The 2014 Environmental Sciences: Water Gordon Research Conference will bring together leading scientists to discuss frontier aquatic sciences research that explores how human alterations of the environment influence critical processes from the molecular to landscape scales. Example human impacts on aquatic systems include (i) changes in water chemistry induced by increased nutrient loads and sources of organic matter, such as from municipal wastewater management; (ii) physical alterations of the watershed systems through the construction of engineered water conveyance networks, and (ii) the demand for water to meet societal needs, including energy production. Environmental scientists have long been concerned with anthropogenic contaminants in environmental systems; however, mechanistic studies of contaminant fate and toxicology have focused largely on natural systems. Recent attention to human-impacted aquatic systems have highlighted key differences that limit the extent to which understanding of natural systems may be translated directly to predict contaminant fate and toxicology in aquatic systems subject to human alterations. Understanding fundamental aquatic processes in such a context requires participation of environmental chemists and microbiologists, biogeochemists, environmental engineers and toxicologists with new advances in analytical, sensor and computational tools. Solutions to complex environmental science problems will be achieved through integrated advances of these scientists and engineers in a broader framework of environmental policy.