Submissions
Guidelines for submitting analysis and essays to Iran & Global Affairs.
Iran & Global Affairs welcomes original, rigorous, and accessible contributions on Iran and its place in the world. We are particularly interested in work that advances a clear argument, is grounded in evidence, and explains why the argument matters.
We publish scholars, policymakers, practitioners, journalists, historians, economists, cultural specialists, and other informed voices. We welcome disagreement and different perspectives. Contributors are not required to share a particular political position.
Formats
Analysis
Approximately 800–1,200 words
A focused, evidence-based argument on a significant political, economic, social, historical, cultural, or international question.
Strong analysis should do more than describe a development. It should make a clear claim, explain the evidence behind it, and identify its wider consequences.
Essay
Approximately 1,500–2,500 words
Longer-form argument or interpretation that benefits from greater historical, conceptual, cultural, or analytical depth.
Essays may address contemporary politics and international affairs, but we particularly welcome serious work on history, art, architecture, literature, heritage, intellectual life, and cultural memory.
Word ranges are guidelines rather than strict limits. Exceptional contributions may be shorter or longer where the argument requires it.
Editorially developed formats
Some Iran & Global Affairs formats are developed or commissioned by the platform rather than accepted as standard submissions.
Exchange
Exchanges bring competing arguments into direct conversation around a consequential question. They may involve two authors or several contributors.
Most Exchanges are initiated by the editorial team. Contributors are nevertheless welcome to propose a question for an Exchange or indicate that a submitted argument could benefit from a direct response.
IGA ONE
IGA ONE is a concise policymaker brief developed by the Iran & Global Affairs platform team. It distills a consequential issue or argument into an accessible format focused on what matters, why it matters, and what decision-makers should watch.
IGA ONE is not an open-submission format.
IGA Red Team
IGA Red Team subjects an important argument or proposition to serious, deliberately commissioned challenge.
Red Team contributions are commissioned by Iran & Global Affairs and are not accepted as unsolicited submissions.
What we look for
Strong contributions should:
- advance a clear and identifiable argument;
- engage seriously with relevant evidence;
- distinguish analysis from assertion;
- explain consequences, trade-offs, or wider significance;
- offer something original or analytically useful;
- be written clearly for an informed international audience.
We generally do not publish pieces that are primarily promotional, partisan, polemical, or descriptive without a clear argument.
We value intellectual independence and welcome arguments that challenge prevailing assumptions, including our own.
Areas of interest
Our principal areas of publication are:
Politics, Society & Rights
Foreign Affairs & Security
Economy & Political Economy
History, Art & Culture
We also publish Iran's Future, a cross-cutting series examining political transition, institutional design, economic reconstruction, social change, state-building, and Iran's longer-term place in the world.
Language
Iran & Global Affairs is primarily an English-language publication.
We also welcome strong submissions in Persian and Dutch. Where a non-English contribution is accepted, publication is conditional on the author's agreement that an English-language version will also be prepared in consultation with the author.
The English version may be edited for clarity, style, and accessibility for an international audience while preserving the substance and argument of the original. The original-language version may also be published alongside the English version where appropriate.
Originality
Iran & Global Affairs considers original contributions that have not been published elsewhere in substantially the same form.
We do not consider manuscripts that are simultaneously under review or consideration by another publication. By submitting a piece to IGA, authors confirm that it is not being considered elsewhere and agree to inform us promptly if its status changes.
If an argument, earlier version, working paper, conference paper, or original-language version has previously appeared or circulated elsewhere, authors should disclose this when submitting. Prior circulation does not necessarily preclude publication, but will be considered by the editors on a case-by-case basis.
How to submit
Please send either a short proposal or a completed draft to submissions@iranglobalaffairs.org.
Please paste all submission materials directly into the body of the email. We ask contributors not to send attachments, cloud-storage or document-sharing links, shortened links, or other downloadable files unless the editorial team specifically requests them.
For proposals, please include:
- a proposed title;
- the central argument in two or three sentences;
- why the argument matters;
- the most relevant IGA section;
- a brief note on your relevant expertise or background.
Completed drafts should include the full text of the contribution in the email body and a short author biography.
If you would like to identify previously published work relevant to your background, please provide the title, publication, and approximate publication date rather than a link. The editorial team may independently locate published material where relevant.
All submissions are subject to editorial review and editing. Submission does not guarantee publication.