Offered in this guide are ideas to aid program planners and discussion participants who wish to develop dialogue centered on environmental problems, particularly those issues to be considered by the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment. A background is established that Americans need to begin thinking about the international dimensions of the environmental crisis, about the role the United Nations is now playing and should play in the future, and about how and to what extent their own government should participate. To this end, questions for discussion and a list of readings and audio-visual resources are suggested under the following topics: (1) Issues before the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, (2) The Worldwide Population Explosion, (3) International Control of the Seabed and Ocean Floor, and (4) The United Nations and this Beleaguered Earth - the Wider Issues. Also given are pointers for planning the format of such programs or discussion sessions. (BL)