Small islands are often taken as poster children for climate change vulnerability, and their status as hotspots of climate change impacts has been widely acknowledged in the scientific literature. In many cases, however, individual studies as well as reviews and global assessments, generalise small islands as a whole—often with a strong focus on Small Island Developing States (SIDS)—and lack a thorough understanding of island specificity, relationality, and context dependency. Looking at small islands’ issues beyond SIDS implies the recognition of topics such as asymmetrical governance structures, archipelagic centre-periphery relationships, as well as intra- and inter-island movements in various types of island territories and geographies worldwide. This special thematic section of Island Studies Journal features contributions from the Atlantic, Indian, Pacific Ocean, and Caribbean dealing with the locally specific challenges and opportunities of adaptation to environmental and climate change.