The Missing Global South in Climate Change Biology: Towards Equitable Knowledge Inclusion for Effective Global Solutions

Abstract

Over the last decades, climate change biology has become a central field in global science, yet knowledge production and its inclusion in global strategies remain profoundly unequal. Our bibliometric analysis of over 580,000 records shows that ~80% of author affiliations come from Global North institutions, meaning that research agendas, theoretical frameworks, and priorities are still largely shaped outside the regions with the highest biodiversity and greatest vulnerability to climate change. This imbalance reflects structural and historical inequalities that limit the ability of Global South countries to conduct autonomous research and sustain long‐term monitoring. When research and funding originate abroad, local scientists are often excluded, leading to the loss of traditional knowledge, regional perspectives, and long‐term capacity building. These dynamics leave tropical and subtropical bioregions (generally in the Global South) underrepresented in global climate knowledge. To address this imbalance, we propose six actions: invest in infrastructure and monitoring, strengthen local research networks, link funding to capacity building, promote open and equitable data access, connect science with regional policies, and foster intersectoral collaboration. We argue that truly effective climate change biology must be global, equitable, and diverse.

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