Beginning July 1, we are the new co-Editors-in-Chief of Environmental Practice, journal of the National Association of Environmental Professionals (NAEP). We are excited to lead this journal, particularly during a time when the public appears to have a renewed interest in environmental issues. With a new President and Congress, the environment may become one of the salient domestic issues for the country.
As an introduction, allow us to give you some background on who we are and where we hope to lead the journal based on our strengths as editors. The journal will be housed at DePaul University, located in Chicago, Illinois. We both enjoy teaching at an institution where students and faculty work on applied research and urban issues in the classroom. Dr. Jim Montgomery is Director of the Environmental Science Program and Dr. Kelly Tzoumis is the Chairperson of the Public Policy Department, which houses Environmental and Urban Studies concentrations; we work side by side using an interdisciplinary approach toward understanding the environment. Dr. Montgomery has been president of the Illinois Association of Environmental Professionals (IAEP) for two separate terms, lasting a total of approximately five years. Dr. Tzoumis currently serves on the IAEP and was the editor of the IAEP newsletter for several years. Before entering academe, she also worked for approximately seven years with the federal government and national laboratories in the area of environmental cleanup and restoration. Thus, both editors take an interdisciplinary and applied approach towards environmental issues that will be reflected in future issues of Environmental Practice.
Some ideas we are considering for future issues of the journal include ones that highlight student research. Students are an important part of the NAEP membership and we feel it is critical to their success as future environmental professionals to highlight their research. We are also interested in having an issue of Environmental Practice devoted to urban environmental topics that focus on both regional and international concerns. These are only a few of the ideas we are thinking about. A more developed plan will be made in conjunction with the NAEP's Board of Directors and Environmental Practice's Advisory Board and editorial staff.
We would like to see input from the NAEP membership on themes for the journal in the future. These, along with past indications and survey results, will be incorporated into the strategic planning for future issues. Please email Dr. Tzoumis if you have ideas for this purpose.
DePaul University is proud to have Environmental Practice housed at our institution for the next five years. For the first year, Dr. Tzoumis will take the lead as co-Editor-in-Chief, with Dr. Montgomery moving into that role in the future. If you are interested in submitting a research article, commentary, environmental review, news article, or point of view, please contact Dr. Tzoumis at the information below. We look forward to maintaining the high quality and standards that the previous editor, Dr. John Perkins, and managing editor, Debora Holmes, have established for the journal. We want to thank Dr. Perkins for his support and assistance during the transition period; he made the transition smooth and easy even though we were miles apart.
