People Led Systems Approaches to Net Zero
A Special Issue of Systems (ISSN 2079-8954) belonging to the section "Systems Practice in Social Science".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 December 2026 | Viewed by 427
Editors
Interests: performance measurement; innovation management; competitiveness; high value manufacturing
Interests: through life costing; cost estimating; uncertainty modelling; in-service contracts; bidding process; concept design; taguchi techniques; product optimization; avionic systems
Interests: people-led digitalisation; people-led net zero; transdisciplinary methods; stakeholder engagement; resilient systems; decarbonisation; complex systems; sustainability transitions
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The transition to net zero is one of the most complex challenges of our time, and at its heart lies a deeply human dimension. This Special Issue, ‘People Led Systems Approaches to Net Zero’, will highlight research and practices that recognise the central role of people in driving sustainable transitions.
We invite contributions from researchers and practitioners whose work engages with the human and social dimensions of systemic change. The team organising this Special Issue are leading a major UKRI investment, “People-Led Net Zero”, grounded in the conviction that a faster, fairer transition is possible when it is powered by people. By placing human insight, agency, and participation at the core of systems thinking, we can support a transition that is not only technically sound, but also socially resilient and practically sustainable.
The People-Led Net Zero project is developing practical, people-centred approaches that help organisations act, adapt, and succeed through complex changes. If your work shares this vision—whether through empirical studies, theoretical contributions, case analyses, or practice-based insights—we warmly invite you to contribute.
Prof. Dr. Jillian MacBryde
Prof. Dr. Linda Blyth Newnes
Dr. Susan Lattanzio
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
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-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Systems is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly 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.
Keywords
- people-led systems
- net zero transitions
- human-centred approaches
- participatory governance
- organisational change
- social innovation
- climate justice
- sustainability transitions
- socio-technical systems
- community engagement
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