On behalf of the Organizing Committee, I would like to welcome each of you to EcoBalance 2014 in Tsukuba, Japan, from 27 to 30 October 2014. EcoBalance 2014 is the 11th International Conference on EcoBalance. Held biennially since 1994, EcoBalance is one of the longest established international conferences discussing methodologies and practices for sustainability based on life-cycle thinking. In commemoration of the twenty-year history of EcoBalance conferences, we are organizing a particular session in addition to regular keynote lectures and sessions concerning the prospect of further promoting life-cycle thinking in the next twenty years. We hope and believe that EcoBalance 2014 will be a fruitful opportunity for you to present your research results, network with a wide range of participants, and accomplish our aim of "Creating Benefit through Life Cycle Thinking."