Recent publications on the fate of our limited earth have stirred up vivid worldwide discussions, during which it became clear that our knowledge of the complex ecosystem is far from sufficient today. All planning and predictive models are only as good as the input data they are based on. Improved research methods and new ideas and impulses are therefore urgently needed, both to stimulate the specialized scientists and to supply the concerned citizen with the updated background information necessary to make responsible decisions. Generally, most of the serious publications in the field of pollution are written by well-known and well-established scientists. It is beyond doubt that their experience and profound knowledge is an essential contribution to the understanding of our environment. But one whole group of scientists has not been able to present their ideas and concerns to a broader scientific or non­ scientific readership: the young scientist at the beginning of his career. He belongs to a new generation of scientists who have studied during a time when environmental concern has become a vital part of the university life. Now, in the first decade of his academic career, his educational approach and his devel­ oping expertise in this field may synthesize ideas that will fall on what is already a fertile ground for new concepts that are urgently needed to solve the environmental crisis.