Glossary

Useful terms to know

Biodegradable - Able to break down decay back into the earth, given the right conditions.

Biodiesel - A renewable fuel for diesel engines from natural oils, such as vegetable oils, used cooking oils or animal fats.

Biomass - Plant or animal materials used to create energy.

Carbon Emissions - Also referred to as "greenhouse gas emissions", it is pollution released into the atmosphere from carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide; often produced by motor vehicles.

Carbon Footprint - The emissions of greenhouse gases from an activity over a given period of time, such as flying, or produced by your lifestyle.

Carbon Neutral - Balancing greenhouse gas emissions with an equivalent amount of independently verified carbon offsets. Also referred to as net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.

Carbon Offsetting - Any activity that reduces overall emissions of greenhouse gases by carbon credits (offsets) through emissions reduction projects.

Carbon Positive - Any activity that reduces and/or offset more emissions than it produces.

Circular Economy - A system/economy where waste is designed to be kept in use by reusing, repairing and recycling.

Climate Action - Activities to tackle climate change and its impacts, usually by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Climate Change - A long-term and significant change in global weather patterns and climate including temperature and precipitation which leads to extreme weather (droughts, sea level rises, flooding, forest fires, etc).

Climate Positive - Exceeding achieving carbon neutrality by removing additional carbon dioxide from the atmosphere; also referred to as carbon negative.

Compostable/Composting - Breaking down organic materials/decomposing into non-toxic form to support plant growth.

Electric Vehicle - A vehicle that runs on electricity powered by a battery that can be plugged in to recharge. A vehicle that uses a battery and conventional engine is called a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle.

Freecycle - Exchanging goods to extend their lifecycle and keep reusable items out of landfills.

Global Warming - The increase in the Earth's average temperature which is largely due to human activity and the release of greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere.

Gray Water - Domestic wastewater including wash water from the bathroom, kitchen, and laundry.

Greenhouse Effect - When excessive heat is trapped and built up in the troposphere by a blanket of gases.

Greenwashing - Misrepresenting something as being “green” when it’s not environmentally sound.

Greenhouse Gases - Gases, such as methane, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide, that trap heat in the atmosphere.

Greenwashing - Activities, usually marketing, intended to make people believe a company is doing more to protect the environment than it really is.

Hybrid vehicle - A vehicle primarily powered by a conventional internal combustion engine, but supplemented with power from regenerative braking.

Localvore - Someone who consumes only food that has been cultivated locally.

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

Naked Packaging - Products that are sold without packaging.

Natural Resources - Raw materials supplied by nature.

Net-Zero - Achieving a balance between emissions produced and emissions removed from the atmosphere; also known as carbon neutrality.

Recycling - To reprocess reusable goods which can, usually, be done repeatedly.

Recyclable - A product or material that can be collected, processed and manufactured into a new product.

Reforestation - Planting of forests on lands that were depleted.

Remanufacturing - Rebuilding a product to its original specifications using a combination of reused, repaired and new parts.

Renewable energy - Energy that comes from natural sources that are constantly replenished like wind, water and sunlight.

Single-use - Items used one time and then discarded.

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

Sustainability - The balance of practices that protect natural resources for the future.

Wish-cycling - An aspirational approach to recycling items without knowing if they’re recyclable but expecting them to be properly dealt with.

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.

Zero waste - A target to produce no waste for disposal (to landfill or burning).