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A

Afforestation

Afforestation involves planting trees on land that has not recently been covered with forest. Source.

Agroforestry

Agroforestry is the intentional integration of trees and shrubs into crop and animal farming systems to create environmental, economic, and social benefits. It has been practiced in the United States and around the world for centuries. Source.

Air-Pollution

Air pollution is contamination of the indoor or outdoor environment by any chemical, physical or biological agent that modifies the natural characteristics of the atmosphere. Source.

Alternative Fuel

Alternative fuel is a biofuel, ethanol, methanol, hydrogen, coal-derived liquid fuels, electricity, natural gas, propane gas, or a synthetic transportation fuel. Biofuel is defined as a renewable, biodegradable, combustible liquid or gaseous fuel derived from biomass or other renewable resources that can be used as transportation fuel, combustion fuel, or refinery feedstock and that meets ASTM standards and federal quality requirements for each category or grade of fuel. Source.

B

B Corp

B Corp is a for-profit company that reaches the highest standards of social and environmental accountability. Source.

Bioaccumilation

Bioaccumulation is the net accumulation of a contaminant in or on an organism from all sources including water, air, and diet. Source.

Biocapacity

Biocapacity refers to the capacity of a given biologically productive area to generate an on-going supply of renewable resources and to absorb its spillover wastes. Unsustainability occurs if the area’s ecological footprint exceeds its biocapacity. Source.

Biodegradable

Natural decomposition, like food and leaves when breaks down and decomposes into elements found in nature when they’re exposed to sunlight, air, moisture, certain bacteria, or other organisms. Source.

Biomass

Biomass is renewable organic material that comes from plants and animals. Source.

Blue Water Footprint

Blue water footprint is water that has been sourced from surface or groundwater resources and is either evaporated, incorporated into a product or taken from one body of water and returned to another, or returned at a different time. Irrigated agriculture, industry and domestic water use can each have a blue water footprint. Source.

C

Carbon Capture & Storage

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) refers to a collection of technologies that can combat climate change by reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. The idea behind CCS is to capture the CO2 generated by burning fossil fuels before it is released to the atmosphere. Source.

Carbon Emissions

Refers to the carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere during any process or activity. Sometimes people use just “carbon” as shorthand. Source.

Carbon Footprint

Carbon footprint, amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions associated with all the activities of a person or other entity (e.g., building, corporation, country). Source.

Carbon Neutral

“A carbon-neutrall footprint is achieved when the sum of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions produced are offset by natural carbon sinks or verified carbon offset credits. Source.

Carbon Offset

Carbon offsets are tradable “rights” or certificates linked to activities that lower the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere. Source.

Circular Economy

It is a change to the model in which resources are mined, made into products, and then become waste. A circular economy reduces material use, redesigns materials, products, and services to be less resource intensive, and recaptures “waste” as a resource to manufacture new materials and products. Source.

Climate Change

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. Source.

Closed-loop

A closed-loop economy is the most sustainable form of production and consumption. As a circular economy, the input used to create a product is the same as the output in a closed-loop. Source.

Cohousing

Cohousing projects are communities where shared common space is communally managed and governed, but households have their own private living units. Collaborative spaces are a way of living that fosters connectedness and increases social capital for residents. Source.

Commingled Recycling

Commingled recycling, or single-stream recycling, is the system in which all plastic, metals, paper, and other recyclables are mixed into a single collection. Source.

Compostable

Materials that break down into useable compost, which enriches the soil and returns nutrients to the earth. Source.

D

Decarbonization

Decarbonisation is the term used for removal or reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) output into the atmosphere. Decarbonisation is achieved by switching to usage of low carbon energy sources. Source.

Deforrestation

Deforestation is the intentional clearing of forested land. Source.

Dieback

The term “dieback” technically refers to the progressive death of twigs, shoots, and branches from the tip downward. Source.

Diversion Rate

Diversion rates measure (usually by weight) the portion of waste not sent to the landfill. Tracking your diversion rate over time is a great way to measure of the effectiveness of reuse, recycling, and organic composting programs. Source.

Downcycling

Downcycling is to recycle (something) in such a way that the resulting product is of a lower value than the original item. Source.

E

E-Cycling

E-cycling refers to the recycling of e-waste or electronic waste, such as laptops, cell phones, refrigerators, televisions and batteries. Source.

E-Waste

E-waste (electronic waste) includes anything with plugs, cords and electronic components. Source.

Eco-Friendly

Not harmful to the environment, or trying to help the environment. Source.

Embodied Carbon

Refers to the carbon emissions associated with all the extraction, manufacturing, and transportation of all the materials used in a project, as well as the emissions associated with the construction, maintenance, and demolition of the project—think of it as all the carbon emitted to “make” a building or interiors. Source.

Emission Standards

Emission standards are governmentally promulgated limits on the emission of a pollutant from a process. Source.

Energy Recovery

Energy recovery is a waste treatment process that generates energy in the form of electricity, heat or fuel. Source.

EPD

An Environmental Product Declaration is a third-party certified report created by manufacturers to communicate all the environmental impacts of their product or material offerings, as defined by material-specific Product Category Rules and ISO standards. Source.

ESG

Environmental, social and governance (ESG) refers to a collection of corporate performance evaluation criteria that assess the robustness of a company’s governance mechanisms and its ability to effectively manage its environmental and social impacts. Source.

F

Fossil Fuel

Fossil fuels are made from decomposing plants and animals. These fuels are found in the Earth’s crust and contain carbon and hydrogen, which can be burned for energy. Source.

Fugitive Emissions

Fugitive emissions are gases and vapors accidentally released into the atmosphere. Most fugitive emissions come from industrial activities, like factory operations. Source.

G

G8

G8 is a forum that brings together 8 global leaders to address international issues and tackle the most pressing global challenges. Source.

Geothermal Energy

Geothermal energy is a renewable energy form derived from hot water or steam within the earth. It usually creates electricity. Source.

Global Recycle Standard (GRS)

The Global Recycled Standard (GRS) is an international, voluntary, full product standard that sets requirements for third-party certification of Recycled Content, chain of custody, social and environmental practices, and chemical restrictions. The goal of the GRS is to increase use of Recycled materials in products and reduce/eliminate the harm caused by its production. Source.

Green Building

A green building is built based on ecological principles to maintain a healthy structure that minimizes environmental impacts. Essential features of green building include reducing or eliminating adverse ecological effects while also creating positive developments within the community. Source. 

Greeenhouse Effect

The greenhouse effect is a process that occurs when gases in Earth’s atmosphere trap the Sun’s heat. Source.

Greenhouse Gas

Greenhouse gases are gases in Earth’s atmosphere that trap heat. Source.

Green Architecture

Green architecture, philosophy of architecture that advocates sustainable energy sources, the conservation of energy, the reuse and safety of building materials, and the siting of a building with consideration of its impact on the environment. Source.

Green Water Footprint

Green water footprint is water from precipitation that is stored in the root zone of the soil and evaporated, transpired or incorporated by plants. It is particularly relevant for agricultural, horticultural and forestry products. Source.

Greenwashing

Broad claims of unqualified general environmental benefit like “green” or “eco-friendly’ that are difficult to substantiate or prove while being deceptive of the environmental costs or benefits of using it. Source.

Grey Water Footprint

Grey water footprint is the amount of fresh water required to assimilate pollutants to meet specific water quality standards. The grey water footprint considers point-source pollution discharged to a freshwater resource directly through a pipe or indirectly through runoff or leaching from the soil, impervious surfaces, or other diffuse sources. Source.

GWP

Standing for Global Warming Potential, this is the number that represents embodied carbon on an EPD. The GWP is measured in kgCO2e/unit. Source.

L

Landfill-Free

All waste (or at least 90 percent) generated from operations is reused, recycled, or converted to energy. Source.

LCA

A Life Cycle Assessment of all the environmental impacts of any project, product, process, or organization. LCAs assess all the impacts from “Cradle to Grave,” which means they cover everything from the origin of materials to the end of its useful life. Source.

LEED Certification

LEED certifications inform, benchmark, and celebrate company’s sustainability goals and achievements; the certifications vary based on company initiatives. Source.

M

Material-Flow Analysis

Mapping of the total use, recycling, and disposal of a specific material or substance in a defined region. Source.

Microplastics

Small pieces of plastic, less than 5mm in length, found on land and water as a result of plastic pollution. Source.

Multi-Attribute

A type of eco-label or standard that captures a number of environmental attributes or life-cycle attributes or impacts of a product. Source.

N

Net-Zero Emissions

‘Net zero emissions’ refers to achieving an overall balance between greenhouse gas emissions produced and greenhouse gas emissions taken out of the atmosphere. Source.

Net-Zero Water

An approach in which a building or community uses only the water that falls on site is referred to as net-zero water. Net-zero water involves limiting the consumption of water resources and then returning it back to the same water source. Source.

Natural Resources

Materials or substances such as minerals, forests, water, and fertile land that occur in nature and can be used for economic gain. Source.

O

Open-Loop Recycling

A recycling process in which materials from old products are made into new products in a manner that changes the inherent properties of the materials. Source.

Operational Carbon

Refers to the carbon emissions associated with the operation of buildings and interiors—broadly speaking, this is the energy used to “run” the interior. Some of it might be directly reflected in the utility bill, some of it is indirect (for example, the energy required to bring water to your faucet, or the gas that fuels your boilers). Source.

Organic

A term signifying the absence of pesticides, hormones, synthetic fertilizers and other toxic materials in the cultivation of agricultural products; “organic” is also a food labeling term that denotes the product was produced under the authority of the Organic Foods Production Act. Source.

Ozone Depletion

Ozone layer depletion is the wearing out, or reduction, of the amount of ozone in the stratosphere. Unlike pollution, which has many types and causes, ozone depletion has been pinned down to products like insulating foams, solvents, soaps, take-out food containers and cooling equipment like air conditioners and refrigerators. Source.

P

Paris Agreement

A legally binding international treaty on climate change adopted by more than 190 countries in 2015. Its goal is to limit global warming to well below 2°, preferably to 1.5° Celsius, compared to pre-industrial levels. Source.

Product Stewardship

A concept where businesses take responsibility for the environmental impact of the products they make, sell or buy. This involves all stages of the product’s life cycle, including end-of-life management. Source.

R

Reforestation

The process of planting trees where a forest was previously held but had been removed for commercial purposes. Source.

Recycle

Recycled content is material that was kept out of the trash, either during the manufacturing process or after people used it. Source.

Regeneration

Improving ecological health and biodiversity by enabling, supporting and enhancing natural processes. Source.

Renewable Energy

Manufacturing powered with wind or solar energy. Source.

Reuse

The use of materials or products more than once, for example, refilling of bottles. Source.

S

Science-Based Targets

Targets for reducing emissions are considered ‘science-based’ if they are in line with what the latest climate science deems necessary to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. Source.

Shared Value

A management principle that seeks market opportunities for businesses to solve social problems. ‘Creating Shared Value’ was first introduced in the Harvard Business Review in 2011, based on the principle that the competitiveness of a company and the health of the communities around it are mutually dependent. Source.

Social Enterprise

Businesses that operate to tackle social problems, improve communities or the environment. They reinvest their profits back into the business or community. Source. 

Solar Energy

Solar energy is energy derived from the sun. Solar panels are used to absorb the Sun’s radiation. This type of energy is captured, stored, and regenerated into the electricity grid. Source.

Sustainability

Sustainability is based on a simple principle: Everything that we need for our survival and well-being depends, either directly or indirectly, on our natural environment. To pursue sustainability is to create and maintain the conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony to support present and future generations. Source.

Sustainable Manufacturing

Sustainable manufacturing (also called sustainable design or green design) is the creation of manufactured products through economically-sound processes that minimize negative environmental impacts while conserving energy and natural resources. Sustainable manufacturing also protects employee, community, and consumer safety. Source.

T

Terrestrial Acidification

Soil acidification (the lowering of soil pH) occurs when inorganic substances such as sulfates, nitrates and phosphates are deposited on the soil. Source.

W

Waste-to-Energy

A recovery process in which waste is incinerated or otherwise turned into steam or electricity, and used to generate heat, light or power through the process of combustion. Source.

Water Footprint

The water footprint is a measure of humanity’s appropriation of fresh water in volumes of water consumed and/or polluted. Source.

WaterSense

WaterSense, a voluntary partnership program sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is both a label for water-efficient products and a resource for helping you save water. Source.

Z

Zero Carbon

A term sometimes used to describe a product or service that creates no CO2 or greenhouse gas emissions during production and/or operation. Source.

Zero Waste

The conservation of all resources by means of responsible production, consumption, reuse, and recovery of products, packaging, and materials without burning and with no discharges to land, water, or air that threaten the environment or human health. Source.