The purpose of this paper is to discuss ways that a chemistry course could reposition itself by adopting interdisciplinary approaches based on systems thinking and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as overarching frameworks, to give an overview of several challenges that chemistry in higher education is facing, and to discuss how those can be addressed as a result of this repositioning. We will be discussing the need for a new type of scientist, one who has a deep understanding of their own discipline but also an overview of the links with other disciplines and is equipped with skills that will help them contribute to the solutions of a very complex system: the human--environment interaction system. Chemists should be part of what is described by earth systems' science as "the new social contract" between science and society. Finally, we will explore how this can be reflected in the curricula of higher education, and we will present a University of Bristol educational initiative, Bristol Futures, that attempts to address this.