Change and Continuity at the Canadian Journal of Sociology

When Professor Nico Stehr asked me to succeed him as editor of the Canadian Journal of Sociology (CJS) I was both honoured and apprehensive. Established in 1975 by a group of five sociologists at the University of Alberta, the CJS is Canada's oldest exclusively sociological journal. Under Professor Stehr's excellent stewardship it emerged as a premiere publication venue for a wide range of sociological scholarship that is read globally and cited widely. My shelf contains a two-metre-long run of CJS volumes which serve to reinforce the major contribution that this publication has made to sociology in Canada and internationally. Professor Stehr also had the foresight in 1995 to establish the Canadian Journal of Sociology OnLine, a rarity in those early days of electronic publishing. Hence, I am intimately aware of the journal's high standards and history of innovation. At the same time, I also know that scholarly publishing in Canada is a precarious venture.

This editorial presents my plans for the journal for the coming years and how I expect to meet these challenges. Before outlining the changes —some of which are quite significant —it is worth accentuating the attributes of the journal that I will jealously protect. Most fundamentally, all of the coming changes are motivated by a desire to ensure that the journal's reputation for excellent scholarship is maintained and advanced. There continues to be a demonstrated need for a quality generalist Canadian sociology journal; one that publishes rigorously peer-reviewed works from the entire spectrum of sociological thought and also from the interdisciplinary matrix that increasingly informs our scholarship. In terms of the journal's Canadian orientation, we will continue to strike a balance between encouraging works with an international focus while also publishing distinctively Canadian works. All publications will continue to appear in either of Canada's two official languages.

With these continuities in mind, there is also an ambitious agenda for reform. Change is required for the good of the journal and the wider sociological community. Some of the transformations are internal housekeeping matters, but others are larger in scope. All are being undertaken in the best interests of the intellectual and public communities served by the Canadian Journal of Sociology. The modifications listed below are presented in no particular order, although the most fundamental is mentioned last, as it deserves a more sustained explanation.

1. 1. Attract a new generation of readers and contributors to the CJS. While the journal has an active readership, many of our subscribers are now of an older generation. Several changes are designed to bring a new cohort of sociologists and interdisciplinary scholars to the CJS. Renewal and reinvigoration is imperative for the long-term health of the journal.

2. 2. Establish a formal governance structure. I have established a governance structure which includes a University of Alberta Executive Board which will offer input on the journal's operations.

3. 3. Change the journal's academic style. Over the years the CJS developed its own in-house referencing style which, although familiar to some authors, is idiosyncratic and can make it difficult to format papers. Starting with the first volume in 2008 the journal will move to the Chicago Manual of Style. This will provide contributors with a familiar style and will also allow those individuals who use personal bibliographic software to effortlessly format or reformat their references for submissions to the journal.

4. 4. Publish more book reviews in a more timely fashion. Professor Jim Conley of Trent University has generously agreed to be our new book review editor. In his work with the Canadian Journal of Sociology OnLine he has established a reputation for quickly processing book reviews to the benefit of reviewers and authors alike.

5. 5. Establish new associate editors. We are blessed with an excellent and dedicated group of associate editors who have effectively served as the journal's backbone. In an effort to maximize the number of individuals involved with the journal and provide new individuals with a more active role I will be adding some new individuals to the editorial board. In seeking out new associate...