Educational and Developmental Psychologist

Special Issue Series: The Organic Intellectuals Series | Belonging Blindspots

While scholars debate how belonging is defined and measured, the lived realities of belonging often sit outside these scholarly conversations. This gap represents a form of epistemic exclusion, where the valuable insights of those with direct experience are not captured in traditional peer-reviewed publications. Belonging blind spots arise where researchers are not, or cannot be. This special issue series challenges that exclusion by elevating the contributions of organic intellectuals—people whose expertise is derived from life itself. It centers these community voices to reveal the blind spots so the field can ask better questions, build better tools and help various subpopulations of people feel accepted, respected, included, supported and welcomed in school and in society.

Who we want to hear from

We are seeking contributions from organic intellectuals—individuals whose expertise comes from direct, lived experience rather than formal scholarship. We want to hear from you if you are among the following:

• Young people and youth
• Educators, school leaders
• Custodians of community spaces (community leaders, families, and policy makers)
• First Nations and Indigenous contributors
• People who have first-hand experienced belonging disruption
• War effected
• Migrant populations

About the Organic Intellectuals Series

The Organic Intellectuals Series represents a new methodological model developed by the editors to integrate non-academic voices into scholarly discourse in ways that genuinely honour lived expertise. It invites individuals with firsthand, current lived experience who are being impacted by systems right now to speak in their own words. Their voices and the language they use are recognised as valid sources of insight that help the field see how practice connects back to theory and research, and in turn how theory can be refined by practice. This innovative approach broadens what counts as knowledge in academic publishing by creating a legitimate, structured space for contributors whose wisdom is grounded in direct and current experience.

The Organic Intellectuals Series is a model for engaging public audiences in legitimate, authentic ways. It is about offering a structured space where people who are living it now offer insights that spark new ways of thinking about the problems the field grapples with. The vision is that these contributions become a reference point for scholars and generate methodological and conceptual innovation.

Each installment of the series will focus on an area of research that benefits from perspectives beyond traditional scholarship. Forthcoming topics will explore themes of relevance to the journal. If you would like to propose a special issue in the Organic Intellectuals Series, please email Kelly-Ann Allen at [email protected].If you are a journal editor interested in adopting the model for your publication, please contact Associate Professor Kelly-Ann Allen or Associate Professor DeLeon L. Gray ([email protected]) to discuss the advantages of this model and practical guidelines for implementing it in your publication.

What to submit

We want to hear YOUR Voice. You will write in the first person, in your natural voice. Your piece should be no more than 2,000 words. You may also include an image you have rights to and a 1–2 sentence author note on who you are and where you are writing from.

Our approach is intentionally designed to be inclusive. This is not traditional research; it is a platform for authentic narration. By removing the need for academic referencing and applying only light-touch editing to preserve your unique voice, we aim to remove barriers that contribute to epistemic exclusion. Our priority is ensuring your lived expertise is the central focus.