Dear Colleagues,

Sustainability sciences have proven crucial in supporting policy makers to make informed decisions. However, with regards to formulating scientifically supported resources policies that are equitable and sustainable, much work remains to be done to support the magnitude and urgency of transformation needed to match the sustainability challenge. This Special Issue aims to address this gap.

There is increasing awareness of the material requirements of the transition towards a sustainable socio-economic system, and the problematic dependency on long and fragile supply chains for these materials. This has been highlighted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, during which many countries were confronted with problems in obtaining medical supplies. Besides the security of supply, the environmental and social impacts of drastically increasing the production of certain materials should be considered, as should the need for rapid reductions in demand for other resources. Achieving this radical transition to sustainability would require us to address three tensions between sustainability sciences and resource policies:

• The scientific analysis of resource trends is often on a global scale, while the implementation of sustainability policies is more often on a local level;
• Translating urgent yet often/relatively abstract or conceptual results of scientific analysis to practical on-the-ground policies;
• Power dynamics between actors/institutions addressing the issues and drivers of damaging material consumption trends.
  

This Special Issue calls for papers that explore the intersection of environmental sciences and resource policy. We invite authors from all fields of science that fall under the broader umbrella of the environmental sciences, including, but not limited to, industrial ecology, ecological economics, and political economy.

We invite authors to submit literature reviews, policy analysis, and original research. We particularly welcome work that addresses the link between policy and sustainability science directly. We welcome both reviews of literature, and science-informed policy. Scientific studies are expected to discuss their policy relevance, implementation, and challenges directly. Methods can include both quantitative approaches (e.g., I/O, MFA, LCA, system dynamics, and agent-based modelling) and qualitative approaches (e.g., case studies or conceptual work addressing emerging policy fields such as circular economy). Policy studies are expected to reflect scientific advancements.

Dr. Benjamin Sprecher
Chief Guest Editor

Dr. Tomer Fishman
Dr. Lewis Akenji
Assistant Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• Radical sustainability transition
• Sustainable development
• Resource policy
• Energy policy
• Circular economy policy
• Environmental sciences
• Public engagement
• Science - policy interface
• Energy transitions
• Metabolic transitions
• Critical materials
• System dynamics
• Political economy
• Political ecology
• Power dynamics
• Institutional changes
• Supply disruptions
• Resource constraints