1. Commitment to Open Access

The Journal of Engineering, Environment, and Agriculture Research (JEEAR) supports the principles of Open Access publishing. Consistent with the mission of Mindanao State University – General Santos, JEEAR ensures that knowledge is made freely available for the advancement of education, research, and innovation.

In line with the principles of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0), articles published in JEEAR are immediately accessible online, free of charge, upon publication. This model benefits both authors, who gain broader visibility and citation impact, and readers, who gain unrestricted access to scholarly knowledge.

2. Copyright Ownership

The Journal of Engineering, Environment, and Agriculture Research (JEEAR) upholds the principle that authors retain the copyright of their published works. Upon acceptance and publication, copyright remains vested in the author(s).

The journal acquires only a non-exclusive right of first publication, ensuring that the work is made available to the academic and professional community while protecting the intellectual property of its contributors.

• Authors: The copyright of individual articles belongs to the author(s) without restriction. Authors grant JEEAR the non-exclusive right of first publication, ensuring recognition of JEEAR as the original publisher.

• Journal: The Mindanao State University – General Santos retains copyright over the journal issue as a compilation and its online platform, including its design, formatting, and overall presentation.

3. Licensing of Published Articles

All articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

This license permits:

• Sharing — Copying and redistributing the material in any medium or format.
• Adapting — Remixing, transforming, and building upon the material for any purpose, including commercial use.

The freedoms are conditioned upon the following terms:

• Attribution (BY): Proper acknowledgment of the original author(s) and JEEAR must be given. Users must provide the article title, author name(s), citation of the journal, and a link to the license. If modifications are made, these must be indicated.
• ShareAlike (SA): Any derivative works must be distributed under the same license (CC BY-SA 4.0), ensuring the continued openness of adaptations.
• No Additional Restrictions: No legal or technological barriers (such as DRM) may be imposed that prevent others from exercising the rights granted by the license.

Full license details are available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

4. Author Rights

As copyright holders, authors retain extensive rights, including the ability to:

• Reuse their work in books, lectures, presentations, or other scholarly and professional contexts.
• Archive their work in personal, institutional, or subject repositories.
• Enter into additional non-exclusive distribution agreements (e.g., inclusion in textbooks or edited volumes), provided that acknowledgment of JEEAR as the original publisher is maintained.

This ensures that authors maintain academic freedom and visibility while contributing to open scholarship. Authors are also strongly encouraged to cite the final published PDF version or its associated DOI/URL as hosted on the JEEAR website, thereby preserving the integrity of the scholarly record.

5. Reader Rights

Readers are granted broad rights under CC BY-SA 4.0. They may:

• Download, print, copy, link to, and share articles.
• Use articles in teaching, research, policy, or professional practice.
• Adapt, remix, and republish content, including for commercial purposes, provided attribution and ShareAlike requirements are followed.

Readers should always reference the published PDF version or DOI to ensure proper acknowledgment of JEEAR as the original publisher. This confirms that JEEAR articles are part of the global commons of knowledge.

6. Author Warranties and Responsibilities

By submitting a manuscript, authors affirm and guarantee that:

1. The work is original and has not been previously published elsewhere in whole or in part (except as an abstract, thesis, or preprint, with disclosure).
2. The authors are the sole copyright holders and have obtained all necessary permissions for figures, tables, images, or data reproduced from third parties.
3. The work does not infringe upon the rights of any individual or entity and does not contain unlawful or defamatory material.
4. All sources and contributions are properly acknowledged, adhering to ethical publishing standards such as those of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

7. Third-Party Content

While articles are generally published under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, certain materials (e.g., images, data, or figures reproduced from other sources) may be subject to different copyright restrictions.

• Materials reproduced from other sources will be clearly identified.
• Users must obtain permission directly from the copyright holder if reuse goes beyond statutory exceptions (e.g., fair use or fair dealing).

8. Versioning, Corrections, and Retractions

JEEAR upholds the integrity of the scholarly record in accordance with COPE guidelines:

• Corrections (Errata): Minor errors not affecting the study’s conclusions may be corrected by editorial notice.
• Retractions: Serious errors, plagiarism, or research misconduct will result in formal retraction.
• Updates: If substantial revisions are made post-publication, updated versions will be released with clear indication of changes.

9. Disclaimer of Liability

JEEAR and MSU–General Santos provide published articles “as is” and “as available” without warranty of any kind. The journal is not responsible for:

• Errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in published content.
• Damages or losses arising from the use or inability to use published material.
• Content or services accessed through external links provided in articles.

Use of JEEAR content is at the sole risk of the reader.

10. Policy Amendments

The Journal of Engineering, Environment, and Agriculture Research (JEEAR) reserves the right to amend or update this policy and its website content as necessary to reflect evolving best practices in scholarly publishing and open access.

11. Suggested Attribution Format

For proper attribution under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, users are encouraged to follow the TASL principle (Title, Author, Source, License). Example:

“Sustainable Irrigation Practices in Mindanao, by Juan Dela Cruz, published in the Journal of Engineering, Environment, and Agriculture Research (JEEAR), MSU–General Santos, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.”