Globally, we need to significantly increase human well-being for a large part of the world’spopulation. However, if this is done wrong, the potential to worsen global environmentalproblems and overburden planetary boundaries is significant. Technically mankind has atits disposal much of what is needed to solve these problems, but we don’t seem to be ableto use available options in effective ways. System effects resulting from human behavioroften counteract the results of previous efforts when attempts to achieve this dual goalare made. One description of such a problem is the so-called Rebound Effect. To handlethese issues we must go outside the sphere of understanding problems and of findingtechnical solutions to these problems; we need to find ways to change ourselves, ourwants, and what we value. This paper investigates the need for humanities research forsustainability from the perspective of natural science and engineering.