Abiotic Factors = nonliving, physical factors that influence the organisms and 

                             ecosystems 

                      Ex.  temperature, sunlight, pH, salinity, precipitation, pollutants 

Adaptation = initiatives and measures to reduce the vulnerability of human and natural 

                       systems to climate change

Albedo = the amount of incoming solar energy reflected back into the atmosphere by the 

                Earth’s surface 

Anthropogenic = human-related processes and/ or impacts

Autotrophs = primary producers that use light or inorganic chemical reactions to create 

                       the energy needed to survive 

Bioaccumulation = the build-up of persistent/ non-biodegradable pollutants within an 

                                organism or trophic level because they cannot be broken down 

Biodiversity = the variety of different types of life found on Earth or in a specific ecosystem

Biogeography = the study of the geographical distribution of species, and explains their 

                           current distribution using evolutionary history

                      *important for predicting how biodiversity will respond to Climate Change

Biological Degradation = associated with the deforestation practice of clear cutting trees 

                                          and removing them from the area to be processed into 

                                          products; loss of humus / organic (O) horizon of the soil

Biomagnification = the increase in concentration of persistent or non-biodegradable 

                                 pollutants along a food chain

Biomes = collections of Ecosystems sharing similar climatic conditions 

Biosphere =  the global sum of all ecosystems; the closed system that holds all life on 

                    Earth

Biotic Factors = the living components of an ecosystem, including organisms, their 

                           interactions, or their waste, that directly or indirectly affect another

                           organism

Carbon Capture and Sequestration = CCS = the technology of capturing greenhouse gas 

                                                      emissions from power stations and pumping them back

                                                      into underground reservoirs= Geosequestration

Carbon Dioxide = a natural ghg that has seen an exponential increase in atmospheric 

                              concentrations, and is associated with global warming

Carnivores =  secondary consumer that has adapted to eating primary consumers

ChloroFluoroCarbon = CFC = synthetic (man-made) ghg that is extremely efficient at 

                                       trapping heat in the atmosphere; produced from aerosol cans and 

                                       is illegal in most developed countries now

CITES = Conservation on International Trade in Endangered Species = an 

                international agreement established in 1973 that aimed at regulating trade in 

                endangered species of both plants and animals, but covers all plants and 

                animals caught in the wild

Conduction = the transfer of heat by direct contact

Consumers = Heterotrophs = organisms that cannot make their own food so must eat 

                      other organisms; they pass energy and biomass from producers through to 

                      top carnivores; feed on Autotrophs or other Heterotrophs to obtain Energy; 

               Ex.  herbivores, carnivores, omnivores, detritivores, decomposers

Convection = the transfer of heat by the movement of a gas or a liquid; tendency for hot 

                       air to rise

Cryosphere = the zone around the Earth associated with ice sheets, glaciers, and snow

Decomposers = obtain their food and nutrients from the breakdown of dead organic 

                         matter; essential for cycling matter in ecosystems; contribute to the build 

                          up of humus in soil

Decarbonization = a large reduction of CO2 per value of gross world product

Deforestation = clear cutting a wide area of trees

Ecology = the branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another 

                  and their physical surroundings

Ecosystem =  a community of living organisms (plants, animals, microbes) in conjunction 

                     with the nonliving components of their environment (air, water, soil)

Endemic Species = a species not found anywhere else

Enhanced Greenhouse Effect = the increasing amount of greenhouse gases in the 

                                                    atmosphere, as a result of human activities, and their 

                                                    impacts on atmospheric systems, including global 

                                                    warming

Equinox = occurs twice per year when the sun crosses the celestial equator and day and 

                   night are equal lengths of time; September 21^stand March 21^st

Eustatic Changes = the rise and fall of the Sea

Exosphere = the outermost region of any planet’s atmosphere

Feedback Loop = when information that starts a reaction in turn may input more 

                             information which may start another reaction

Fossil Fuel = form in the geologic past from the remains of living organisms (like trees 

                       and plankton) and become: coal, oil, oil shale or natural gas

Flagship Species = charismatic animals selected for protection to appeal to the public 

                                and thereby help to protect other species in an area

Geographical Isolation = a physical barrier, such as a mountain range, that causes 

                                          populations to become separated 

Geosequestration = the technology of capturing greenhouse gas emissions from power 

                                stations and pumping them back into underground reservoirs = 

                                 Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS)

Geothermal Energy = long-wave radiation that originates from Earth’s core

Glacier = a slowly moving mass or river of ice formed by the accumulation and 

                compaction of snow on mountains or near the poles

Global Climate Change = changes in the global patterns of rainfall, temperature, sea 

                                          level, habitats, and includes the incidence of drought, floods, 

                                           and storms, resulting from changes in the Earth’s Atmosphere, 

                                          believed to be caused mainly by the Enhanced Greenhouse 

                                          Effect

Global Dimming = the cooling effect of air pollution

Global Warming = the increase in temperatures around the world that have been noticed 

                               since the 1960s, and in particular since the 1980s

Greenhouse Effect = the process by which certain gases allow short-wave radiation from 

                                 the sun to pass through the atmosphere and heat up the Earth, but 

                                 trap an increasing proportion of long-wave radiation that is reflected

Greenhouse Gas = GHG = water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane and 

                               chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

Greenpeace:  - an International Civil Society from Vancouver, Canada- 1971

                       - very confrontational

                       - fights against climate change, waste disposal and deforestation

                       - Goal: “to ensure the continuing ability of the Earth to nurture life in all 

                                     of its diversity”

Habitat = the environment in which a species normally lives

Heat = long-wave radiation; infrared

Herbivores = primary consumers that have adapted to eating plants

Hot Spot = an area high in Biodiversity

Insolation = shortwave radiation from the Sun; Incoming Solar Radiation

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change = IPCC = group of scientists from around 

                             the world that study the causes and consequences of Climate Change

International Union of Conservation of Nature = IUCN = World Conservation Union;  

                            publishes the Red List(Red Data Books); founded in 1948 to Conserve 

                            resources for Sustainable Economic Development

Ionosphere = the layer of the Earth’s atmosphere that contains a high concentration of 

                       ions and free electrons and is able to reflect radio waves; begins midway 

                       through the Mesosphere and extends to the Exosphere

Irrigation = the artificial addition of water to soil in areas where there is insufficient 

                    amounts naturally

Isostatic Changes = the rise and fall of the Land

Keystone Species = species that are vital for the continuing function of the ecosystem

Kyoto Protocol = called on countries globally to reduce emissions of CO2 at a “common 

                             but differentiated” rate based on their historic pollution levels

Mass Extinctions = a period in which at least 75% of the total number of species on the 

                               Earth at the time are wiped out

Mesosphere = atmospheric zone between the Stratosphere and Thermosphere associated 

                        with a decrease in temperature as altitude increases due to a decrease in 

                        UV absorption 

Mesopause = the line that separates the Thermosphere from the Mesosphere at 80 km 

                       above the surface of the Earth

Milankovitch Cycle = a cyclical movement related to the Earth’s elliptical orbit around 

                                   the Sun, it’s tilt, and precession

Malaria = a fever caused by a protozoan parasite that invades the red blood cells and is 

                 transmitted by mosquitoes in many tropical and subtropical regions

Methane = a ghg that is the second largest contributor to global warming produced 

                   mainly from farm animals and manure that is very efficient at trapping heat, 

                   and increasing in concentrations

Mitigation = attempts to reduce the causes of climate change

Natural Capital = environmental resources that can produce a sustainable income of 

                             goods or services

Natural Income = the yield obtained from environmental resources

Negative Feedback Loop = stabilizing; when the output of a process inhibits or reverses

                                            the operation of the same process in such a way to reduce 

                                            change; counteracts deviation; self-regulating; results in 

                                             Steady-State Equilibrium

Niche = describes the particular set of abiotic and biotic conditions and resources to 

              which an organism or population responds

Non-Governmental Organization = NGO = groups of people that are not run by, funded 

                                                          by, or influenced by governments of any country

Ozone Layer = protective atmospheric concentration of O3 located between 25 – 35 km 

                         above the surface of the planet in the Stratosphere

Periglacial = an area adjacent to an ice sheet subject to frequent freezing and thawing

Permafrost = a thick subsurface layer of soil that remains frozen throughout the year

Pollution = the addition of a substance or an agent to an environment by human activity, 

                    at a rate greater than which it can be rendered harmless by the environment, 

                    and which has an appreciable effect on the organisms within it 

Positive Feedback Loop = destabilizing; will tend to amplify changes and drive the 

                                           system toward a tipping point where a new equilibrium is 

                                           adopted 

Radiation = the emission of electromagnetic waves such as ultraviolet, visible light, X-

                    ray, short-wave and long-wave from the intense heat (5,700 degrees C) of the 

                    Sun

Red List = a series of books published by the IUCN that assess the conservation status in 

                   order to highlight plants and animals threatened with extinction and to 

                   promote their conservation; an inventory of all endangered species

Reduced Impact Logging = RIL = selective logging

Resilience = the ability of a population or a human or natural system to absorb change 

                     without having to make a fundamental change; the ability of a system to 

                     return to its initial state after a disturbance 

              Ex.  Eucalypt Forests of Australia and fire

Sequester = to isolate or hide away

Sheet Erosion = when the entire top layer of soil is lost- usually from mismanagement

Soil Degradation = a severe reduction in the quality or quantity of soils through Erosion, 

                                 Salinization, and Exhaustion

Solstice = when the Sun reaches its highest (Summer) or lowest (Winter) point in the sky 

                  at noon, marked by the longest and shortest days of the year; on June 21^stand 

                  December 21^st

Speciation = the formation of new species when populations of a species become isolated

                      and evolve differently from other populations

Species = a group of organisms (living things) sharing common characteristics that 

                 interbreed and produce fertile offspring

Stratopause = the atmospheric boundary line that separates the Stratosphere from the 

                        Mesosphere at an elevation of roughly 50 km

Stratosphere = the atmospheric zone between the Troposphere and the Mesosphere that 

                          sees a rise in temperature with altitude due to the presence of Ozone

Sustainability = the use and management of resources that allows full natural 

                           replacement of the resources exploited and full recovery of the 

                          ecosystems affected by their extraction and use

                        = living within the means of nature, on the interest or sustainable natural 

                            income generated by natural capital

Sustainable Development = meeting the needs of the present without compromising the 

                                             ability of future generations to meet their own needs

Thermosphere = the top atmospheric zone associated with a drastic increase in 

                            temperature with increasing altitude from the impact of short-wave 

                             radiation; starts 80 km above the surface and is close to a vacuum

Tipping Point = when an ecosystem experiences a shift to a new state in which there are 

                          significant changes to its biodiversity and the services it provides; 

                          involve positive feedback loops

Trophic Levels =  the position within the food chain occupied by different organisms 

Tropics = mostly warm climates that experience daily rain, contain an extreme amount of 

                 biodiversity and use all nutrients extremely efficiently; mostly occur between 

                 the Tropic of Capricorn and Cancer

Tropopause = the atmospheric boundary line that separates the Troposphere from the 

                           Stratosphere

Troposphere = atmospheric zone closest to the Earth’s surface associated with most 

                         weather patterns; temperature decreases with height as the atmosphere 

                         thins

UNFCCC = UN Framework Convention on Climate Change= 1992 summit with the 

                     objective to achieve stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations in the 

                    atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic 

                    interference with the climate system

Vulnerability = the degree to which a human or natural system is susceptible to, and 

                         unable to cope with, the adverse impacts of climate change

World Wide Fund for Nature= WWF= NGO that protects endangered species, and 

                                                   fights climate change and pollution; sometimes just 

                                                   called World Wildlife Fund