Journal of Cleaner Production

Journal of Cleaner Production
Title	Journal of Cleaner Production
Discipline	Environmental science; Sustainability
Abbreviation	J. Clean. Prod.
Publisher	Elsevier
Country	Netherlands
Frequency	Biweekly
History	1993–present
Impact	11.072 (2021)

Journal of Cleaner Production is a peer-reviewed scientific journal focusing on research and practice related to environmental sustainability, industrial ecology, and sustainable development. The journal publishes original research, review articles, case studies, and policy analyses that intersect with topics addressed by institutions such as United Nations Environment Programme, European Commission, World Bank, International Energy Agency, and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Contributors often include researchers affiliated with universities like Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Cambridge, Tsinghua University, Imperial College London, and Delft University of Technology.

Overview

The journal covers interdisciplinary work bridging fields represented at conferences such as United Nations Climate Change Conference, World Sustainable Development Summit, Rio+20, C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group meetings, and Stockholm Environment Institute workshops. It serves audiences at research centres including National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Fraunhofer Society, CSIRO, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. Editorial emphasis aligns with agendas from Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, International Resource Panel, Green Climate Fund, Global Environment Facility, and professional bodies such as International Society for Industrial Ecology.

History and Development

Established in 1993 amid growing international initiatives like Earth Summit, the journal emerged contemporaneously with the expansion of programmes at United Nations Environment Programme and policy shifts exemplified by the Kyoto Protocol. Founding contributors included scholars active at institutions like Yale University, Stanford University, University of Oxford, McGill University, and University of Tokyo. Over its history the journal has responded to milestones such as the Paris Agreement, the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals, the proliferation of ISO 14001 standards, and the development of lifecycle assessment methodologies advanced at centres like PRé Consultants and European Commission Joint Research Centre. Publishing frequency increased as topics linked to circular economy debates, industrial transformations at General Electric and Siemens, and policy frameworks from European Commission evolved.

Scope and Topics Covered

Subject matter spans applied research and policy analyses that intersect with initiatives led by United Nations Industrial Development Organization, International Labour Organization, World Health Organization, Food and Agriculture Organization, and International Maritime Organization. Typical themes include life cycle assessment work connected to projects at Ellen MacArthur Foundation, sustainable supply chain analyses referencing firms such as Walmart, Unilever, and Toyota Motor Corporation, cleaner production case studies from regions like European Union, United States, China, India, and Brazil, and technology assessments related to renewable energy companies such as Vestas, Ørsted, and Tesla, Inc.. The journal also addresses regulatory and market instruments tied to Emissions Trading Scheme developments, REDD+ programmes, and standards bodies like International Organization for Standardization.

Editorial Structure and Peer Review

The journal is published by Elsevier and overseen by an editor-in-chief supported by an international editorial board with members from institutions such as University of California, Berkeley, National University of Singapore, ETH Zurich, Seoul National University, and Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. Manuscripts undergo peer review processes consistent with practices at journals like Nature Sustainability, Environmental Science & Technology, Ecological Economics, Resources, Conservation and Recycling, and Journal of Industrial Ecology. Peer reviewers are typically researchers affiliated with organisations including European Environment Agency, United Nations Industrial Development Organization, and national academies such as the Royal Society and the National Academy of Sciences.

Abstracting and Indexing

The journal is indexed in major databases and services comparable to those indexing titles like Science, Nature, PNAS, Scopus, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and Dimensions. It appears in citation indexes used by organisations such as Clarivate Analytics and metrics aggregated by platforms like Scopus and Altmetric. Libraries and consortia including JSTOR, ProQuest, EBSCO, and university systems at Harvard University, University of Oxford, and University of Tokyo provide access and catalogue the journal for research and teaching.

Impact and Reception

Scholarly impact is reflected in citation metrics and usage by policy-makers at bodies like European Commission Directorate-General for Environment, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, World Bank Group, International Monetary Fund, and national ministries including Minister of Environment (Chile), Ministry of Ecology and Environment (China). The journal has been cited in reports from think tanks such as World Resources Institute, Chatham House, Brookings Institution, International Institute for Environment and Development, and Resources for the Future. Academic reception parallels that for leading sustainability journals like Nature Climate Change and Energy Policy.

Notable Articles and Special Issues

The journal has published influential articles and themed issues addressing topics related to the Sustainable Development Goals, lifecycle assessment methodologies used by European Commission Joint Research Centre, circular economy frameworks promoted by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, decarbonisation pathways aligned with Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change scenarios, and urban sustainability case studies involving New York City, Beijing, London, São Paulo, and Copenhagen. Special issues have been guest-edited by scholars active at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Cambridge, University of Tokyo, Tsinghua University, and policy experts from United Nations Environment Programme and World Bank.

Category:Environmental journals Category:Elsevier academic journals