6G Digital Transformation for Climate-Resilient Systems: A Survey

Abstract

Climate change has significantly increased the severity of natural disasters, causing serious issues in telecommunication infrastructures when connectivity is most needed, especially for saving lives. Although current 4G and 5G networks integrate resilience procedures, such as infrastructure reinforcement and temporary network that can be deployed, these solutions may fail under large-scale, or simultaneous climate disruptions. This paper presents a comprehensive survey of a climate-resilient 6G networks, proposing an architectural transition toward proactive, intelligent, and adaptive communication systems. The study reviews key 6G technologies that enable greater resilience during disasters, including Space-Air-Ground Integrated Networks (SAGIN) for flexible aerial and satellite connectivity, Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC) for real-time environmental awareness, AI-native self-healing mechanisms for autonomous network recovery, and ambient energy harvesting for sustainable operation beyond traditional power grids. Furthermore, the paper discusses major research challenges, including satellite–terrestrial integration, seamless handover management, and the energy efficiency of AI-Driven network intelligence.