What terms do I need to learn?
There are a number of new “green” terms you will need to familiarize yourself with:
Sustainable / Sustainability
“Sustainability”
refers to three areas, environmental, economic, and social.
It is about making choices that meet your needs without compromising the needs of future generations.
“Environmental Sustainability” refers to maintaining the quality and longevity of environmental resources used by the business.
This can include energy, water, waste management, emissions, etc.
If a business puts back 100% of the natural resources it consumes, it is considered an “environmentally sustainable” business.
This is because it replenishes the very resources it depends on.
If a business consumes more resources than nature can replenish, uses too much energy, or causes excess waste / pollution, it is not considered sustainable.
“Economic Sustainability” includes the overall financial model and productivity of a company.
The income and expenses must provide for a financially sustainable business.
If a business is constantly going deeper into debt, it is not financially sustainable.
In our context it also refers to evaluating the products and services you purchase to determine if they are “more sustainable” or “less sustainable”.
For example, purchasing energy-saving Compact Florescent Lights (CFLs) is considered a “more sustainable” choice.
“Social Responsibility” refers to social impact of a business.
It includes ethical principles, giving back to society, health & safety, respect for human rights, equal opportunities, fair compensation, and ensuring a high quality of life.
It involves eliminating unethical and corrupt behavior.
It involves thoroughly investigating your sources to ensure they provide fair compensation for work performed, provide a safe work environment, and do not violate human rights in the treatment of their workers.
It may also include doing things for the local community, educating / helping others, participating in community groups or your local city and chamber of commerce.
“Carbon Footprint” refers to your impact on the environment.
It refers to measuring how much carbon dioxide does a particular activity, purchase, or product produces.
For example, driving a car to the store produces a much larger carbon footprint than does walking to the store, as it produces much more carbon dioxide.
“Carbon Offsets” or “Carbon Credits” refers to offsetting your carbon footprint instead of reducing your own carbon footprint.
This used to mean planting a lot of trees to offset your carbon output.
Today, this means purchasing carbon credits from a company that offsets carbon emissions. This is commonly used to compensate for air travel or use of an automobile.
For example, if you take a plane to travel somewhere, you can buy carbon offsets to compensate the environment for your production of carbon dioxide. Be careful and thoroughly research a company before buying carbon credits.
“Certification” is a voluntary process where a business is thoroughly reviewed by a third-party organization to determine if it has gone beyond basic environmental compliance to conserve resources, prevent pollution and minimize waste.
There are many organizations that certify green businesses, each with its own criteria and qualifications.
“Greenwashing” is where a business spends more time, money and effort misleading consumers into thinking they are green than they put toward actually being green.
They think more about building a brand than actually doing something that matters to the environment.
“HHW” stands for Household Hazardous Waste, which can include cleaning chemicals, paint, pool/hot tub chemicals, batteries, oils, antifreeze, herbicides, pesticides, medicines, fluorescent light bulbs and smoke detectors (both contain mercury), any fuel or chemical that can ignite, and consumer electronic devices (such as TVs, computer equipment, cell phones).
“LOHAS” stands for “Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability”.
It refers to a market segment that focuses on personal health, fitness, environmentally friendly living, social responsibility and justice.
These are customers who are interested in seeing your business go green.
“Triple Bottom Line” refers to a way to measure a company’s success in the areas of Social sustainability, Environmental sustainability, and Economic sustainability.
This is also referred to as “People, Planet, and Profit”.
“VOC” refers to Volatile Organic Compounds.
These include paints/thinners, dry cleaning chemicals, petroleum products, and tobacco.
Sources can also include copy machines, carpets and products containing formaldehyde, such as particle-board-based furniture and cabinets.
The Three "R"s - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
The “Three R’s” are not the old “Reading wRiting and ‘Rithmetic” we were taught years ago.
They stand for the “Three-R’s” of the waste hierarchy, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.
The waste hierarchy is a sequential guideline and an approach you should take toward waste reduction.
The commonly used symbol of the three R’s is a logo with three rotating arrows.
To eliminate your carbon footprint, you must Reduce your Consumption and Waste, Reuse what you have, and Recycle everything you can.
When people think about sustainability and helping the environment, "Recycling" is usually the first thing people think of.
In fact, it is the next to last step.
In the waste hierarchy, you should Reduce your consumption and waste production first, then Reuse what you have left.
Next, you should Recycle everything you can and only discard what is remaining as a last resort.
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