Humanity’s impact on the Earth, especially the climate and the ocean, constitutes an existential threat of unprecedented magnitude. The consequences are dire, including the loss of life and ecosystems, parts of the Earth being rendered uninhabitable, species extinction, and increased vulnerability to disasters.

Effective education and communication are crucial components of climate and ocean change mitigation and adaptation. By imparting knowledge, reinforcing skills, and fostering awareness, education and communication have the power to enable individuals to understand the complexities of the climate and ocean crisis and its existential implications. Education and communication cultivate a sense of responsibility, motivating individuals to adopt sustainable practices and make informed decisions. Education and communication are closely connected and mutually reinforcing: most forms of education depend on communication, and communication is often educational.

Education needs to equip present and future generations with the skills needed to innovate, develop social justice, and advocate for policy changes. Communication fosters critical thinking, enabling us to challenge harmful practices and embrace environmentally conscious alternatives. Thus, education and communication have a heavy responsibility with respect to creating a knowledgeable and engaged citizenry and laying the foundation for collective action and a sustainable future.

We solicit contributions (e.g. original research articles and review articles) from researchers, practitioners, educators, students, policymakers, communicators, activists, and artists working across different sectors (e.g. academia, industry, and nongovernmental organizations). This will be a unique opportunity to explore and enhance climate and ocean communication and education.

With respect to the scope of this special issue, we welcome research articles that investigate a wide variety of topics, including, but not limited to, the following:

• best practices in and innovative approaches to climate and ocean education and communication;
• the ethics and geoethics of climate and ocean education and communication, including social justice and equity;
• the role of technology (including artificial intelligence) and new media in climate and ocean education and communication;
• the intersection of climate and ocean education and communication with other issues, such as biodiversity, sustainable development, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);
• the impact of climate and ocean education and communication on public opinion, policy, and behaviour;
• the integration of climate and ocean literacy into formal and informal education;
• the role of geoscience research in advancing climate and ocean education and communication;
• scientific investigation of outreach initiatives targeting different age groups, settings, and approaches;
• learners’ content and procedural knowledge of climate science and options for action (e.g. climate feedbacks, impacts, adaptation measures, and renewable energy), cultivating science and communication skills (e.g. quantitative literacy, critical thinking, and writing to inform), initiating positive attitudes and actions (e.g. empathy and behavioural change), and issues related to the transfer of education into action and to timescales needed for mindset and behavioural change.

For more information, please see the dedicated website: https://oceansclimate.wixsite.com/oceansclimate/gc-special

This special issue (SI) aims to enhance our understanding of the complex, cascading interactions between natural hazards, health systems, disease outbreaks, and societal health. By compiling a high-quality collection of papers, we seek to

1. provide an overview of the state of the art for multi-hazards and health research;
2. showcase new research on the health impacts of disasters, particularly when they coincide with disease outbreaks;
3. advance modelling and measurement capabilities for multi-hazard scenarios involving public health emergencies;
4. identify synergies and trade-offs in disaster risk reduction (DRR) and adaptation strategies.

Natural hazard emergencies are fundamentally a complex interaction of natural, anthropogenic, and biological processes. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the operational challenges of responding to events like the 2020 Zagreb earthquake amidst lockdowns and travel restrictions. Similarly, devastating floods in Pakistan in 2022 led to outbreaks of cholera and diarrhoea. These events demonstrate that a limited understanding of the cascading effects of combined disasters and diseases creates major operational, ethical, and decision-making challenges for disaster management, humanitarian, and development organizations. However, until relatively recently, there has been little engagement between the multi-hazard and health research communities to understand how these processes interact and feed off each other.

International frameworks, such as the United Nation's Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) and the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports (Assessment Report 6 cycle), recognize the need to move beyond single-hazard thinking and address the complexities of multiple and systemic risks. The scientific community has been called upon to improve our understanding of these spatiotemporal complexities. The pre-print paper, titled Invited perspective: Redefining Disaster Risk: The Convergence of Natural Hazards and Health Crises by Sairam and De Ruiter in NHESS, for example, explores the interconnections between natural hazards, health, and society, highlighting the need for a more integrated approach.

While separate communities have advanced research on multi-hazard and systemic risks, there is a clear need to bring together a dedicated body of work on the unique intersection of disasters, diseases, health, and health systems. This SI provides that opportunity, fostering cross-disciplinary learning and identifying new research avenues. The urgency of this topic is underscored by the compounding effects of climate change on health systems and health outcomes, as well as the spatial and temporal variability of exposures and vulnerabilities to these complex hazards. This SI is part of the RiskKAN (https://www.risk-kan.org/) working group on the same topic.

This special issue (SI) aims to enhance our understanding of the complex, cascading interactions between natural hazards, health systems, disease outbreaks, and societal health. By compiling a high-quality collection of papers, we seek to

1. provide an overview of the state of the art for multi-hazards and health research;
2. showcase new research on the health impacts of disasters, particularly when they coincide with disease outbreaks;
3. advance modelling and measurement capabilities for multi-hazard scenarios involving public health emergencies;
4. identify synergies and trade-offs in disaster risk reduction (DRR) and adaptation strategies.

Natural hazard emergencies are fundamentally a complex interaction of natural, anthropogenic, and biological processes. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the operational challenges of responding to events like the 2020 Zagreb earthquake amidst lockdowns and travel restrictions. Similarly, devastating floods in Pakistan in 2022 led to outbreaks of cholera and diarrhoea. These events demonstrate that a limited understanding of the cascading effects of combined disasters and diseases creates major operational, ethical, and decision-making challenges for disaster management, humanitarian, and development organizations. However, until relatively recently, there has been little engagement between the multi-hazard and health research communities to understand how these processes interact and feed off each other.

International frameworks, such as the United Nation's Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) and the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports (Assessment Report 6 cycle), recognize the need to move beyond single-hazard thinking and address the complexities of multiple and systemic risks. The scientific community has been called upon to improve our understanding of these spatiotemporal complexities. The pre-print paper, titled Invited perspective: Redefining Disaster Risk: The Convergence of Natural Hazards and Health Crises by Sairam and De Ruiter in NHESS, for example, explores the interconnections between natural hazards, health, and society, highlighting the need for a more integrated approach.

While separate communities have advanced research on multi-hazard and systemic risks, there is a clear need to bring together a dedicated body of work on the unique intersection of disasters, diseases, health, and health systems. This SI provides that opportunity, fostering cross-disciplinary learning and identifying new research avenues. The urgency of this topic is underscored by the compounding effects of climate change on health systems and health outcomes, as well as the spatial and temporal variability of exposures and vulnerabilities to these complex hazards. This SI is part of the RiskKAN (https://www.risk-kan.org/) working group on the same topic.

Humanity’s impact on the Earth, especially the climate and the ocean, constitutes an existential threat of unprecedented magnitude. The consequences are dire, including the loss of life and ecosystems, parts of the Earth being rendered uninhabitable, species extinction, and increased vulnerability to disasters.

Effective education and communication are crucial components of climate and ocean change mitigation and adaptation. By imparting knowledge, reinforcing skills, and fostering awareness, education and communication have the power to enable individuals to understand the complexities of the climate and ocean crisis and its existential implications. Education and communication cultivate a sense of responsibility, motivating individuals to adopt sustainable practices and make informed decisions. Education and communication are closely connected and mutually reinforcing: most forms of education depend on communication, and communication is often educational.

Education needs to equip present and future generations with the skills needed to innovate, develop social justice, and advocate for policy changes. Communication fosters critical thinking, enabling us to challenge harmful practices and embrace environmentally conscious alternatives. Thus, education and communication have a heavy responsibility with respect to creating a knowledgeable and engaged citizenry and laying the foundation for collective action and a sustainable future.

We solicit contributions (e.g. original research articles and review articles) from researchers, practitioners, educators, students, policymakers, communicators, activists, and artists working across different sectors (e.g. academia, industry, and nongovernmental organizations). This will be a unique opportunity to explore and enhance climate and ocean communication and education.

With respect to the scope of this special issue, we welcome research articles that investigate a wide variety of topics, including, but not limited to, the following:

• best practices in and innovative approaches to climate and ocean education and communication;
• the ethics and geoethics of climate and ocean education and communication, including social justice and equity;
• the role of technology (including artificial intelligence) and new media in climate and ocean education and communication;
• the intersection of climate and ocean education and communication with other issues, such as biodiversity, sustainable development, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs);
• the impact of climate and ocean education and communication on public opinion, policy, and behaviour;
• the integration of climate and ocean literacy into formal and informal education;
• the role of geoscience research in advancing climate and ocean education and communication;
• scientific investigation of outreach initiatives targeting different age groups, settings, and approaches;
• learners’ content and procedural knowledge of climate science and options for action (e.g. climate feedbacks, impacts, adaptation measures, and renewable energy), cultivating science and communication skills (e.g. quantitative literacy, critical thinking, and writing to inform), initiating positive attitudes and actions (e.g. empathy and behavioural change), and issues related to the transfer of education into action and to timescales needed for mindset and behavioural change.

For more information, please see the dedicated website: https://oceansclimate.wixsite.com/oceansclimate/gc-special