The Indo-Pacific Warm Pool (IPWP) is the primary supplier of heat and moisture to the global atmosphere, and exerts a significant impact on tropical and worldwide climate variability. This special issue expands our understanding of the paleoceanographic and paleoclimatic evolution of the IPWP since Neogene times with implications for understanding future change. It contains fifteen research articles addressing two primary themes: (1) Ocean-atmosphere coupled processes via the ocean water-column, sea surface, atmospheric evaporation/precipitation; and (2) Sediment source-to-sink and biogeochemical carbon-cycles, and their interactions with oceanographic, hydrological, tectonic and other factors. These contributions improve our understanding of thermocline temperature, salinity, oxygenation, hydrography, carbon cycle, biological productivity, and sedimentary response in the IPWP across Neogene and Quaternary time scales, as well as aiding in the forecast of future climate responses in the context of current global warming. The special issue will capture the attention of geologists, climatologists, and anybody else interested in global climate change.