What to include?

These guidelines apply to all 3 submission types summarised above: RESEARCH - CASE STUDIES - BEST PRACTICE

Some recommendations may not apply to your chosen piece of work so please take note. If you have any concerns about what unique information you to need to provide for your feature then please don’t hesitate to ask our submissions team for further guidance.

Title: A succinct and compelling title that summarises the title of your work draws in the reader.  Along with the promotional photo and 2-sentence summary, the title will be the first thing the reader sees both on website and on digests that subscribers to the website will receive.

Two-sentence summary: Provide a 2-sentence summary, that along with the title and promotional photo, will be what first engages the reader and makes them want to read the rest of your article.  Some hints: Do not repeat what the title says – they will be read together and they should complement each other.  Consider phrasing the 2-sentence summary as a pitch or hook to get your reader’s interest. The 2-sentence summary is like an elevator pitch - you are in a lift with someone and you have the equivalent of 2-sentences to explain your story to them.

Article length: Shorter is better – remember your reader can go to the full-length peer-reviewed journal article if they want all the details.  Aim for about 500 to a maximum of about 750 words.

Structure and content: If you haven’t written a blog-style article before, please take the time to have a look at some of the ‘how to write a blog’ articles on the internet.  As a guide, include a short paragraph to introduce the study and its aims, a very brief summary of the methods, and then the relevant results and important conclusions.  

Remember that you don’t need to summarise the entire peer-reviewed paper in the summary – pick the interesting, pertinent and relevant aspects. If the paper has two or three interesting aspects – consider writing two or three research summaries.

As a guide, keep sentences uncomplicated, paragraphs short, use bullet points and headings and sub-headings to organise your ‘story’ and focus on summarising the research findings in a jargon-free and interesting way.

Headings: Use headings to shape your blog and that describe the content, rather than the section. For example – rather than using “Introduction” or “Results” as headings, use a phrase that describes the content, such as “Investigating causes of wildlife-vehicle collisions” or “Larger-sized animals need bigger underpasses”.

Feature photo: Include photo (that is either yours or you have permission to use) that will be the first graphic that readers will see. Other photos can be included within the feature. We recommend all photos to be at least 1500 x 1000, 72dpi.

Language: All articles are published in English, and we encourage authors to provide a version translated into another language(s) that is relevant to the region where the work was undertaken. Do not provide this translated version when you submit your article, but we will request the translated version when your article has been reviewed and accepted.

Documents (Papers, graphics, maps, videos and other media): Our features allow a multi-media experience, and you should include a diversity of media in your story. If pictures tell a thousand words, then videos are even better!

Sources: Include the full details or a copy of the primary, peer-reviewed journal article you are summarising, as well as provide a hyperlink to it if it is open-access or available somewhere.  Ensure you are not violating any copyright laws.  If the blog has been published elsewhere and re-posted on TransportEcology.info, please make us aware so we can provide a hyperlink to the original source.