Second Print Edition of Youth STEM Matters - Submit Your Research, Ideas & Innovations!
We’re excited to announce the second print edition of Youth STEM Matters will be published in 2022! The edition will have a Youth for our Ocean theme, in celebration of the 2021-2030 UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, and will be packed with young people’s research, ideas and innovations.
Our ocean plays a key role in food systems, health, tackling the climate crisis, and the economy - a healthy, clean and productive ocean is critical to achieving all 17 of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. That’s why the UN designated 2021-2030 as the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.
Young people have told us that ocean-related issues are high on their agenda, with SDG 14: Life Below Water being one of the most popular SDGs for article submissions at Youth STEM Matters. With the vision of the decade being ‘the science we need for the ocean we want’, we believe that it’s critical that ‘we’ includes young people. So, by theming our second print edition on ‘Youth for our Ocean’ we’re creating an even bigger platform for young people to be heard during this Decade of Ocean Science.
“We’ve seen a big interest from youth globally in protecting our ocean, and the role it plays in sustainable development. We’re therefore thrilled to be able to create an entire print edition focussing on giving a platform which shines the spotlight on ocean science for sustainable development to young people during the UN Ocean Decade!”
If you’re a young person who wants to share your STEM project, or write an article on an issue you care about, read on to find out how you can get involved!
If you’re a company or organisation who wants to empower youth to use STEM to tackle the world’s biggest challenges, email us at mhairi@youthstem2030.org to learn more about partnership opportunities.
Submit Your STEM Project
Have you done a STEM based research project? Whether it was for a science fair, a STEM competition, a qualification, or just for fun, if you want to take your project further and share it with the world, we want to hear from you! As part of this opportunity, you’ll receive detailed feedback on your project from our experienced team of Reviewers, helping you to make your project the best it can be. But you’ll also need to be prepared to work hard (especially throughout the months of February 2022 - May 2022) on your article to make it publication-ready!
Anyone (individuals or groups) aged 22 & under can submit either Original Research or a Review Article, and we’re looking for submissions covering all STEM disciplines which relate to at least one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. With our oceans theme for Issue 2, we’re especially keen to receive submissions which have a link to SDG 14: Life Below Water, but submissions covering any topic area are welcome!
We’re not looking for articles to be perfect when they’re submitted (our team can help with that!), but please ensure you follow our submission guidance to avoid any delays and ensure your article has the best possible chance of being selected to feature in the print edition.
There is a submission fee of $30 for Original Research and Review Articles, but if you’d find this cost a barrier to submitting, please complete our form by 15th January 2022 to apply for a funded submission.
To be considered for this print edition, articles must be submitted by 15th January 2022.
Write an Article
Raise awareness of the issues YOUth care about by writing an article to feature in Issue 2 of Youth STEM Matters.
Every article in Youth STEM Matters is written for young people, by young people. We’re looking for a diverse group of young people (age 22 & under, with individual or group submissions accepted) from around the world to raise your voice on the issues that matter to you. You don’t need any previous experience in writing articles to submit your work to Youth STEM Matters - we’re looking for young people who have something to say and are willing to work hard alongside our team to write, edit and polish their article, so it looks great in our print edition!
There’s 6 different styles of Science Communication Article to choose from - Feature, Case Study, Experience, Perspective, News and Interview - and you can find out more about each style here.
Submissions covering any of the SDGs are welcome, but we’re particularly keen to receive submissions relating to any of the following broad topics:
Articles which relate to one of the 10 Ocean Decade Challenges
The role of STEM in ocean recovery & conservation
The importance of our ocean to human life and health, even if you’re in a landlocked country or area
Community science (sometimes called citizen science) or open data and our ocean
How the ocean benefits our health and wellbeing
Climate change and our ocean
Marine pollution
Food security and our ocean
The role of technology in ocean conservation efforts
Articles which shine the spotlight on an issue within your local community, and how STEM is providing a solution
Young people who are making a difference through STEM
Something else - we’re very open to your ideas, so long as they’re linked to STEM and at least one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals!
To submit, all you need is a proposal (the full article will come later!), so these broad topic suggestions are best used as starting points - use them to explore the specific issues that exist, and then research deeper into these to decide what you want your article to focus on. The best submissions will focus on a specific niche topic/issue and will provide a clear outline of how the author(s) intend to approach their article. All articles should provide a new and unique insight into the issue, for example through providing the author’s own perspective, raising awareness of an issue that is rarely spoken about, or approaching a topic from a new angle.
Anticipated Timescales for Science Communication Articles:
Deadline for proposal submissions - 15th January 2022
Applicants informed of outcome - 20th January 2022
First draft due - 3rd February 2022
Revisions sent to author - 28th February 2022
Second draft due - 14th March 2022
Timescales of any subsequent revisions/drafts to be agreed as required
NB: Unlike our regular submissions procedure, our call for submissions for the first print edition is a competitive process. As we are anticipating a high volume of submissions, authors who are invited to submit a first draft of their article are not necessarily guaranteed to be selected for the print edition. However, we are committed to working with all authors who reach this stage to get their work published in Youth STEM Matters digitally, providing it meets our publication criteria in terms of format, scientific accuracy and quality of communication.
Questions about getting involved?
