Earth Overshoot Day
Earth Overshoot Day is the day each calendar year when the human demand, the natural resources we consume and the carbon dioxide emissions we create, exceeds the planet’s ability to regenerate those resources and reabsorb the carbon emissions generated during the same calendar year. Our first Overshoot Day occurred in the 1970’s and the date […]
The Kaya Identity
Developed by Yoichi Kaya, an engineer at Tokyo University, and a team of carbon experts, the Kaya Identity is an equation for computing the total carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions caused by humans or a specific country. The formula determines the total CO2 emissions by calculating the product of population, GDP per capita, energy use per […]
Food System
The food system includes all processes involved in providing for human caloric and nutritional needs: growing, harvesting, processing (or transforming or changing), packaging, transporting, marketing, consuming, and disposing of food and food packages. It also includes the inputs needed and outputs generated at each step. The food system operates within and is influenced by social, […]
Genuine Progress Indicator
The Genuine Progress Indicator (GPI) is a measure of economic progress that takes into account whether a countries economic growth has resulted in the improvement of well being and quality of life for the people living there. The more commonly known and widely used economic progress indicator is the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which only […]
Brand Experience
The sensations, feelings, thoughts, and behavioral responses evoked by brand-related stimuli. Such stimuli appear as part of a brand’s design and identity, packaging, communications, and environments. Put another way, the brand experience integrates brands into people’s lifestyles, adding value to a consumer’s experience of the brand. Brand experience is about engaging or captivating rather than […]
Ecosystem Function
The physical and biological processes and characteristic activities that allow an ecosystem to exist and maintain its integrity.
BREEAM (BRE Environmental Assessment Method)
BREEAM is a widely-used environmental assessment tool for buildings. BREEAM provides metrics for measuring a building’s performance on a variety of environmental factors including sustainable design, energy conservation, indoor environment quality, natural resource conservation and minimizing waste. BREEAM also incorporates consultants and trainings to facilitate environmentally sustainable design and construction of new buildings. Introduced by […]
Systems
Systems are a set of elements or parts that is coherently organized and interconnected in a pattern or structure. This pattern or structure thus produces a characteristic set of behaviors, often classified as its “function” or “purpose” that form a united whole (Meadows, 2008). Resources: Meadows, D. (2008). Thinking in Systems: A Primer. White River […]
Planetary Boundary
A Planetary Boundary is a limit which defines the safe operating space for humanity with respect to the Earth system and its associated biophysical subsystems and processes.
350.org
An international campaign with the mission to raise awareness and fuel solutions to the climate crisis. The number 350 represents the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (in parts per million) that scientists have calculated to be the maximum amount that Earth can sustain. It is hypothesized that CO2 concentrations beyond 350ppm will accelerate […]
