manuscript preparation process, including large language models, chatbots (such as ChatGPT), or image generation tools; 2) AI cannot be used to write the entire paper or significant parts of it (such as research methods, results, and interpretation of results). All content that constitutes scientific contribution or intellectual labor should be completed by the authors. If the main content of the paper is completed using AI, the editorial office will treat it as academic misconduct; 3) AI or AI-assisted technologies do not qualify for authorship and should not be listed as authors or co-authors in the manuscript. Similarly, they should not be listed as authors or co-authors in the references.

2. Preparation for Submission

2.1 Cover Letter

Each submission must be accompanied by a cover letter. A cover letter should briefly introduce the study, highlight its significance, and explain why it is suitable for the journal. It should include the manuscript title, a statement confirming the manuscript's originality and that it is not under consideration elsewhere, and any relevant disclosures or conflicts of interest. Additionally, if the manuscript is being submitted to a specific Special Issue, specify its exact name in the cover letter; if the manuscript was presented in part or whole at a conference, provide details of the conference including its name, time, and location. If applicable, it should mention any suggested reviewers or individuals to exclude. For example: 
Dear [Editor's Name],
We are pleased to submit our manuscript titled "[Manuscript Title]" for consideration in [Journal Name] for the Special Issue on "[Special Issue Name]." This study [briefly describe the study and its significance], and we believe it aligns well with the journal's focus on [journal's focus or field].
We confirm that this manuscript is original, not under consideration elsewhere, and there are no conflicts of interest. Part of this work was presented at the [Conference Name], held from [Conference Date] in [Conference Location].
We suggest [Reviewer Names] as potential reviewers due to their expertise in [relevant field]. We kindly request excluding [Names to Exclude] due to potential conflicts of interest.
Thank you for considering our submission. We look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]  
[Your Affiliation]  
[Your Contact Information]

2.2 Article Types

Journal of Building Design and Environment accepts Research Article, Review, Short Communication, Perspective, Technical Note, and Editorial. Please prepare your manuscript according to the writing requirements for each manuscript type listed in the table below.

2.3 Manuscript Structure

2.3.1 Title

The title of the manuscript should be concise, specific, and relevant. It should clearly state the main result or conclusion of the manuscript, omitting implicit terms and avoiding abbreviations. If gene or protein names are included, use the abbreviated names rather than the full names.

2.3.2 Authors and Affiliations

Authors should be listed with their full names, including initials of middle names if provided. Institutional addresses for all authors must be included. At least one author must be designated as the corresponding author and provide email. Authors are encouraged to provide their Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) during submission. Affiliations should be formatted with superscript numbers linked to each author's name, detailing the department, institute/university, city, city zip codes, state (where applicable), and country. For example:
Umapada Pal^1
1Institute of Physics, Autonomous University of Puebla, Puebla 72570, Mexico.

2.3.3 Abstract

The Abstract is unstructured and should provide a brief yet comprehensive summary of the entire paper. It should clearly state the objective or research question of the study; briefly describe the methods used to achieve the objectives, including any specific architectural analysis techniques, tools, or frameworks; summarize the key findings or outcomes of the research; and highlight the main conclusions or implications of the findings for the field of architecture.
The abstract should be concise (typically 150-250 words) and written in a way that allows readers to quickly understand the essence of the study without needing to read the full paper. Avoid using jargon, citations, or detailed statistics.

2.3.4 Keywords

Typically, 3-8 keywords should be provided.

2.3.5 Main Body

Different manuscripts types are organized with distinct sections of content. Please consult the Manuscript Types to ensure the inclusion of appropriate sections in your submissions.

2.3.5.1 Introduction

The introduction should provide a clear background to the research topic, highlighting its importance and relevance in the field. It should: 
● Contextualize the study: Provide a brief overview of the current state of knowledge or practice relevant to the study. Mention any key theories, principles, or previous research that sets the stage for the study.
● Identify gaps: Highlight any gaps in the existing literature or unresolved issues that the research aims to address.
● Research question or hypothesis: Clearly state the main research question or hypothesis that the study seeks to investigate. This should be directly tied to the identified gaps or issues.
● Objectives: Outline the specific objectives of the research and what it aims to achieve.

The introduction should engage the reader by explaining why the research is necessary and how it contributes to the advancement of knowledge or practice.

2.3.5.2 Methods

The methods section should provide a detailed description of the research design and methodologies used to conduct the study. It should include:
● Research design: Specify whether the study is qualitative, quantitative, or mixed-methods and justify the choice.
● Data collection: Describe how data was collected, including experiments, or simulations. For architecture, this could involve site visits, design evaluations, user studies, or computational modeling.
● Materials and tools: List any specific tools, software, or materials used in the study, such as CAD software, models, or analytical frameworks.
● Procedure: Outline the step-by-step process followed during the research, ensuring that it is detailed enough for replication by other researchers.
● Data analysis: Explain the methods used to analyze the data, such as statistical analysis, thematic analysis, or visual assessment techniques.
● This section should be clear and detailed, allowing readers to understand exactly how the research was conducted and ensuring the study’s reproducibility.

2.3.5.3 Results

The Results section should present the findings of the study in a clear and logical order, without any interpretation or speculation. It should:
● Present data clearly: Use tables, figures, charts, or diagrams to present data effectively. These visual elements should be easy to understand and directly related to the key findings. This might include site analysis diagrams, simulation results, or survey data.
● Report findings in a logical sequence: Present the results in a logical order that follows the research questions or hypotheses outlined in the introduction. This could involve presenting data from different phases of the research or comparing different studies or models.
● Quantitative and qualitative data: For studies involving quantitative data, provide clear statistical results, such as means, percentages, confidence intervals, or p-values. For qualitative studies, summarize the main themes or insights derived from the data, supported by relevant examples or quotes.
● Avoid interpretation: The Results section should strictly report the data without any interpretation or discussion. Reserve any analysis or speculation for the Discussion section.
● Highlight key findings: Emphasize the most significant findings that directly relate to the research questions or objectives. Ensure that the data presented is comprehensive enough to support the conclusions drawn later in the paper.

2.3.5.4 Discussion

The Discussion section is where you interpret the results and explore their implications in the context of the research questions and the broader field. It should:
● Interpret findings: Explain what the results mean in relation to the research questions or hypotheses. Discuss whether the findings support or contradict existing theories, practices, or studies in the field.
● Contextualize results: Place the findings within the context of the current research state. Compare your results with those of similar studies, highlighting any consistencies, differences, or unexpected outcomes.
● Implications for practice and theory: Discuss the practical implications of your findings for practice, policy, or design. Explain how the results can influence real-world decisions, design strategies, or future research directions.
● Identify limitations: Acknowledge any limitations of the study that could affect the interpretation of the results. This might include sample size limitations, methodological constraints, or external factors that could have influenced the data.
● Suggest future research: Offer recommendations for future research based on the findings and limitations of the current study. Suggest new research questions or methodologies that could further explore the topic or address any gaps identified.

2.3.5.5 Conclusion

The conclusion should succinctly summarize the main findings of the study and their significance. It should:
● Summarize key findings: Provide a brief recap of the main results and what they reveal about the research question or hypothesis.
● Contributions to the field: Emphasize the contributions of the study to architectural knowledge, theory, or practice. Mention any novel insights or design principles introduced by the research.
● Future directions: Suggest potential avenues for future research based on the findings, highlighting any new questions raised or gaps identified.
● Closing statement: End with a strong concluding remark that reinforces the importance of the study and its impact on the field. The conclusion should be concise and directly tied to the objectives and findings of the research.

2.3.6 Declaration

2.3.6.1 Acknowledgments

The Acknowledgments section typically acknowledges individuals or institutions that contributed to the study but do not meet authorship criteria. This may include research assistants, technical support, or colleagues who provided valuable feedback. It should also mention any permissions obtained for the use of copyrighted material. The tone is usually formal and appreciative, briefly noting each contributor's role or support in the research process.
Additionally, if any part of the manuscript's content has previously appeared online, such as in a thesis or preprint, it should be mentioned here and properly referenced in the reference list.
If there are no acknowledgments to make, this section should be omitted.

2.3.6.2 Author's Contribution

Each author should have contributed significantly to the conception, design, acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data, or the creation of new software used in the work, or substantively revised the manuscript. Contributions should be indicated using Surname and Initials of Forename.
For example:
Data analysis and interpretation: Pal U, Li M
Article conception and design: Tian P, Bella F.
If an article is single-authored, please state "The author contributed solely to the article." in this section.

2.3.6.3 Conflicts of Interest

The Conflicts of Interest section should disclose any financial or personal relationships that could potentially bias the study's findings or influence the authors' interpretation. Authors should explicitly state whether they have received funding, honoraria, or fees from organizations that may benefit from the research outcomes, or if they hold any patents or have financial interests related to the study topic. If no conflicts of interest exist, authors should explicitly state "The authors declare no conflicts of interest." Transparency in disclosing potential conflicts ensures trustworthiness and integrity in biomedical research publications. Some authors may be restricted by confidentiality agreements; in such cases, authors should declare "All authors declare that they are bound by confidentiality agreements preventing disclosure of conflicts of interest in this work."

2.3.6.4 Ethical Approval

Research involving human subjects, human materials, human data, and animals must adhere to the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki and state that the study protocol was reviewed and approved by an appropriate ethics committee or institutional review board (IRB), including the name of the board and the approval number if applicable. 
If this issue is not applicable to the manuscript, please indicate "Not applicable".

2.3.6.5 Consent to Participate

This section should mention that consent to participate was obtained from all participants or their legal representatives, ensuring that participants were fully informed about the study's purpose, procedures, risks, and benefits before consenting to participate.
If this issue is not applicable to the manuscript, please indicate "Not applicable".

2.3.6.6 Funding Information

In this section, authors should acknowledge all financial support received for the study. This includes grants, fellowships, and any other funding sources. It should specify the names of the funding agencies, the grant numbers, and any relevant project titles. If no funding was received, this should be stated “None" in this section.

2.3.6.7 Copyright

Authors retain the copyright to their work under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, allowing readers to copy, distribute, and use the research with proper attribution and without any fees. Each article will display the declaration "© The Author(s) Year." Authors are required to sign a License to Publish agreement prior to formal publication.

2.3.7 References

Authors are required to adhere to the following guidelines to ensure uniformity in citations.

● The reference list should reflect the current state of knowledge in the field, avoiding bias, and should not contain an excessively high proportion of citations to the same authors or sources. 
● Citations of non-academic and non-peer-reviewed sources should be avoided or minimized.
● The number of references should be appropriate for the article type.
● Authors should refrain from citing sources that do not pertain to the article's scope or the journal's focus.
● Authors must verify the accuracy of all references, ensure that all links are functional, and adhere to the specified reference styles detailed below.
● In the main text, reference numbers should be placed in square brackets and in superscript.
● All references must be numbered in the order they are first cited in the text.
● Reference lists should only include published or accepted articles.
● A DOI should be provided to each reference (if applicable). 
● For article formats that permit the inclusion of unpublished data, submitted manuscripts, or personal communications, such references should be acknowledged in the main text. When supplementary information is available, it will be presented as footnotes.
● All citations of published works within the text, figures and tables should be included in the reference list. 
● For works that have been accepted but not yet published, use "Acceptance" instead of volume, issue, and page numbers. 
● If there are six or fewer authors, list all their names. If there are more than six authors, list the first six authors, followed by et al. 
● Given names of authors should be abbreviated (e.g., Wei D, Smith DW, etc.). 
● Use sentence case for article titles and book chapters (capitalize only the first word and proper nouns). Use title case for journal names and book titles (capitalize all major words).

Please refer to the reference styles listed below for more information.

2.3.8 Supplementary Materials

Additional data and information that are not critical to the main text, or that are too large or incompatible with the current format, can be presented as supplementary materials alongside the published article. These materials will be part of the peer review process and are not formatted, so please ensure all information is presented clearly and that the files include appropriate headings. Figures and tables in the supplementary materials should be cited sequentially in the main text (e.g., Supplementary Figure/Table S1, Supplementary Figure/Table S2, etc.). The style of supplementary figures or tables must adhere to the same requirements as those for figures or tables in the main text. Acceptable file formats include:
Data sheet (Word, Excel, CSV, CDX, FASTA, PDF or Zip files)
Presentation (PowerPoint, PDF or Zip files)
Image (CDX, EPS, JPEG, PDF, PNG or TIF/TIFF)
Table (Word, Excel, CSV or PDF)

2.4 Manuscript Format

2.4.1 Format

The manuscript files can be in DOC, DOCX, or LaTeX formats. If submitting in DOC or DOCX format, files should not be locked or protected. If submitting in LaTeX format, please ensure all relevant manuscript files are uploaded: .tex file, PDF, and .bib file.

2.4.2 Language

Please prepare the manuscript in English.

2.4.3 Figure and Table Guidelines

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to use copyrighted material from other sources, including re-published, adapted, modified, or partial figures and images sourced from the internet. Authors must acquire the necessary licenses, adhere to citation requirements specified by third-party rights holders, and cover any associated fees.

2.4.3.1 Figures

Figures should be cited numerically in sequence (e.g., Figure 1, Figure 2) and placed after the paragraph where they are first referenced. Figures can be submitted in TIFF, PSD, or JPEG format with a resolution of 300-600 dpi. The figure caption should be positioned below the figure. Diagrams containing descriptive text (such as flow charts, coordinate diagrams, bar charts, line charts, and scatter plots) should be editable in Word, Excel, or PowerPoint formats.
Labels, numbers, letters, arrows, and symbols within figures should be clear, uniform in size, and contrast with the background. For figures with multiple panels, each panel should be distinctly labeled (A), (B), (C), etc. Symbols, arrows, numbers, or letters used for identification within illustrations must be clearly defined in the legend. If applicable, include explanations of internal scales (magnification) and staining methods in photomicrographs. All non-standard abbreviations should be clarified in the figure legend.
For LaTeX submissions, include figures in the provided PDF. Upon acceptance, Production Editor may request high-resolution files of figures in EPS, JPEG, or TIF/TIFF formats.

2.4.3.2 Tables

Tables should be cited in order and placed after the paragraph where they are first cited. The table caption should be positioned above the table and labeled sequentially (e.g., Table 1, Table 2). Tables must be provided in an editable format such as DOC or DOCX (images are unacceptable). Abbreviations and symbols used in tables should be explained in footnotes. Explanatory details should be also included in footnotes.

2.4.4 Abbreviations

Abbreviations must be defined upon their first appearance in the abstract, main text, and in figure or table captions, and should be used consistently thereafter. Minimize the use of abbreviations overall. Non-standard abbreviations are permitted only if they appear at least three times in the text. Commonly used abbreviations can be used without definition. Avoid using abbreviations in titles and keywords, except for those that are widely recognized.

2.4.5 Italics

Use italics for general terms such as vs., et al., statistical tests like t test, F test, U test; related coefficients as r, sample size as n, and probability as P.

2.4.6 Equations

Equations should be inserted into the text using an equation Editor in editable format, not as images.

2.4.7 Units

We encourage authors to use Standard International Units in all manuscripts. Please refer to SI Units.

2.4.8 Numbers

Numbers appearing at the beginning of sentences should be written out in English. When there are two or more numbers in a paragraph, they should be expressed as Arabic numerals. If there is only one number in a paragraph, numbers less than ten should be written in English, while numbers greater than ten should be expressed as Arabic numerals. For instance, 12345678 should be formatted as 12,345,678.

2.5 Language Editing

To be considered for publication in Journal of Building Design and Environment, manuscripts must adhere to international English language standards. Submissions should be written clearly and cohesively in high-quality English. Authors who are not native English speakers are encouraged to have their work reviewed or edited by a native speaker before submission.

2.6 Submission Link

Click the link to log in to system to submit your article: http://www.intellimanus.com/#/login?journalPath=jbde

3. Editorial Process

Submission will be handled as shown in the flowchart below. For detailed information, please refer to Editorial Process.

4. Contact us

Journal of Building Design and Environment Editorial Office:

Editorial Office Email: jbdejournal@sciexplor.com
For inquiries regarding submissions, editorial policies, or other matters related to Journal of Building Design and Environment, please contact us via email at the addresses provided above.