Sustainability glossary

Technical terms
briefly explained

A

B

Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety & Consumer Protection (Germany)

C

Capital Expenditures

Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (EU carbon border adjustment system)

Corporate carbon footprint (CO₂ footprint of a company)

Carbon capture and storage (technology for CO₂ capture and storage)

Clean Development Mechanism (mechanism for environmentally friendly development under the Kyoto Protocol)

Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (EU Supply Chain Act)

Certified Emission Reductions (Kyoto Protocol)

Corporate Social Responsibility (social and ecological corporate responsibility)

Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (EU directive on sustainability reporting)

Sustainable design concept with closed loops

CO₂ balancing of a product from production to the factory gate

CO₂ balancing over the entire life cycle of a product, from raw material extraction to production, transportation, use and disposal

CO₂ equivalents (standardized unit for recording greenhouse gas emissions)

D

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (United Kingdom)

German Sustainability Code (reporting standard for sustainable corporate governance)

Do No Significant Harm (principle of the EU taxonomy to avoid significant environmental damage)

Double materiality analysis (approach for sustainability reports: financial and impact perspective)

E

Sustainability indicator that shows the connection between consumption or lifestyle habits and the availability of natural resources

European Federation of Financial Analysts Societies (initiative for ESG standardization)

Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (Community Eco-Management and Audit Scheme)

Employed capital (capital employed in the company valuation)

Environmental Management System (environmental management system according to ISO 14001 or EMAS)

End-of-life (end of the service life of a product)

Environmental Product Declaration

Environmental, Social, Governance (three dimensions of sustainability in the economy)

European Sustainability Reporting Standards (standards for sustainability reporting in accordance with CSRD)

Standard for climate-related reporting in accordance with ESRS

European Union Deforestation Regulation

Agreement by EU member states to make the EU climate-neutral by 2050

EU classification system for sustainable economic activities

All EU laws and directives on sustainability

F

Forest, Land and Agriculture (SBTi sector for land use, forestry and agriculture)

G

Green Claims Directive (EU directive on the regulation of sustainability-related advertising claims)

Greenhouse gas (greenhouse gases, e.g. CO₂, methane, nitrous oxide)

Global Logistics Emissions Council (initiative for CO₂ accounting in logistics)

Deliberately withholding or downplaying sustainability measures in order to avoid criticism or regulatory scrutiny.

Companies selectively emphasize a single sustainable measure while concealing other environmentally harmful activities.

Misleading communication or measures taken by companies to present themselves as more environmentally friendly than they actually are.

Global Reporting Initiative (standard for sustainability reporting)

Global Warming Potential (global warming potential of greenhouse gases)

H

I

Inner Development Goals (concept that focuses on the development of inner skills and qualities to achieve the SDGs)

International Reporting Obligations

Global standard for environmental management systems

Global standard for energy management systems

Internationally recognized guidelines on how companies can implement social responsibility

J

K

Circular economy (economic system with closed material cycles)

L

Life Cycle Impact Assessment (assessment of the environmental impact of a product in its life cycle)

Life cycle assessment (life cycle assessment over the entire product life cycle)

German Supply Chain Act

M

N

EU-wide standardized system for classifying economic activities

Non-Financial Reporting Directive (predecessor of the CSRD for sustainability reports)

O

A legislative package or regulation that bundles several different amendments or additions to existing legislation.

Operational expenditures (operating expenses)

P

Product carbon footprint (CO₂ footprint of a product)

Product Category Rules (product-specific rules for environmental product declarations)

Project Design Document (documentation of climate protection projects under the CDM)

The term refers to the entire process of a product, from raw material extraction to production, transportation, use and recycling.

Q

R

This means increasing raw material productivity, i.e. improving the ratio of resource input to the company’s output.

S

Science Based Targets Initiative (initiative for science-based climate target setting)

Science Based Target (science-based climate target for companies)

Sustainability Criteria (criteria for sustainable investments)

Scope 1, 2, 3 (categories of CO₂ emissions according to the GHG Protocol)

Sustainable Development Goals (UN Sustainable Development Goals)

Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (EU disclosure regulation for sustainable financial products)

Specific, Measurable, Accepted, Realistic, Time-bound (goal setting method)

Small and medium-sized enterprises

T

U

German Federal Environment Agency

V

Verified Emission Reductions (verified emission reductions outside government programs)

Verified Carbon Standard (standard for voluntary CO₂ compensation projects)

Voluntary Small Medium Enterprise Standard (standard for sustainable SMEs)

W

X

Y

Z