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Glossary

Glossary

Jargon-busting explanations of sustainability terminologies.

A

Anthropogenic

Angel Investor

Anaerobic digestion

Air Pollutants

Adaptation

Abatement

Alternative Energy

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B

Business Model

Brown power / Brown energy

BREEAM

Bond

Bond Fund

Board of Trustees

Board of Directors (BoD)

Biophilic design

Biophilia

Biomass

Biogas

Bioethanol

Biodiversity Net Gain

Biodiversity

Biodiesel

Biodegradable

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C

Corporate Social Responsibility

Conservation

Conscious Capitalism

Conflict Minerals

Composting

Closed Loop

Climate Positive

Climate Change

Circular Economy

Chief Technical Officer / Chief Information Officer

Chief Sustainability Officer

Chief Operations Officer

Chief Marketing Officer

Chief Legal Officer

Chief Financial Officer

Chief Executive Officer

CDP Worldwide

Carbon Zero

Carbon Trading

Carbon Sink

Carbon Sequestration

Carbon Reduction Commitment

Carbon offsetting

Carbon Neutral

Carbon Net Zero

Carbon Negative

Carbon labelling

Carbon footprint

Carbon Dioxide equivalents

Carbon capture and storage

Carbon Budget

Capital

Cap and trade

Cambridge Institute of Sustainable Leadership (CISL)

C-Suite

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D

Downstream

Doughnut Economy

Diversity

Deforestation

E

Environmental Management Systems

Ethical Tea Partnership

Ethical Investment or Socially Responsible Investment

Ethical Consumerism

Equity Fund

Equity

Equality

Environmentally Friendly

Environment, Social and Governance criteria

Endangered Species

End of Life

Emissions Trading

Emissions

Embodied Energy

Embodied Emissions

Embedded Water

Embedded Carbon

Ecosystem

Eco-footprint

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F

Fund

Fuel Cell

Fracking

Fossil fuels

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)

Food miles

Financial Times Stock Exchange-Russell Group (FTSE4Good)

Financial materiality

Fairtrade

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G

Ground Source Heat Pumps

Greenwashing

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Greenhouse Effect

Green Roofs - Intensive

Green Roofs - Extensive

Green Roofs

Green Computing

Green Energy

Green Climate Fund

Green Bond Principles

Green Bond

Global Warming

Global Reporting Initiative

Geopolitical

Gender Equality

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H

Hydroelectric

Hurdle Rate

I

Investment Company

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

Investor

Investment Stewardship

Investee

Integrated Reporting

Initial Public Offering

Indoor Environment Quality

Indoor Air Quality

Indigenous People

Index

Inclusion

Incineration

Impact Investing

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K

Kyoto Protocol

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

L

Low Carbon Economy

Life Cycle Assessment

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design

Large Cap

Landfill

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M

MSCI (Morgan Stanley Capital International) ESG rating

Mitigation

Mid Cap

Micro Generation or Micro Energy

Methane

Materiality Assessment

Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)

Marine Conservation Society

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N

Non-Renewable Source

Non-Governmental Organisation

Negative Screening

Natural Capital

Nasdaq

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O

Ozone Depletion

Organic

Ocean Acidification

P

Portfolio

Public Limited Company

Protected Area

Private Equity Fund

Private Equity

Pre-Seed Funding

Post Consumer Food Waste

Positive Screening

Polyvinyl Chloride

Planetary boundaries

Photovoltaics

Petrol or Petroleum

Passive Buildings

Parts Per Million

Parity

Paris Agreement

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R

Resilience

Renewable Energy

Remediation

Regenerative System

Regenerative Sustainability

Reduce

Recycle

Reclaimed

Rainwater Harvesting

Rainforest Alliance

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S

Scope 1 Emissions

Scope 3 Emissions

Scope 2 Emissions

Sustainable Investing

Sustainable Design

Sustainability

Sustainability Linked Bonds

Sustainability Accounting Standards Board

Sustainability Bond

Supplier Code of Conduct

Supply Chain

Startup

Solar Panels

Social Return on Investment

Social Impact

Social Enterprise

Social Capital

Social Bonds

Small Cap

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)

Single Use Plastic

Sick Building Syndrome

The Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR)

Share

Sexual Exploitation

Series C

Series B

Series A

Seed Funding

Science Based Targets Initiative

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T

Triple Bottom Line

Third Party Certification

Thematic

The International Institute for Sustainable Development

Task Force on Climate Related Financial Disclosures (TFCD)

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U

UTZ Certified

Upstream

United Nations - Supported Principles for Responsible Investment

United Nations Global Compact

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

United Nations

United Nation Sustainable Development Goals

UN Development Programme

UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties

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V

Volatile Organic Compounds

Venture Capital

Venture Capital Fund

Value Chain

Valuation

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W

WELL Standard

Wish Cycling

Water Scarcity

Water Footprint

Z

Zero Waste