In this talk, we study continuous maximal regularity theory for a class of degenerate or singular differential operators on manifolds with singularities. Based on this theory, we show local existence and uniqueness of solutions for several nonlinear geometric flows and diffusion equations on non-compact, or even incomplete, manifolds, including the Yamabe flow and parabolic p-Laplacian equations. In addition, we also establish regularity properties of solutions by means of a technique consisting of continuous maximal regularity theory, a parameter-dependent diffeomorphism and the implicit function theorem.