SIT launches open-access Journal of Critical Global Issues
Publication Date: March 11, 2024
Publication Location: BRATTLEBORO, Vermont
Contact: Kate Casa | [email protected]
BRATTLEBORO, Vermont – School for International Training has launched the first edition of an open-access, peer-reviewed digital publication, the Journal of Critical Global Issues.
The title of the journal reflects SIT’s multidisciplinary approach to graduate and undergraduate programs, which are centered on a framework of seven critical global issues: climate and the environment; development and inequality; education and social change; geopolitics and power; global health and well-being; identity and human resilience; and peace and justice.
“The Journal of Critical Global Issues is committed to the open dissemination of knowledge and aims to serve as a forum of scholarship that engages with critical global issues from diverse and pluriversal perspectives,” said SIT President Dr. Sophie Howlett. During her tenure, Dr. Howlett has re-focused SIT as a global research university and expanded its international network of scholars and practitioners.
“The Journal centers respectful communities, intercultural understanding, social justice and inclusion, and sustainability," said Dr. Melissa Whatley, editor-in-chief. "In particular, the Journal of Critical Global Issues aspires to carve a space for voices from the Global South."
Articles in the first edition represent the journal’s range; subjects include campus internationalization and equity initiatives; Indigenous participation in research; integration of former Rwandan refugees in Cameroon; access to higher education for China’s minority population; assessment and impact of flood damage in a Himalayan village; social involvement in the revival of Einkorn wheat in Turkey; and an environmental assessment of codfish consumption in Portugal.
Authors in the first edition include International Honors Program alumna Amanda Sabin, SIT Nepal alumnus Ronan Wallace, and SIT Portugal alumna Ayla Frost. Frost’s article is the result of a collaborative effort that also included SIT Portugal Academic Director Dr. Catia Magro and SIT Program Coordinator Joana Dionisio, along with others.
The journal’s editorial board comprises SIT faculty from across global regions who represent a range of perspectives and disciplines. In addition, an advisory board ensures ethical processes and a diversity of peer reviewers for submissions. Advisory board members are associated with Seton Hall University and Stanford University in the United States, Universidad Mayor in Chile, Al Akhawayn University and Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, both in Morocco. JCGI is now accepting submissions for the second issue on a rolling basis.
The Journal of Critical Global Issues makes its debut as School for International Training celebrates its 60th anniversary this year. Officially established in 1964, SIT began as a training center for the first cohorts of outbound U.S. Peace Corps volunteers. In the ensuing decades, SIT has developed an accredited Graduate Institute and built a respected study abroad organization with courses, learning centers, faculty, and staff across seven continents.
In addition to nearly 80 study abroad programs, SIT delivers accredited graduate programs at learning centers around the world and in a hybrid format. Two new PhD programs, in International Relations and Sustainability, are scheduled to open in 2025.