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| Biodiversity | A word formed by the contraction of the term 'biological diversity' that describes the variety of life on Earth. It usually refers to species diversity, that is, the number of different plants and animals of all types that are found in a given ecosystem. |
| Civil society | The area of organized life in society which is independent of the state, the market-based institutions of business and commerce and the private lives of our families. Typically in this book, it is used as a catch-all phrase to describe non-governmental organizations (especially those involved in development work) and organized, membership-based community groups. A strong civil society is considered important for a flourishing democracy. |
| Corporate social responsibility (CSR) | Where business organizations consider the interests of society by taking responsibility for the impact of their activities on customers, suppliers, employees, shareholders, communities, and other stakeholders, as well as the environment. This obligation is seen to extend beyond the statutory obligation to comply with legislation and sees organizations voluntarily taking further steps to improve the quality of life for employees and their families as well as for the local community and society at large. (Adapted from Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia.) |
| Discourse | A way of communicating about an issue through language (the phrases and vocabulary we use). It represents a particular way of thinking about an issue(s). To do so, it embodies certain understandings and ideas. Discourses thus regulate the production of meaning in social life; they help to structure how people think and act. The most effective discourses are those that are taken for granted as common sense. |
| Ecosystem | Describes a community of living organisms and their interactions with one another, plus the environment in which they live and also interact. Thus it includes both living and non-living components and the links between them. The term can be applied at many scales, e.g. a pond, rainforest, oceans, or even the Earth itself. |
| Globalization | The process of increasing interconnectedness of the world, facilitated by modern communications technology and transport, and, in the realm of the economy, by the ability to produce different parts of the same product in different places. Optimistic views on globalization claim that this economic integration is overall a good thing which ultimately allows everybody to enjoy the fruits of market-based capitalism. Pessimistic views, however, argue that increasing integration reinforces existing global inequalities and power relations. A third view, the transformationalist view, argues that globalization is creating a new world order, where new concentrations of power and inequality, wealth and poverty, are forming in both the hitherto rich countries and the historically poor countries. (Adapted from McGrew 2000.) |
| Governance | This can be defined in various overlapping ways. Stoker (2004) describes it as the conditions for ordered rule, which involves a variety of actors from government, the business and commercial sector, and civil society. The Commission on Global Governance (1995: 2) defines it as 'the sum of the many ways institutions, public and private, manage their common affairs'. Common to these definitions is the idea that more than 'government' is required to manage a society effectively. The term good governance is also often used, and is the sound management of a country's economic and social resources (Potter 2000: 382). In this book, good governance is used to imply inclusion of a full range of stakeholders in decision making. |
| Gross domestic product (GDP) | The market value, usually measured in United States dollars, of all goods and services produced in a country over a year. It is commonly used to express the size of a country's economy. A common refinement is to adjust the value of GDP for purchasing power parity (PPP). GDP per capita is the total value divided by the population of the country, and so gives an indication of the economic output per head of population. A country like China might have a very high total annual GDP because of the huge size of its population, but on a per capita basis it remains poor. |
| Innovation | In a narrow sense, innovation means the process by which new goods and processes are developed and brought to market. More broadly in this book it refers also to new ways of organizing and doing things in social life. Innovation depends ultimately on learning and creating new knowledge. The definition used in Chapter 19 therefore refers to it as knowledge put to productive use. |
| Institution | These can be organizations or established aspects of wider society which embody common values and ways of behaving. An example of the former is the UK National Health Service with its value of free health care; an example of the latter is the institution of marriage. Institutional development/change concerns changing these values and ways of behaving. It describes what is required to spread new values and ways of behaving throughout organizations and embed them into management practices in all sectors. This means change not only in organizational structures, processes, goals, and mission statements, but also in the mindset which determines informal ways of working, behaving and justifying decisions. |
| Life cycle assessment (LCA) | Also known as life cycle analysis, life cycle management and 'cradle to grave' analysis. LCA traces environmental impacts at all stages of a product's 'life cycle'. This starts from the impacts arising from extracting and processing raw materials, followed by impacts from manufacturing and delivering a product, impacts in using it and, finally, what happens at the end of a product's life e.g. whether it is reused, recycled, or disposed of. |
| Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) | Eight goals established by the United Nations and agreed internationally to be achieved by the year 2015. They encapsulate the world's main development challenges. |
| Poverty | Defined in this book in material terms where its measurement is based on the level of household expenditure. The World Bank has defined 'absolute' poverty as living on less than US$1.00 per day in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms. This definition is thought by others, however, to be too narrow. A broader approach defines poverty as having multiple dimensions, such as low income, poor literacy, poor health, poor access to clean water and sanitation, and so on. A third approach defines poverty in terms of social inclusion-the ability to play a full part in the society in which one lives. |
| Purchasing power parity (PPP) | A value put on goods and services in different countries (and in this book GDP) which has been adjusted to account for different costs of living in the countries. One reason for making a PPP adjustment is that non-traded goods tend to be cheaper in developing countries, and so a given currency will go further in some countries compared with others. |
| The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) | Informally known as the Earth Summit, thiswas held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992. This major international conference was very productive in terms of the number and scope of its outputs. From UNCED emerged the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, Framework Convention on Climate Change, Convention on Biological Diversity, and Agenda 21, which set an extensive international agenda for action for sustainable development for the twenty-first century. |
| The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development | A statement of 27 key principles for sustainable development and international law including the precautionary principle, the polluter pays principle, public participation, and environmental assessment. (Adapted from Open University 2006.) |
| The World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) | Convened by the United Nations, this was held in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2002, 10 years after UNCED. From WSSD came reaffirmed commitment to sustainable development in the Johannesburg Declaration which committed to 'a collective responsibility to advance and strengthen the interdependent and mutually reinforcing pillars of sustainable development - economic development, social development and environmental protection - at local, national and global levels'. (Adapted from Open University 2006). |