This book is based on a workshop entitled: "Model Identification and Adaptive Control: From Windsurfing to Telecommunications" held in Sydney, Australia, on December 16, 2000. The workshop was organized in honour of Professor Brian Anderson in recognition of his seminal contributions to systems science over the past 4 decades. The chapters in the book have been written by colleagues, friends and students of Brian Anderson. A central theme of the book is the interrelationship between identification and the use of models in real world applications. This theme has underpinned much of Brian Anderson's own contributions. The book reflects on these contributions as well as making important statements about possible future research directions. The subtitle of the book (From Windsurfing to Telecommunications) recognizes the fact that many common life experiences, such as those we encounter when learning to ride a windsurfer are models for design methods that can be used on real world advanced technological control problems. Indeed, Brian Anderson extensively explored this link in his research work.