Climate change poses an imminent threat to countries worldwide, emerging as a major challenge to sustainable development. Its impact extends beyond ecological and environmental security, reaching into regional and global climate systems and human activities. As a sensitive zone for global climate change, the key elements of the cryosphere, atmosphere and ocean in the Earth’s three poles, as well as extreme events, have undergone unprecedented changes in the past decades under global warming. Future projections of climate change in the three poles, indicate that significant transformations will continue to occur by the middle and end of this century. However, uncertainties still exist regarding the evolution of future climate in the three poles. Hence, there is an urgent need to clarify the climate change trends in the three poles over the next few decades and recognize their potential impact on the global or regional environment and ecosystem. Relevant scientific findings can provide theoretical guidance for countries to adapt to the effects of a warming climate, potentially leading to more frequent and disastrous events. They can also support the planning of climate-related strategy and further promote the achievement of global sustainable development goals, particularly those related to climate action (SDG13).