The Green Review

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Your go-to guide for commonly used climate change and sustainability terminology.

Adaptation vs Mitigation: Adaptation is making changes to better withstand future impacts. Mitigation is making changes to prevent climate change impact. (i.e., building seawalls to protect against erosion (adaptation) vs reducing greenhouse gas emissions to reduce the severity of climate change impacts (mitigation)).

Anthropocene: Unit of geologic time defined by human impact on the planet. ('Anthro' means humans, i.e., anthropology - the study of human culture).

Anthropogenic: Human activity resulting in environmental impacts.

Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE): Enables members to implement knowledge by providing resources and professional development to a diverse and active community of sustainability leaders.

Biomimicry: Innovation through the imitation of nature to develop climate change solutions.

BOMA BESt Certification: National program by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) that sets a standard for existing buildings' energy and environmental performance. It has an assessment and certification process that looks at six areas of environmental performance:

• Energy,
• Water,
• Waste reduction and site enhancement,
• Emissions and effluents,
• Indoor environment and air quality, and
• Environmental management systems.

Check out UNB's very own BOMA BESt certification:

• Richard J. Currie Center (FR),
• Facilities Management (FR),
• MacLaggan Hall, Head Hall (FR),
• Student Union Building,
• Neville Jones House,
• F.J. Toole Hall,
• Faculty of Law building
• Forestry and Geology (FR),
• Marshall D'Avray Hall (FR),
• Harriet Irving Library (FR).

Carbon Sinks and Carbon Sequestration: An entity, natural or other,  that collects and stores more carbon than it releases. Carbon sequestration is the process of removing carbon from the atmosphere—forests and the ocean act as carbon sinks.

Carbon Tax: A set fee on carbon emissions, i.e., burning fossil fuels.

Circular Economy: A supply chain model with reduced outputs (waste). The model extends the life cycle of resources by refurbishing, repairing, sharing, reducing, and recycling. (The opposite of a traditional linear economic model: Extract Resource - Produce - Distribute - Consume - Dispose).

Climate Change Action Plans (CCAP): A framework for measuring, tracking, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Often includes climate adaptation measures.

Climate Resilience: The ability to bounce back, or recover, after a climate change impact.

Conference of the Parties (COP): Serve as the formal meeting of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change parties to assess progress in dealing with climate change. The UN Climate Change Conference is made of climate talks and actions; it also is an opportunity for evaluating climate change impacts.

COP27: The 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations was held in Sharm el-Sheikh on November 20th, 2022.

Economic Sustainability: Development that makes secure sources of livelihood available to everyone and ensures that global communities remain intact.

Emissions Trading System (ETS): Sets an allowance for carbon emissions. Permits low emitters to sell allowance to high emitters. Commonly referred to as "cap and trade."

Environmental Sustainability: Development that conserves natural resources and protects global ecosystems to support health and wellbeing, now and in the future.

Fair Trade: A set standard for ethical trade, it promotes decent wages and working conditions, specifically in developing countries.

Greenhouse Gas Protocol: Global standardized tool for measuring, managing, and reporting greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions are calculated across three scopes (Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3).

Green Infrastructure: The integration of natural features and systems into building designs. (i.e., green roofs, green walls, rain barrels, bioswales, etc.).

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification: A green building rating system that assigns points to met requirements. Evaluates six aspects of project building:

• Site development,
• Water efficiency,
• Energy efficiency,
• Materials used,
• Indoor environmental quality, and
• Innovation.

There are four levels: Certified (40-49), Gold (50-59), Silver (60-69), and Platinum (80+). Check out UNB's LEED GOLD-certified buildings: Hans W. Klohn Commons (UNB Saint John) and Kinesiology Building (UNB Fredericton).

Low Carbon Economy: A system aiming to minimize greenhouse gas outputs.

Nature-Based Solutions: Using natural processes to solve challenges. It involves working with nature to benefit society and the environment. (i.e., green infrastructure, wetland restoration, and restorative agricultural practices).

Net-Zero/Carbon Neutral: Reduction of Greenhouse Gas emissions to as close to zero as possible and counter-balancing any remaining emissions through removals like planting trees.

Scope 1 Emissions: All direct emissions. Any emission that is directly owned or controlled by the organization. (i.e., on-site fuel combustion: fleet vehicles, air-conditioning leaks, etc.).

Scope 2 Emissions: Indirect emissions. Any emissions generated from purchasing electricity.

Scope 3 Emissions: All other indirect emissions. Any emission sources that are not owned or directly controlled by the organization. (i.e., transportation of students, staff, and faculty on the UNB campuses).

Social Sustainability: Development that ensures basic requirements to keep individuals and communities healthy, secure, and respected are in place.

STARS (Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System) Certification: A program of the AASHE used for measuring sustainability at UNB. It is an assessment tool for universities and colleges. Five categories are measured: academic, engagement, planning and administration, and operations. UNB has achieved Silver STARS ratings for both Saint John and Fredericton campuses.

Sustainability: Meeting the world's current needs without hindering future generations from meeting their needs. It integrates the three pillars of sustainability: environmental health, social equity, and economic prosperity.

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): A universal call to action developed by the United Nations. It is a collection of 17 interconnected global goals designed to end poverty and inequality, protect the planet, and ensure that all people enjoy health, justice and prosperity.

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC): UNFCCC is a global agreement between 198 countries that prevents "dangerous" human interference with the climate system.

Edited on: December 12th, 2022