Eco babble

There is a whole new vocabulary that is growing up in and around the world of climate change and environmental awareness.  It seems to be along the same lines as techno-babble and psycho-babble.  I always think these words and phrases that specialists use are there more to create an aura of mystery, of exclusivity, than to clarify anything.

So, here we are then, some definitions supplied by IRIN and illustrations supplied by me (with a little help from Flickr).  Some more apt than others, because it did become a challenge...

Greenwashing.  This is the process by which assorted products or businesses acquire an eco-friendly spin.  An example would be the way John Lewis touted its waste disposal unit as being green, as I reported last year.

Ecoflation.  Inflation caused by environmental problems such as deforestation or water scarcity.

Precycle.  Reducing waste by changing buying habits to cut down on waste such as making sure any packaging is recyclable.

Locavore.  A person who eats as much locally produced food as possible.

Energy-exia.  Refers to people who keep their energy consumption down to a bare minimum.

Photo from Flickr/Martin Ujlaki

Green audit.  The assessment  of the environmental impact of any activity or product.

Eco-hacking.  An effort to change the environment by large scale projects such reflecting sunlight back.

Photo from Flickr/LollyKnit

Green jobs.  Jobs in environmentally friendly businesses such as renewable energy.

Global weirding.  A term for the extremes of weather which seem to be happening all over the world these days.

Some of these words and phrases are working their way into normal vocabulary, some I've heard once or twice, but many are new to me.  Will energy-exia ever succeed as a word?  It doesn't exactly slip off the tongue.