Terminology / Definitions

Our area of concern uses a wealth of terms and concepts quite new to the business environment. It is therefore essential for those visiting our site, to grab the exact meaning of the expression and abbreviation we use.

We provide in this section short definitions and explanations for the terms and concepts we refer to in order to ease the understanding of our readers.

Ethics:
The science of morals in human conduct. Source: Oxford Dictionary

Ethical Accounting:
Is the process through which the company takes up a dialogue with major stakeholders to report on past activities with a view to shaping future ones. Source: John Rosthorn: Business Ethics Auditing - More than a Stakeholder's Toy (Journal of Business Ethics 00: 1-11, 2000, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Netherlands)

Ethical Auditing:
Is regular, complete and documented measurements of compliance with the company's published policies & procedures. Source: John Rosthorn, ibid.

Ethical Book-Keeping:
Is systematic, reliable maintaining of accessible records for corporate activities which reflect on its conduct and behaviour. Source: JR, ibid.

Ecological footprint:
A measure of how much productive land and water an individual, a city, a country, or humanity requires to produce all the resources it consumes and to absorb all the waste it generates, using prevailing technology. This land could be anywhere in the world. The Ecological Footprint is measured in 'global acres [hectares]'.

Ecosystem:
The natural interacting system of living and non-living things of the environment.

Embodied energy:
The energy used during its entire life cycle for manufacturing, transporting, using and disposing.

Emission:
Any gas, particle, or vapor release into the environment from a commercial, industrial, or residential source including smokestacks, chimneys, and motor vehicles.

Environmental Impact:
Any change that would affect the environment, good or bad, wholly or partially from industrial/manufacturing activities, products or services.

Environmental responsibility:
As outlined in Agenda 21 is: "the responsible and ethical management of products and processes from the point of view of health, safety and environmental aspects. Towards this end, business and industry should increase self-regulation, guided by appropriate codes, charters and initiatives integrated into all elements of business planning and decision-making, and fostering openness and dialogue with employees and the public.