Leverage
The ability of a company or individual to operate financially. Leverage is calculated by dividing total debt by total assets. Companies with high leverage are able to operate more freely and take advantage of opportunities that can control or create larger financial assets with a small amount of capital.
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)® Rating
A registered system of rating existing and new buildings, interiors, and other components based on environmental effectiveness. The LEED checklist integrates over 60 different criteria and results in certification at 4 levels: Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Resources: National Resource Defense Fund. (n.d.). LEED Certification Information. In NRDC: Building Green. Retrieved March 14, 2011 from […]
Kyoto Protocol
An agreement developed by and for industrial nations in 1997 at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) in Kyoto, Japan, to reduce their emissions of greenhouse gases by at least 5% below 1990 levels by 2012. The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in 2005 without the US ratifying it. Currently, the EU expects […]
Knowledge Management Systems
Internal corporate information systems focused on the acquisition, codification, and management of data and information within an organization. The best of these systems incentivize employees to input and share their experiences so that others can learn from these experiences and perform better. KM systems can also track customer behavior in fine detail allowing organizations to […]
IRR (Internal Rate of Return)
The Discount Rate at which the present value of future cash flow is zero. Arrived at through trial and error this is essentially the return a company receives on investment in itself.
Intellectual Capital
Refers to a capital asset whose yield is intellectual rights. An economic intangible used mostly by firms engaged in information technology, innovation research or technology transfer.
Innovation
The goal of many organizations who seek to differentiate their offerings by finding new and more valuable solutions that others have not. Most organizations who seek to innovate, do so as a separate, occasional function by a designated subset of employees or consultants. However, true innovation requires cultural change throughout the organization to sustain as […]
Information Economy
A vague term referring to a economy whose chief characteristic is the trade or value of information instead of materials (such as gold, iron, or fish) or activities (such as manufacturing or agriculture) to create economic growth and benefits. There is no standard definition of information nor any measures of its value. Thus, it’s difficult […]
Industrial Nutrients
A term coined by Michael Braungart and William McDonough to describe the raw materials used in manufacturing, use, and disposal of products. These materials, when treated as valuable resources can be used to make other products instead of being disposed of as waste. Some industrial nutrients are toxic, others are not.
Industrial Metabolism
The total use of materials and energy throughout an entire industrial process, such as manufacturing. This includes the source, transportation, use, reuse, recycling, and disposal of all industrial nutrients (materials) as well as the energy needed at each step. Resources: Allenby, B. and Richards, D. (1994). Greening of Industrial Systems. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. […]
