Community Empowerment and Learning Journal (CELJ) is a peer-reviewed open-access journal that publishes high-quality scholarly and practice-based articles in the fields of community development, empowerment, and applied learning. Authors must follow the submission guidelines below to ensure a smooth and standardized editorial process.

Manuscript Types

• Original Research Articles (max. 12 pages)
• Systematic or Literature Reviews (max. 16 pages)
• Case Studies and Field Reports
• Best Practices and Model Descriptions
• Short Communications
• All submissions must be original, unpublished, and not under review elsewhere.

Language and Formatting

• Manuscripts must be written in academic English with proper grammar and clarity.
• Use Times New Roman, 11 pt, single-spaced, justified.
• Format: A4 paper size, single-column layout.
• Margins: 2.5 cm (left); 2.0 cm (top, right, bottom).
• Use the official CELJ manuscript template available on the journal website.
• Headings follow a numeric system (1., 2., 2.1, etc.) with Title Case and bold style.

Manuscript Structure

All manuscripts must follow the IMRaD or community practice-based structure:

• Title Page: Max. 15 words, Times New Roman 16 pt, Bold, Left-aligned
• Author Information: Full names, institutional affiliations, ORCID ID; corresponding author with email address
• Abstract: 150–250 words, structured (Background, Objective, Method, Results, Impact), written as a single paragraph
• Keywords: Five (5) specific keywords, separated by commas
• Main Sections:
  1. Introduction
  2. Method or Implementation Approach
  3. Findings, Outcomes, and Discussion
  4. Conclusion and Recommendations
• Acknowledgements (if applicable)
• Conflict of Interest Statement
• References

Tables, Figures, and Equations

• Embed tables and figures within the manuscript body (not as separate files).
• Figures must be high-resolution (minimum 300 dpi).
• Tables and figures should be numbered consecutively and have descriptive captions.
• Use MS Equation Editor or MathType to format equations, with numbering (if applicable).
• Ensure all tables/figures/equations are referenced in the main text.

Ethical Considerations

• Community-based studies must obtain ethical approval from an appropriate committee, where required.
• Informed consent or community agreement must be stated for participatory activities involving people.
• Authors should follow local and international ethical standards for community engagement and data use.

Reference Guidelines

• Use the APA 7th Edition referencing style.
• Minimum: 20 references for original articles; 40 for reviews.
• At least 70% must come from peer-reviewed journals or scholarly books published within the last 5–10 years.
• Use reference management tools (e.g., Mendeley, Zotero, EndNote).
• All references must be cited in-text and listed alphabetically in the reference section.

Submission and Review Process

• Submissions are made through the online journal system (OJS).
• All manuscripts undergo a double-blind peer review by at least two independent reviewers.
• The review process typically takes 4–6 weeks.
• No Article Processing Charges (APCs) or submission fees.

Plagiarism Policy

CELJ enforces a strict anti-plagiarism policy. All submissions will be screened using plagiarism detection tools (e.g., Turnitin). Manuscripts with more than 25% similarity will be rejected immediately.

Copyright and Licensing

Authors retain copyright. All articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0) license.

Contact

For questions regarding submissions or author support, please contact celj@kadewaguru.org.