Springer Journal of Intelligent Information Systems (JIIS) Special Issue on “Recommender Systems for Sustainability” (see https://link.springer.com/journal/10844/collections?filter=Open)
Co-Editors: Alexander Felfernig (TU Graz, Austria), Denis Helic (TU Graz, Austria), Thi Ngoc Trang Tran (TU Graz, Austria), and André Calero-Valdez (University of Lübeck, Germany)
Various integrations of recommender systems (RecSys) into daily life tasks and activities have revolutionized the accessibility of information, products, and services. Nowadays, we can observce an increasing interest in applying recommender systems in tackling societal challenges where sustainability can be regarded as one of the most critical ones (the world faces social, environmental, and economic crises demanding innovative a.o. technological solutions).
Sustainability covers a broad range of overlapping and interdependent domains ranging from resource efficiency to environmental conservation (see the sustainable development goals (SDGs) defined by the United Nations (https://sdgs.un.org/goals). RecSys can play a central role in achieving these goals by guiding users, for example, toward energy saving practices, responsible consumption, eco-friendly products and services, and ethical lifestyles.
The application of RecSys to support SDGs entails many challenges since traditional recommendation approaches often focus on aspects such as short-term consumption and maximization of sales volumes which are in contradiction to longterm sustainability goals. In this context, ensuring fairness and transparency can be regarded as crucial as the resulting recommendations have huge impacts on minorities. This also requires the definition of new evaluation metrics beyond conventional accuracy.
The overall goal of this special issue to shed light on various aspects/topics in the intersection of RecSys and sustainability. In this context, we invite contributions proposing novel approaches, frameworks, algorithms, and methodologies promoting sustainability-aware recommender systems. The objective of this special issue is to provide a comprehensive overview of aspects how RecSys can support a transition to a more sustainable future. It should inspire research that contributes to sustainable developments.
Topics of interest: We invite contributions that adress, but are not necessarily limited to, the following topics: recommendation of sustainable products and services, recommender systems and energy efficiency, ethical and fair recommendations in the context of sustainability, behavioral change for sustainability, recommender systems for sustainable transportation and mobility, RecSys in sustainable agriculture, RecSys evaluation metrics for sustainability, sustainability-centered and personalized education on the basis of RecSys, and further interdisciplinary aspects.
Submission: Manuscripts (up to 25 pages including references, tables, and figures) must be written in English and describe original research neither published nor currently under review by other journals or conferences. Parallel submissions will not be accepted. All submissions will be peer-reviewed and judged on correctness, originality, technical strength, significance, quality of presentation, and relevance to the special issue topics of interest. The review process of JIIS is single-blinded. The submissions should be prepared according to the guidelines of JIIS. These can be found at https://www.springer.com/journal/10844/submission-guidelines.
All submissions should be performed through the SNAPP system of
JIIS selecting “Recommender Systems for Sustainability” in the “collections” drop down menu item.
Important Dates:
- Full paper submission deadline: Mar. 31st, 2025
- 1st-round review to authors: May 31st, 2025
- 2nd-round submission deadline: Aug. 15th, 2025
- 2nd-round reviews to authors: Sep. 30th, 2025
- Online Publication: Nov. 30th, 2025 (tentative)