Aims and scope

Third World Quarterly ( TWQ ) is the leading journal in the field of Global South studies, focussed on historical and contemporary structures and relations of inequality and development. It was launched in 1978, in the context of the North-South Dialogue and the then-emerging New International Economic Order. TWQ is committed to a just and equitable future for what is historically known as the ‘Third World’.

The journal has a legacy of publishing progressive and exploratory content that is anti-racist, anti-imperialist and anti-sexist. It continues to shape academic and policy agendas across political and development discourses, as well as the postcolonial trajectories of Global South nations and peoples. TWQ articles showcase the agency and rising power of the Global South in setting the agenda and providing alternatives to Western ideologies, global inequities, and responses to the global permacrisis.

TWQ has a broad remit and publishes a wide range of research on social justice, environmental sustainability, health, statebuilding, mobilities, security, financial systems, peacebuilding and human rights, culture and art, among other topics. The journal encourages contributions from across the social sciences and humanities, including but not limited to:

• international relations; 
• development studies; 
• women’s, gender and queer studies; 
• race, class and ethnicity studies; 
• heterodox economics and critical political economy; 
• and historical and sociocultural research.

TWQ welcomes interdisciplinary contributions as well as case studies that are theoretically informed. The journal also fosters bridge building between policy research and practitioner relevance. TWQ supports and disseminates the voices of early career researchers, especially from the Global South, and welcomes proposals for ground-breaking special issues that interrogate crucial topics relevant to the journal’s mission and bring together scholars from diverse backgrounds.

Peer review

The journal is edited by a global and multidisciplinary team of Academic Editors. All submitted manuscripts are subject to initial appraisal and, if found suitable for further consideration, are then subject to double-anonymous peer review by two or more external reviewers. The journal may occasionally publish shorter Viewpoint pieces, which are by invitation only and are reviewed by the editorial team before publication.

Authors can choose to publish gold open access in this journal.

Read the Instructions for Authors for information on how to submit your article. Details on how to submit proposals for special issues are to be found here.