Environmental issues have grown to command ever more public attention and concern. At the same time, we have grown to realise that most human activities have direct or indirect impacts on the environment. Governments can and do support environmental education programmes to raise awareness and promote sound pro-environment attitudes throughout society. But does the widely cherished belief that children are most receptive to messages about environment, or best fitted to act on them, add up to a realistic response to this vital challenge? A University of Sussex study for the Global Environmental Change programme scans current environmental education practice in the UK. Researchers asked: Is it enough to expect children to make society’s decisions? What other influences count and which teaching and learning approaches best answer today’s needs?