Our perceptions of the world have changed dramatically since the usaional Ergonomics Association was founded in 1959, In the past 17 years, we have come to realize that our energy and mineral resources are exhaustible, that environmental pollution may annihilate us, and that we have to be protected against the technology that we have created for our own benefit. Those 17 years have also soon a marked decrease in satisfaction with the quality of life, and an increase in expectations that life can and should be made safer, richer, and generally better. In many countries, these rising expectations have led to the enactment of laws governing conditions of work, opportunities for employment, and consumer product safety. Most important of all, society is finally beginning to understand that the world constitutes one enormous system, and that changes proposed anywhere have to be evaluated in terms of their long-term effects on that system. This old world with its new values offers important opportunities and challenges for ergonomics— many of which are elaborated here.