Francisco Meza Dabancens: A legacy of sustainability and applied meteorology

The passing of Professor Francisco Meza Dabancens on 26 May 2025 left the community of Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and the national scientific community in deep sorrow. Throughout his career, Francisco left a legacy in the fields of meteorology and applied climatology, climate variability and global change, hydrometeorology, remote sensing, crop modeling, and water management. In this editorial, we honor his professional journey by revisiting his most important milestones that defined his extraordinary contributions to global climate change science, sustainability and society.