Glossary of Common Sustainability Terms (The I’s)

GreenBusinessOwner.com’s green glossary is an ever-growing list of constantly updated key sustainable business terms for sustainability professionals (so don’t mind the date and time stamp above).

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A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P-Q | R | S | T | U-V-W-X-Y-Z

Interfaith Power & Light – a “religious response to global warming”, Interfaith Power & Light works with congregations around the world who see the need to preserve all of creation. Currently serving over 14,000 congregations of all denominations and faiths, IP&L helps create energy efficiency, water efficiency, waste reduction, and community engagement programs around sustainability. See more at http://interfaithpowerandlight.org/.

Invasive species – a term used to describe a plant or animal species that has moved beyond its usual habitat, usually with the unintended (or intended) assistance of man. The brown tree snake is a great example of what can go wrong when an invasive species moves into an area. Perhaps coming into Guam in a shipping container at some point, the brown tree snake quickly spread across the previously snake-less island, and eliminated all but a few of the bird species that had evolved on that island for thousands of years without having to adapt to snake predators eating their eggs.

IPCC – The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is commissioned by the United Nations as a collaborative group of scientists that was formed in 1988. The group has met regularly and published thousands of scientific, peer-reviewed articles on climate change, and overwhelmingly, the consensus is that man is causing climate change, and that it is getting worse. The IPCC plays a critical role in evaluating how to slow climate change and how to mitigate its effects. When and if you hear of uncertainty in the scientific community regarding climate change, it is typically scientists hired by oil companies that are making claims contrary to what the IPCC is saying. The IPCC is not funded by corporate interests, meaning their research is not hindered by any corporate agenda, and thus, should suggest a higher level of sophistication and trust.

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