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  Cluster 9: Public Policy, Governance & Administration

Best Journals for Environmental Policy Research (2026)

Environmental policy research examines how governments design, implement, and evaluate policies to protect the natural environment, address climate change, and transition to sustainable economies. From carbon pricing and emissions trading to biodiversity policy and circular economy strategies, environmental policy is among the most complex and consequential policy domain in contemporary governance.

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What to Look for When Choosing a Journal

Before submitting your research, evaluate journals on these key criteria:

  • Environmental scope — climate, biodiversity, pollution, waste, water, and energy policy
  • Policy instrument focus — regulatory standards, market-based instruments, and voluntary agreements
  • Open access to reach environment ministries, climate policy analysts, and green economy advocates
  • Fast review for environmental policy research tied to active climate and environmental reform
  • Acceptance of comparative environmental policy research and policy instrument evaluation
  • Coverage of both domestic environmental policy and international climate governance

Recommended Journals — Cluster 9: Public Policy, Governance & Administration

All journals below are published by Keith Publications — open access, peer-reviewed, and indexed for global discoverability.

  • Public Policy and Administration Studies Journal (PPASJ)

    Public policy analysis, public administration, governance reform, government management, policy implementation, public sector innovation, and the study of governmental institutions and their effectiveness.

    Review: 2–4 weeks Open Access DOI (CrossRef) Google Scholar
    Public Policy Public Administration Governance Reform Policy Implementation
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Fast Publication: Keith Publications journals complete initial review within 2–5 business days and full peer review within 2–4 weeks. Articles are published online within 5–10 days of acceptance — making us one of the fastest open access publishers in public policy and governance research.

Core Research Areas in Environmental Policy

Keith Publications environmental policy journals accept research on: climate policy instruments — carbon taxes, emissions trading, and clean energy standards; renewable energy policy — feed-in tariffs, auctions, and grid integration policy; biodiversity policy — protected area governance, species conservation, and nature-based solutions; pollution policy — air quality standards, water pollution regulation, and chemical safety; circular economy policy — extended producer responsibility, product design regulation, and waste policy; land use and agriculture policy — sustainable agriculture, deforestation governance, and land use change; transport decarbonisation policy — electric vehicle policy, public transport investment, and congestion pricing; just transition policy — managing the social costs of fossil fuel phase-out; and environmental justice — distributional effects of environmental policy and the politics of environmental equity.

Carbon Pricing: The Keystone Environmental Policy Instrument

Carbon pricing — whether through carbon taxes or emissions trading systems — is widely regarded by economists as the most cost-effective policy instrument for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Yet carbon pricing has proven politically contentious in many democracies, with the French gilets jaunes protests, Australian carbon tax repeal, and US carbon pricing failures illustrating the distributional and political challenges of pricing carbon. Research on carbon pricing design, incidence distribution, revenue use, border adjustment mechanisms (like the EU's CBAM), public acceptability, and political feasibility is urgently needed. Keith Publications provides an open access platform for this important environmental policy research.

Tips to Maximise Your Acceptance Chances

  1. Align your research with the journal's scope — confirm your policy domain and methodology fit the journal's published focus.
  2. Establish clear analytical framework — policy and governance journals expect a clearly stated analytical or theoretical framework.
  3. Demonstrate policy relevance — make the policy implications of your research explicit and actionable.
  4. Rigorous methodology — clearly describe your data sources, case selection, analytical approach, and limitations.
  5. Follow formatting guidelines exactly — non-compliant manuscripts often face desk rejection without review.
  6. Draw clear conclusions — public policy research should end with clear, evidence-based conclusions for policy and practice.
  7. Use current and relevant sources — include recent policy documents, official statistics, and academic literature from the last 5 years.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which journals are best for environmental policy research?
The Public Policy and Administration Studies Journal (PPASJ) from Keith Publications is among the best for environmental policy research, covering climate policy, carbon pricing, renewable energy policy, biodiversity governance, and the political economy of environmental policy reform.
Can I publish research on carbon taxes and emissions trading systems?
Yes. Research on carbon pricing design, carbon tax incidence and distributional effects, emissions trading system (ETS) effectiveness, the EU ETS reform, and border carbon adjustments (CBAM) is within scope for Keith Publications environmental policy journals.
Is research on the just transition and fossil fuel phase-out policies accepted?
Yes. Research on just transition policy design, the social and economic impacts of coal and oil phase-out on communities, worker retraining programmes, and the governance of fossil fuel subsidy reform is within scope for PPASJ.
How quickly can environmental policy research be published at Keith Publications?
Keith Publications journals complete initial screening within 2–5 business days and full peer review within 2–4 weeks — fast enough for environmental policy researchers working on active climate and environmental reform contexts.

Related Research Guides

Explore other research journal guides in the Public Policy, Governance & Administration cluster:

Ready to Publish Your Research?

Submit your public policy, governance, or public administration manuscript to Keith Publications today. Fast peer review, open access, and global indexing — get your work published within weeks.

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