Mangroves, tidal marshes and seagrass meadows have historically been lost or degraded, threatening their ability to store carbon and provide ecosystem services. This Review details the global potential of blue carbon ecosystem protection and restoration in climate change mitigation, through carbon sequestration and co-benefit production. See Macreadie et al. [link to ‘Macreadie et al’ 10.1038/s43017-021-00224-1]

Anthropogenic climate change and environmental deterioration are driving global degradation of coral reefs. This Review examines how the natural adaptive capacity of coral holobionts can be harnessed and expanded to counter ongoing coral loss. See Voolstra et al.

The transition to renewable energy requires notable quantities of technology metals and materials, the production of which causes substantial environmental damage. This Review discusses raw material extraction approaches that optimize technical performance and reduce environmental impacts. See Pell et al.

River floods have direct and indirect consequences for society, causing fatalities, displacement and economic loss. This Review examines the physical and socioeconomic causes and impacts of disastrous river flooding, and past and projected trends in their occurrence. See Merz et al.

The Indian Ocean has undergone substantial heat and freshwater changes. This Review uses various data sources to examine the causes of such contemporary and longer-term shifts, revealing that trends over the twentieth century are linked to anthropogenic forcing, but that those since 1980 are related to the Interdecadal Pacific oscillation. See Ummenhofer et al.

Anticipating the timing, style and size of volcanic eruptions is essential for hazard mitigation. This Review discusses the accumulation and evolution of magma storage regions, the processes that trigger magma reservoir failure, and the ascent of magma through the crust. See Caricchi et al.

As June is Pride month, Nature Reviews Earth & Environment celebrates and embraces the LGBTQ+ geoscience community. See Editorial.

Successful discovery and operation of geothermal resources requires a thorough understanding of the heterogeneous geological subsurface. This Review discusses the key geological factors that contribute to the effective exploration of intermediate- to high-temperature geothermal resources used for power generation and direct use applications. See Jolie et al.

Estimates of global dryland changes are often conflicting. This Review discusses and quantifies observed and projected aridity changes, revealing divergent responses between atmospheric and ecohydrological metrics owing to plant physiological responses to elevated CO2. See Lian et al.

The urban heat island effect poses increasing morbidity and mortality challenges in a warming world. This Review discusses how urban vegetation — specifically, green parks, green roofs and green walls — can be used as a strategy to mitigate heat. See Wong et al.

Glaciers in the Himalaya and Karakoram mountain ranges provide freshwater and hydropower to millions of people, but are also melting at unsustainably high rates. This Review discusses recent and projected changes in glacier melt and resulting implications for regional water-related hazards and water resources. See Nie et al.

The processes leading to large earthquakes remain enigmatic. Using detailed seismic and geodetic data, this Review examines how tectonic deformation and evolving fault behaviour initiate large earthquakes, and proposes an integrated model accounting for the diversity of observations. See Kato and Ben-Zion.