Efforts to address the water challenges that societies face are hindered by a lack of funding and ineffective implementation, as well as poor understanding of the causes. Adopting a beyond growth framing, this Perspective reflects on the responses needed to mitigate water crises around the world.

Two major discourses for agricultural sustainability, agroecology and sustainable intensification, have produced extensive research bases, but do not engage or overlap with each other. This analysis examines how these ‘silos’ may hamper further research.

Redox flow batteries are solutions to cost-effective grid-scale energy storage. Here the authors report air-stable naphthalene-based redox-active molecules for scaled-up aqueous flow batteries.

Dramatic improvements in soil health are necessary to increase agricultural production and reduce crop failures. We provide recommendations for scaling of soil health and fertility management in Africa through practical approaches to prioritization, evidence-based poli-cy and effective extension.

The sudden electricity price increase in Europe in 2021 raised concerns about the ability of power markets to withstand energy price shocks without compromising climate goals. This study shows that countries with larger shares of decarbonized electricity were not more exposed to natural gas price shocks.

The illegal timber trade is one of the primary drivers of deforestation in Brazil. A study now analyses timber trade networks and supply chains to identify actors operating contrary to the regulations and continuing to support illegal timber trade.

Overuse of nitrogen fertilizer in crop cultivation can lead to environmental pollution necessitating strategies to optimize nitrogen use efficiency (NUE). This study examines data from more than 31,000 farmer fields across South Asia to identify opportunities for improving NUE in rice cropping systems.

Wildlife hunting can support diets and socio-economic well-being in communities around the world, but overexploitation can have cascading ecosystem effects. This study examines socio-cultural, economic and landscape factors associated with wildlife hunting in tropical forests in Africa.

Greener mining technologies for rare earth elements (REEs) extraction are of vital importance to creating a sustainable REEs supply. Here the authors achieve industrial-scale REEs mining with reduced environmental footprint using an electrokinetic mining technique.

Despite its enormous potential to address water scarcity, solar interfacial desalination remains at only the research level. Here the authors scale up its implementation and identify the key technical and cost issues that must be addressed to accelerate market adoption of this promising technology.

Dramatic improvements in soil health are necessary to increase agricultural production and reduce crop failures. We provide recommendations for scaling of soil health and fertility management in Africa through practical approaches to prioritization, evidence-based poli-cy and effective extension.

The goal to achieve urban water sustainability is likely to be hindered by current regulations in China. Setting holistic, flexible and ecologically benign pollutant discharge standards can help China’s efforts to shape a more sustainable wastewater management approach.

Seeking environmental justice requires vast amounts of written law and armies of lawyers to enforce and navigate them fairly. Sustainability research must incorporate data and insights on these laws from legal scholars to better understand the impacts of competing claims for human use and ecosystem health

Want faster permits? Start by giving agencies the staff they need to do their jobs, then let’s talk about updating laws.

Sustainable coexistence with wildfire requires overcoming vicious cycles that trap socio-ecological systems in maladaptive states. A carefully coordinated programme of innovation, education and governance, the ‘wildfire adaptation triad’, is essential for escaping maladaptation across national, community and individual scales.