In the last two decades extraordinary progress in the experimental handling of single quantum objects has spurred theoretical research into investigating the coupling between quantum systems and their environment. Decoherence, the gradual deterioration of entanglement due to dissipation and noise fed to the system by the environment, has emerged as a central concept. The present set of lectures is intended as a high-level, but self-contained, introduction into the fields of quantum noise and dissipation. In particular their influence on decoherence and applications pertaining to quantum information and quantum communication are studied, leading the nonspecialist researchers and the advanced students gradually to the forefront of research.