European Journal of Sustainable Agroecosystems

Soil organic carbon (SOC) and nitrogen (N) cycling processes are important because they play role in controlling terrestrial productivity, greenhouse gases exchange and long term climate feedbacks, however, the extent and direction of climate-induced alterations of those processes is questionable. Warming, changes in precipitation, raise in CO2 in the atmosphere and thawing of permafrost are all causing changes in decomposition, mineralization, nitrification and microbes, which will later lead to serious implications for carbon-climate feedbacks as well as global food security. Aim: This review summarizes peer- reviewed studies mainly published for the period of 2015-2025 on the subject of climate change, precipitation variability, increased CO2 and thawing of permafrost related to soil C and N cycling and compares results across different ecosystems trying to find similarities, points of difference and methodological difficulties. Search methodology: Using Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed and Google scholar and being supplemented by IPCC and FAO reports the number of sources totally made 118 with 34 of those successfully passing the inclusion criteria after going through PRISMA-based screening process. Key findings: Warming consistently increases soil respiration and net nitrogen mineralization and nitrification rates, but the temperature sensitivity (Q10) of decomposition depends on various factors including soil carbon proportion, soil mineral composition, and soil depth. The carbon stores in permafrost are a significant, slow, but ever more active factor influencing climate. Elevated concentrations of CO2 and rainfall generally stimulate the activities of microbes and nitrogen cycles; however, declines in rainfall have minor and inconsistent impact. Some agricultural practices can mitigate the impacts of climate on carbon emissions. Research gaps: The importance of other determining factors such as the temperature sensitivity of mineral-associated and particulate organic carbon and the impact of microbial community changes on biogeochemical processes is still unclear. Conclusion: Climate change considerably alters soil C-N cycles by intensifying certain feedbacks and limiting others. The integration of microbial, mineralogical, and management processes into new-generation Earth system models is extremely important to reduce prediction uncertainties.