Anthropogenic activity is the main cause of climate change, and human behaviour change is an essential part of comprehensive and effective climate actions. Insights from behavioural science could further promote real-world policy formation and implementation. In this issue, we feature a collection of opinion pieces on how progress in behavioural science can be applied to specific climate policy design.

See Editorial

The desert landscape is shaped by dunes, which are affected by the direction and strength of winds. Climate change can alter the characteristics of winds and, therefore, dune dynamics. In this issue, Andreas Baas and Lucie Delobel present a global analysis of how the speed and direction of movement as well as the shape of dunes will change in deserts around the world by the end of this century.

See Baas and Delobel and News & Views by Parteli

Climate change impacts on global oceans are varied, far-reaching and severe. In our Editorial we discuss work featured in this issue of Nature Climate Change, which ranges from the surface to the ocean depths, through physical changes and biological impacts, and encompasses scales from the sub-cellular to the global.

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Terrestrial water storage over the Tibetan Plateau is essential for the water security of downstream populations, but it is highly sensitive to climate change. Writing in this issue, Li et al. use a combination of different datasets to assess the historical and projected variability in terrestrial water storage in the region. Water storage is generally declining, with particularly strong changes seen in the Amu Darya and Indus basins, indicating regions of high water security vulnerability.

See Li et al. and Research Briefing by Li and Long

Northern high-latitude peatlands are an important carbon sink, but how carbon uptake changes with warming is poorly understood. In this issue, Helbig et al. show that warmer early summers over the multi-annual study period are linked to increased net carbon uptake, whereas warmer late summers are linked to decreased net carbon uptake. These findings indicate that some peatland regions, such as central Siberia, are particularly resilient carbon sinks.

See Helbig et al. and News & Views by Juutinen

Wild animals could provide substantial climate benefits through their effect on carbon storage in ecosystems, however they are not widely recognized in existing carbon markets. Writing in this issue, Fabio Berzaghi and co-authors explore the feasibility of including wild animal services into financial markets, as well as potential caveats and challenges. The authors argue that this method could help to bridge the funding gap to combat biodiversity loss and climate change.

See Berzaghi et al.

Small-scale processes are essential for many aspects of the climate system, but they are currently not well represented in models. In this issue, we present two Comments that call for a leap in the resolution of climate models. Julia Slingo and co-authors argue that ambitious international collaboration is needed in order to achieve kilometre-scale modelling. Similarly, Helene Hewitt and colleagues explain that small-scale ocean currents are crucial to understand the impacts of climate change on the ocean and coastal ice.

See Slingo et al. and Hewitt et al.

Climate change is causing more frequent and intense precipitation extremes; however, future changes are difficult to project. Writing in this issue, Chad Thackeray and co-authors use climate models to develop an emergent constraint on extreme precipitation. Applying this constraint suggests a 32% increase in the frequency of precipitation extremes by the end of the century.

See Thackeray et al. and Research Briefing

Climate change has led to alteration in the timing of critical life events, or phenology, such as the spring-time opening of these horse chestnut buds. Shifts in the timing of primary producers like trees can ripple through food webs, causing wide impacts, including on tree health and productivity, with implications for carbon storage and other ecosystem services. In this issue, we feature a collection of recent research and opinion pieces on climate impacts on phenological changes.

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Meerkats are a social mammal highly adapted to climate extremes, but their desert habitat in the Kalahari has been marked by the stark increases in temperature extremes under climate change that have been affecting drylands globally. Writing in this issue, Paniw and co-authors show that increases in extreme temperatures may destabilize populations of meerkats by increasing fatal tuberculosis outbreaks, thereby accelerating the extinction of large, established meerkat groups.

See Paniw et al.

Climate change is felt poignantly through its impacts on water resources. Changing precipitation patterns can cause flooding and drought, which impair access to water across sectors, including agriculture and household use. In this issue, we highlight opinion and news pieces related to managing water resources under current and future climate change.

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The European Commission’s proposal for a border carbon adjustment mechanism to impose tariffs on emissions-intensive and trade-exposed industries (such as cement production) has received wide attention and has raised concerns. Writing in this issue, Böhringer and colleagues review the potential impact of border carbon adjustments on the environment and economy, and also discuss the challenges under the current legal and practical constraints.

See Böhringer et al.