If the nation and world community are to control population growth, better manage finite resources, provide adequate quantities of food and water, improve the quality of the atmosphere, and prevent further extinction of plant and animal species, then a program to educate a generation of quality environment-oriented people must be initiated. Unnatural environmental manipulations by humans have produced catastrophic ecological results. Humans must redefine priorities and reorder their lives. The educational enterprise must develop programs which introduce people to local, regional, national, and global environments, both natural and social. Goals of several organizations, such as the 1976 UNESCO/Alliance for Education Project and the "Four Freedoms," which guarantee the quality of lifespace environments, are included. The Student Awareness of Global Environments (SAGE) matrix is outlined and the three main areas of environmental degradation--pollution, depletion of resources, and disturbance of the natural condition--are presented, and a future scenario (if the situation is allowed to continue) is discussed. The final section describes curriculum infusion and classroom strategies for global environmental education. An extensive nine-item appendix includes an update on the management of natural resources throughout the world, plus specific examples of programs and organizations involved in this. (CBC)