About the Journal
Focus and Scope
Madera y Bosques is a scientific journal that serves as a platform for disseminating scientific and technological research on forest products, forest management and conservation, forest ecology and related fields. It is intended for the scientific and academic communities, as well as students, professionals, and the general public interested in these topics. Manuscripts are accepted in Spanish, English, and Portuguese. Madera y Bosques is published by the Instituto de Ecología, A.C.; it is open access and does not charge publication fees. The journal operates on a rolling acceptance basis, and submissions are divided into four sections: scientific articles, scientific notes, literature reviews, and current affairs articles.
Scientific articles
Unpublished research papers describing experiments or field studies and their results on topics relevant to the journal, based on the scientific method and organized according to the format defined in the publication guidelines.
Scientific notes
Short, unpublished papers describing specific aspects of topics similar to those covered in scientific articles.
Literature reviews
State-of-the-art reviews on specialized topics in the context of published scientific works addressing the areas of interest covered by the journal.
Current affairs articles
Articles related to the journal’s general subject matter, of general interest, and covering current issues within the journal’s scope.
Publication frequency
Until 2017, Madera y Bosques was published semiannually or quarterly, with the possibility of an additional special issue. From 2018 through 2025, it was published continuously, maintaining three issues per year and an occasional special issue. Starting in 2025, the journal will continue to be published on a continuous basis, but with a single volume per year.
Peer Review policy
Peer review is conducted on a double-blind basis.
Manuscripts received for possible publication in Madera y Bosques will undergo three initial reviews: 1) compliance with the “Guidelines for Authors,” 2) similarity to previously published texts, and 3) quality of information presentation. In the event of non-compliance with the guidelines, and depending on the severity, specific corrections or major revisions may be requested, or the manuscript may even be rejected from the editorial process. The similarity check will be conducted by comparing the submitted manuscript's content with previously published information; if the similarity exceeds 50%, the manuscript will be deemed non-original and therefore rejected. Finally, during this initial review, the quality of the content’s presentation will be assessed: writing style, syntax, spelling, organization, equations, equation labeling, tables, diagrams, etc. If necessary, corrections will be requested in this regard, and the manuscript may proceed to the next stage of review once all requested corrections have been addressed. If necessary, the author will be asked to submit the document for professional style editing, and a strict deadline will be set for these revisions. If the deadline is not met or if the corrections are deemed insufficient, the manuscript will be rejected. If no corrections are needed, the manuscript will proceed to the next stage of review immediately. The date of receipt of the manuscript will be considered as the date on which the version that no longer requires such corrections is received.
Review of content relevance
Manuscripts that pass the initial review will undergo a review of content relevance and alignment with the journal’s scope and focus. This review will also take into account the relevance of the information presented, its consistency and coherence, the depth of the studies conducted, the clarity of the objectives and their relationship to the title and conclusions, the statistical basis, the organized presentation of relevant results, the inclusion of an in-depth discussion that goes beyond merely citing results from previous studies or a simple comparison of results without genuine analysis, and a conclusions section that is consistent with the title and the objectives of the work.
Peer Review
Manuscripts that meet the two review criteria described above will be assigned, on a double-blind basis, to at least two anonymous reviewers, who will indicate, at their discretion, whether the manuscript is accepted for publication without changes, with minor changes, whether it needs to be restructured, or whether it is not suitable for publication. The evaluation consists of filling out a form specific to the section in which the manuscript is intended to be published: a form for scientific articles or scientific notes, or a form for current affairs articles and review articles. Additionally, if the reviewer deems it relevant and necessary, they may include a file with comments and suggestions, either directly within the full text of the manuscript or as a separate document in any format. Reviewers are asked to submit a response within three weeks of receiving the manuscript for review.
Person responsible for the final decision
The editor-in-chief has the authority to make the final decision, taking into account the suggestions of the review panel, the co-editors, and the associate editors, as well as their own judgment.
Open Access policy
This journal provides immediate open access to its content, based on the principle that offering public free access to research contributes to a greater global exchange of knowledge. It does not charge publication fees and is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Artificial Intelligence use policy
Effective April 2026, Madera y Bosques is implementing a policy on the ethical use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the editorial process.
Authorship policy
If artificial intelligence is used at any stage of manuscript preparation, it is mandatory to declare this in a separate document, specifying the AI used, its version, the date of use, the context in which it was used, and the prompt provided. Manuscripts submitted for possible publication are screened for potential use of AI in text generation. If the use of AI in preparing the manuscript is detected and the required declaration is missing, the manuscript will be rejected.
The use of AI is permitted for editing the manuscript’s text. It is not permitted to generate figures, text, or data.
Peer Review policy
The use of AI in peer review is permitted, provided that:
- The reviewer ensures that the information contained in the manuscript will not be incorporated into the databases or information systems of the AI used.
- The AI-performed review focuses on formatting and compliance with the journal’s editorial guidelines and is verified by the reviewer.
- The substantive review is conducted solely and exclusively by the reviewer.
If AI is used during the review of the manuscript, the reviewer must specify the AI tool used, its version, the date it was used, the prompt(s) used, and how they ensure that the data and information in the manuscript have not been collected by the tool.
Digital preservation policy
The journal is committed to the preservation, accessibility, and permanent availability of the scientific content it publishes. To ensure long-term access to articles, metadata, and other editorial materials, it implements digital preservation strategies aligned with international standards and best practices in scientific communication.
PKP Preservation Network (PKP PN)
The journal participates in the PKP Preservation Network (PKP PN), a digital preservation service developed by the Public Knowledge Project (PKP) for journals using Open Journal Systems (OJS). PKP PN uses LOCKSS (Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe) and CLOCKSS (Controlled Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe) technology, which enables the creation of distributed and secure copies of published content across multiple preservation nodes. This system ensures the long-term preservation of articles and their recovery in the event of data loss, technical failures, or disruption of the journal’s services. To ensure their digital preservation, articles from the journal Madera y Bosques are archived in LOCKSS and CLOCKSS, thereby guaranteeing the journal a permanent and secure archive.
Commitment to permanent access
The journal adopts technical and organizational measures to ensure the preservation, authenticity, integrity, and continued accessibility of published content. Should the journal’s website become unavailable, the preservation mechanisms in place will allow for the retrieval and consultation of the preserved materials.
Persistent Identifiers (DOI)
All published articles receive a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), which provides a permanent and stable link to each publication. The DOI (Digital Object Identifier) is a persistent identifier that guarantees identification and prevents location issues caused by URL changes or similar factors.
Metadata policy
Madera y Bosques, through its online platform, manages article metadata to ensure accurate description and retrieval by web search engines. The metadata generated for each article includes: article title in the primary language, article title in the secondary language, authors’ names, their affiliations, and ORCID identifiers, abstract in the primary language, abstract in the secondary language, keywords in the primary language, keywords in the secondary language, digital identifier (DOI), and the article’s unique identifier within the volume.
