Wouldn't it be nice to know just how much we influence, and are influenced by, the environment? It's such a charged discussion, with partisan politics being blamed for the views expressed, when in actuality, we need to be thinking about the science of each component. What are our options? An independent, non-partisan, apolitical, International Board of Science for the Study of Human Interdependence on the Environment. The problem extends beyond the industrialised nations, however. "Developing countries", because they are struggling to satisfy so many more basic needs, also are infringing upon the enviroment and the well-being of their citizens. This is a global problem, though it takes slightly different forms in the various regions of the world.