The present volume contains lectures given at the First GKSS School on Environmental Research in April 1997. The School dealt with the prototypical problem of Anthropogenic Climate Change and addressed a wide spectrum of questions, ranging from purely dynamic aspects to the socioscientific construction of the "climate problem". Three lectures deal with the functioning and modeling of the climate system and the dynamics behind natural and anthropogenic climate change. An up-to-date discussion of the "detection" problem is given. For comparison, the case of anthropogenic rain-making is addressed which attracted considerable interest in the 1960s. Three lectures deal with the social dimension of Anthropogenic Climate Change, namely with the interaction of climate and economy and the design of optimal policies; a comparison of the present public views with the concept of climatic determinism; and the views held within the scientific community about the role of science. Reihen text Environmental research is a challenge in modern times, when the use of the environment for various purposes is ever intensifying and, at the same time, the a wareness of the public for the precious and fragile environment is heightened. While in earlier times, aspects of the environment were dealt with in special branches of conventional scientific disciplines like meteorology, geology and biology, environmental research has become a broad multidisciplinary effort, comprising not only most fields of natural science but also the social and even cultural sciences. The spectrum of methods includes such diverse techniques as complex systems analysis, detailed modeling, sophisticated analytical technology, and the transfer of knowledge from the scientific sphere to the public. The GKSS Research Center in Geesthacht, Germany, has set up the GKSS School on Environmental Research for students and postdocs to discuss the various aspects.