Call for papers!

Background

The National Invasive Species Council (NISC) has been directed to undertake a National Invasive Species Assessment (NISA) for the United States. Executive Order 13751 indicates that NISC shall “undertake a National Invasive Species Assessment…that evaluates the impact of invasive species on major U.S. assets, including food security, water resources, infrastructure, the environment, human, animal, and plant health, natural resources, cultural identity and resources, and military readiness, from ecological, social, and economic perspectives.” The NISC Secretariat is thus seeking contributions to the first version of the NISA. This will be accomplished through a special issue of the journal Biological Invasions.

Manuscript Guidelines

Submissions must meet the following criteria:

A) Take the form of a review article rather than serve as a report on original research;

B) Focus on invasive species impacts on a specific topic areas (options below) at the national scale;

• Food security
• Water security
• Energy security
• Infrastructure (the human-built environment)
• Fish, wildlife, and habitat (the environment)
• Cultural resources and identity
• Military capacity and readiness
• Outdoor recreation
• Employment
• Human Health

To the extent feasible, each topic area should be addressed from ecological, social, and economic perspectives. We recognize that some of the topic areas are inter-related, and will work with authors to produce an internally-consistent, well-integrated collection of papers.

C) Address these questions (as a minimum) in the following order:

1. How is this sector an asset to national priorities and/or security?
2. From a legal and policy perspective, what institution(s) manage this sector at national and subnational levels?
3. What are the observed direct and indirect impacts of invasive species on this sector?
4. How do the impacts vary through time and across the country (including by ecosystem type and regional jurisdictions)?
5. What mechanisms (technical, institutional, legal) are currently in place to minimize impacts or anticipated impacts? How effective are they?
6. What recommendations do you have for federal leadership (including state, territorial, and tribal cooperation) to address knowledge gaps, advance scientific and technical solutions, and/or minimize any regulatory barriers to addressing invasive species that impact this sector? 

D) Be the work of author teams that clearly have the:

• Topic area expertise
• Capacity to frame scientific information for review and consideration by senior policy makers
• Willingness to adhere to the author guidelines as laid out by Biological Invasions, as well as within this call for submissions

We particularly welcome proposals that reflect an innovative approach to the mobilization of relevant information and institutional partnerships.

Final Publications

The final collection of papers will be compiled into a special issue of Biological Invasions.  The NISC Secretariat may summarize the findings in briefing papers, fact sheets, and other materials for government leadership.

Timeline for Proposing Author Teams

• October 20, 2017: Paper/author team proposals due.
  
• November 10, 2017: Notification to accepted author teams.
• May 4, 2018: Sector-specific submissions due.
• June 1, 2018: Target date for reviews and response to authors.
• Aug 1, 2018: Target date for revisions and response to reviews.
• Aug 31, 2018: Target date for final decisions on accepted papers.
• Oct. 1, 2018: Page proofs complete and ready for publication

Guest Editors and Review Team

Drs. Jamie K. Reaser and Jeffrey T. Morisette will serve as guest editors, with support from Jason Kirkey (NISC Secretariat Director of Publications). A set of four reviewers will be selected for each topic area.  Author teams are required to identify at least two independent reviewers for each submission.

Manuscript Proposals

Author teams are asked to submit a short proposal using the "Manuscript Proposal" form directly below. The deadline for submission is October 20, 2017.

Additional Information

Any questions or request for additional information can be directed to:

Jeff Morisette, jeffrey_morisette@ios.doi.gov, 970-787-0008.

Please use the Manuscript proposal submission form directly below to propose to this special issue...