Level 2 is open year-round with rolling review. You may submit a research plan, a data structure, a topic draft, or a revision. The editorial team provides one consolidated round of staged feedback on the 27th of each month, helping work develop towards review for the relevant Special Issue. This competition is Level 2 of the WYE three-level competition and publication system; all three levels admit direct entry.
Level 2 follows the public-explanation approach of Our World in Data, organising high-quality data, charts, research literature, conceptual explanation, and real-world views into topical work an ordinary reader can understand. We draw on the method of combining research, data, and explanation — not their visual design, brand, charts, or specific pages.
The result may be a long-form topical article, a modular data page, an interactive-chart feature, an FAQ, a comparative report, or a Special Issue chapter.
Work need not mechanically include every module, but should usually cover:
Level 2 work is not published in a general column; by theme, it enters independently titled Special Issues. One entry can become a standalone chapter; several contributors’ work can together form a complete topic. Editorial feedback, volunteer certification, and issue awards never mean automatic publication — final inclusion depends on source reliability, editorial revision, and the needs of the issue as a whole.
Because Level 2 has no uniform deadline, competitive recognition is organised per Special Issue and may include: Outstanding Research Contribution, Best Data Visualization, Best Cross-Cultural Analysis, Editors’ Choice, and the Public Understanding Award.
Whether all awards are activated, whether prize money attaches, and how many are selected remain unconfirmed, per each issue’s official announcement.To be announced
Forums, Q&A platforms, and comment sections help researchers identify recurring narratives and misconceptions; they cannot directly prove that an entire country or most of the public holds the same view. Work using forum material must follow the published rules opposite.
Level 2 can connect with the formal volunteer role of WYE Special Issue Research Volunteer, recording volunteer service for participants who complete genuine public-project tasks. Writing time spent solely on one’s own entry should not automatically count in full; what can be certified are public-project contributions assigned, documented, and verified by WYE.
WYE does not promise that this volunteer experience satisfies any school credit, graduation requirement, visa, CPT, OPT, internship, or employment eligibility; recognition by external institutions is decided by those institutions under their own rules.
Volunteer Role DetailsYes. Level 2 is open year-round with rolling review and no final deadline. The editorial team gives one consolidated round of staged feedback on the current batch on the 27th of each month; the month’s batch-inclusion rules are as posted by the office.
There is no uniform word maximum or minimum and no fixed chart count; length and charts are set by the research question, data structure, and explanatory needs. Longer does not mean higher marks — review focuses on structure, evidence, accuracy, and public explanatory value.
Yes. Research plans, data structures, drafts, and revisions may all be submitted; the monthly feedback exists precisely to help work develop towards review for the relevant Special Issue.
Public-project contributions assigned, documented, and verified by WYE (data verification, fact checking, charts, translation, and the like) count towards the Special Issue research volunteer record; writing time spent solely on one’s own entry does not count automatically. WYE does not promise the experience satisfies any credit, visa, or internship eligibility.
It may identify recurring narratives and misconceptions, but cannot directly prove that most of the public holds the same view. You must state the platform, time range, and sampling method; distinguish “appears in this sample” from “believed by most of the public”; and layer it beneath official data, surveys, and academic research.
No. Editorial feedback, volunteer certification, and issue awards never mean automatic publication; final inclusion depends on source reliability, editorial revision, and the needs of the issue as a whole.
Begin at any time of year. Submit a research plan, data structure, or draft, and let the work develop through the consolidated feedback of the 27th each month.