Data from literature search systematically conducted using two widely-used academic databases: Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus . Data include the annual amount of KM publication in China and across the world, in WoS, the total amount of knowledge management (KM) publication during the searched years for each country (top 20), in Scopus, the total amount of KM publication during the searched years for each country (top 20), information about the retained KM publication for environmental management in China. The data were generated during the NERC grant 'The transmissive critical zone: understanding the karst hydrology-biogeochemical interface for sustainable management' reference NE/N007425/1 undertaken as part of the NERC Using Critical Zone Science to Understand Sustaining the Ecosystem Service of Soil & Water (CZO) programme. Full details about this dataset can be found at https://doi.org/10.5285/9bbcbd03-0b6d-409d-9ad1-650c25f5ac73

Survey data on knowledge exchange experience of both Chinese and British scientists working on critical zone and more broadly on geoscience. Data are drawn from questionnaire surveys to explore the knowledge management methods used in their environmental research. Data are anonymised social survey data from questionnaires. The data were generated during the NERC grant 'The transmissive critical zone: understanding the karst hydrology-biogeochemical interface for sustainable management' reference NE/N007425/1 undertaken as part of the NERC Using Critical Zone Science to Understand Sustaining the Ecosystem Service of Soil & Water (CZO) programme. Full details about this nonGeographicDataset can be found at https://doi.org/10.5285/71fc5250-727b-42ec-85ba-a45770e464b1