Young volcanic islands provide interesting natural labs to study both geological and ecosystem processes that have long ago shaped the entire planet. As soon as a new volcanic island is born it starts to change because of colonization of new organisms, weathering and other geological processes. The present issue brings together ten papers on ecological-, biogeochemical- and geophysical process studies of volcanic islands. Most papers were given at the international conference “Geological and Biological Development of Volcanic Islands: Surtsey 50th Anniversary Conference” that took place 12-15 August 2013 in Reykjavik, Iceland, but the special issue was also open for other submissions within its scope.