Reducing natural hazard risk is high on the global political agenda. For example, it is at the heart of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (and its predecessor the Hyogo Framework for Action) and the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage Associated with Climate Change Impacts. In response, the last 5 years have seen an explosion in the number of scientific datasets, methods, and models for assessing risk at the global and continental scale. More and more, these datasets, methods, and models are being applied together with stakeholders in the decision-making process. The purpose of the special issue is to (1) provide a high-quality collection of papers showcasing the current state of the art of global- and continental-scale natural hazard risk assessment and application; (2) foster broader exchange of knowledge, datasets, methods, models, and good practice between scientists and practitioners working on different natural hazards and across disciplines globally; and (3) collaboratively identify future research avenues. We invite contributions related to all aspects of natural hazard risk assessment at the continental to global scale, including contributions focusing on single hazards, multiple hazards, or a combination or cascade of hazards. We also encourage contributions examining the use of scientific methods in practice and the appropriate use of continental to global risk assessment data in efforts to reduce risks. Furthermore, we encourage contributions focusing on globally applicable methods, such as novel methods for using globally available datasets and models to force more local models or inform more local risk assessment.