Knowledge of geography is fundamental to understanding many other disciplines and many of the important issues which face the world, yet it has practically disappeared from our curricula, having been swallowed and dissolved by social studies. We know about malnutrition, but we know little about where millions are dying of famine. Ignorance of geography is usually dangerous in that it can deter, frustrate, and finally defeat the best of intentions. The historical record is full of such instances, among them the British ignorance of how Americans were influenced by their environment and how they had changed in the period leading to the American Revolution, and America's ignorance of Vietnam before our involvement in the Vietnam War. The experience of Vietnam has not lessened our ignorance; today many high school graduates cannot locate Vietnam on a map. Moreover, they cannot name one African nation (except South Africa) south of the Sahara. Despite our ignorance, geographical knowledge is central not only to world affairs but also to more local matters such as deciding where to locate factories and how to market goods. In order to increase geographical awareness it is necessary to harness the advances in communications technology so that geographical information can be communicated as widely as possible to adults and children. The National Geographic Society is committed to doing this, but educators, too, must be convinced of the necessity of creating better ways to do this. (IS)