The first of four volumes on environmental issues, this text provides an interdisciplinary account of the interrelated ideas from science, technology and social science involved in the consideration of complex questions, on both the local and global scale. It contains contributions from five authors. The book begins with a particular region, Cumbria, which illustrates many of the ways physical and social factors interact. A broader account of human environmental impact throughout history is followed by a discussion of changing attitudes during this time. Concerns about global policy on environment and development lead back to the need to consider varying time scales and the ecology of life on Earth in a general way.