The article is devoted to the study of possibilities for the formation and development of environmental behavior and environmental education. The authors analyzed the concepts of "ecology", "environmental behavior" and "environmental education", proving the need to include these concepts in modern culture and education. The article shows a connection between the environmental problems of the modern world and the present ethical existentials. Ecology is becoming a necessary maxim of modern education. The authors argue that the spread of environmental behavior and the introduction of environmental education will lead to an improvement in the environmental situation in the world. The article deals with environmental ethics, environmental behavior, and principles of environmental education. A connection is made between environmental education and environmental culture. Harmonious human existence is possible only in an ecological society. © The Authors, published by EDP Sciences.