COPE Compliance

Sustainable Science Letters adheres to the guidelines and best practices established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE). We are committed to ensuring that all aspects of our publishing process meet the highest ethical standards.

Our editors, reviewers, and staff follow COPE's Core Practices, which include guidelines on:

• Allegations of misconduct
• Authorship and contributorship
• Complaints and appeals
• Conflicts of interest
• Data and reproducibility
• Ethical oversight
• Intellectual property
• Journal management
• Peer review processes
• Post-publication discussions and corrections

Research Misconduct Handling

Sustainable Science Letters takes allegations of research misconduct very seriously. Research misconduct includes fabrication, falsification, or plagiarism in proposing, performing, or reviewing research, or in reporting research results.

Reporting Misconduct

Concerns about research integrity should be reported to the Editor-in-Chief at info@rpmt-india.org. All allegations will be handled confidentially.

Investigation Process

When an allegation is received, the journal will:

1. Acknowledge receipt of the concern
2. Gather evidence and consult with editorial board members
3. Contact the authors for explanation
4. Reach a conclusion based on the evidence
5. Implement appropriate actions if misconduct is confirmed

Plagiarism Detection Policy

All manuscripts submitted to Sustainable Science Letters are screened for plagiarism using specialized software. This process helps ensure the originality of all published content.

If significant plagiarism is detected:

• Manuscripts may be rejected without review
• Authors will be notified with evidence of the plagiarism
• In extreme cases, authors' institutions may be informed
• Authors may be barred from future submissions

The journal recognizes that small amounts of textual similarity may occur (e.g., in methods sections or when defining established concepts). Such cases are evaluated on an individual basis.

Conflicts of Interest

All participants in the publication process must disclose any potential conflicts of interest that could inappropriately influence their actions or judgments.

For Authors

Authors must disclose:

• Financial interests (e.g., funding sources, employment, consultancies, stock ownership)
• Personal relationships that could influence their work
• Academic competition or intellectual beliefs that might bias interpretation
• Any role of study sponsors in study design, data collection, analysis, or interpretation

For Reviewers and Editors

Reviewers and editors should recuse themselves when they:

• Have collaborated with any author in the past 3 years
• Share an institutional affiliation with any author
• Have a financial interest in the subject matter
• Have a personal relationship with any author

Informed Consent for Human/Animal Research

Research involving human participants or animals must comply with relevant ethical standards and regulations:

Human Participants

For research involving human participants, authors must:

• Indicate that the study was approved by an institutional review board or ethics committee
• Confirm that informed consent was obtained from all participants
• Ensure participant privacy and confidentiality
• Comply with the Declaration of Helsinki and other relevant guidelines

Animal Research

For research involving animals, authors must:

• Confirm approval by an institutional animal care and use committee
• State that the study complied with relevant regulations and guidelines
• Provide details on animal welfare considerations
• Justify the species used and the number of animals required