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Climate–Karst Interactions: Drivers of Speleothem Growth, Speleogenesis, and Stewardship in Karst Systems Mike Buchanan 2026 Abstract Climate exerts first-order control on karst evolution and subterranean environments by regulating recharge quantity and timing, soil CO2 production, water chemistry, and base level geology. This review synthesizes contemporary understanding of how climate and hydroclimatic extremes drive speleothem deposition, conduit initiation and enlargement, contaminant transport, and ecological responses. This work examines mechanistic links from atmosphere to vadose and phreatic zones, highlights observational and modelling advances, identify key research gaps, and propose monitoring and stewardship priorities to manage karst vulnerability under changing climate regimes. Works by or for the UIS are excluded. Introduction Karst terrains underlain by soluble carbonates and evaporites, are sensitive ...