Dust emission is the least observationally constrained component in the dust aerosol life cycle, and represents a major source of model discrepancy and biases in predicting the dust response to and interaction with the changing climate. In this talk I will first present an analysis of the diverging relative importance of wind versus hydroclimate variables among CMIP6 models. Next, I will present a case study of the large-scale dynamics associated with recent extreme dust storms in Central Asia, particularly the role of atmospheric blocking in the Euro-Atlantic sector. Finally, I will discuss an ongoing effort in developing a ground-based dust-climate data record (DCDR) and initial results on characterizing the dust emission dynamics in Asia.