Global warming and climate change call for urgent minimization of the impact of human activities on the environment. There is a great need for the improvement of resource efficiencies by integrating various life-supporting systems. The challenge is on the energy, water and environment systems to integrate and become more sustainable. This research field has received increased attention over the past years with studies across the energy, water and environment systems that optimized different engineering problems. The present Special Issue stems from four Conferences on Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems held in 2020, in four countries of three continents. This review introduction article intends to introduce the topical field and the articles included in this Special Issue of Optimization and Engineering.

全球变暖和气候变化要求紧急减少人类活动对环境的影响。非常需要通过整合各种生命支持系统来提高资源效率。挑战在于能源、水和环境系统如何整合并变得更加可持续。在过去的几年里，随着能源、水和环境系统的研究优化了不同的工程问题，这一研究领域受到了越来越多的关注。本期特刊源于 2020 年在三大洲四个国家举行的四次能源、水和环境系统可持续发展会议。这篇综述介绍文章旨在介绍本期优化与工程特刊中的主题领域和文章。