We are thrilled to take over as co-editors of the Journal of British Studies, the official publication of the North American Conference on British Studies. Our vision for JBS involves retaining the original readership of the journal, which has always placed the long history of Britain in a global context. But we also feel it is crucial to respond to critical shifts within academia, the discipline of History, and British Studies itself that foreground a wide range of diverse lived experiences and perspectives on the past. This means a concerted and self-conscious effort to make the flagship journal of the British Studies community even more encompassing by incorporating the insights of Indigenous Studies, Black Diaspora Studies, and Queer Studies alongside longstanding commitments to studies of imperialism and colonialism and scholarship that uses race, ethnicity, gender, class, sexuality, (dis)ability, religion, and age as categories of analysis. We welcome submissions from scholars studying wide chronological periods and geographical spaces that deepen and broaden our understanding of British Studies.

With the rise in precarity for many young scholars in the profession, we especially want to make the journal a welcoming place. One of our other goals as editors is thus to ensure that the journal participates in mentoring the next generation of British Studies scholars. We intend to hold annual virtual workshops that introduce graduate students and early career scholars to JBS and to the publication process more broadly.

As we assume our new responsibilities as JBS editors, we particularly want to underscore the value of community and encourage a diverse group of scholars to participate in the life and future of the journal not only as authors but as book reviewers and peer reviewers of article submissions. We get it. All of this takes time and energy. But paying it forward keeps the field alive. The journal relies on the expertise of a wide range of people at different stages of their careers. It is not only our, but also their, commitment to the field that will continue to make JBS the home of innovative British Studies research.