Vocabulary
Table of contents
This page provides short and comprehensive definitions to lay the foundations of Sustainability. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have additional needs.
More detailed descriptions or debated topics are covered in our Blog.
Use the buttons below to navigate through the different sections.
General definitions
The basics of Sustainability.
Quantification
Some quantification tools used in Sustainability.
Concepts
Concepts related to sustainability to go further.
Metrics & Reporting
Key metrics and reporting principles and frameworks.
Standards, regulations & frameworks
Related standards, regulations and frameworks.
General definitions
Sustainability
The ability to maintain processes, systems, or practices over the long term without depleting resources or harming future generations.
The ability to maintain processes, systems, or practices over the long term without depleting resources or harming future generations.
Sustainable Development
Defined by the 1987 Brundtland Report as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
Defined by the 1987 Brundtland Report as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
The 3 pillars of Sustainability
Sustainability is often described through three interconnected dimensions: Environment; Social; Economic.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
A set of 17 global objectives defined by the United Nations to promote prosperity while protecting the planet.
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance)
Framework for assessing corporate sustainability performance.
Framework for assessing corporate sustainability performance.
Environmental Sustainability
Focuses on protecting ecosystems, biodiversity, and natural resources.
Economic Sustainability
Promotes long-term prosperity without exhausting resources.
Social Sustainability
Ensures equity, justice, and well-being for communities.
Planetary Boundaries
A scientific framework that identifies nine critical Earth-system processes (such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and freshwater use) and sets quantitative limits within which humanity can operate safely. Crossing these boundaries increases the risk of destabilizing the planet’s systems.
Concepts
Biodiversity
The variety of life on Earth, plants, animals, and ecosystems, essential for resilience and balance in nature.
Carbon Neutrality
Achieving a balance between emitting carbon and absorbing or offsetting it, so that net emissions equal zero.
Circular Economy
An economic model that minimizes waste by reusing, repairing, and recycling materials to keep resources in use for as long as possible.
Renewable Energy
Energy from sources that naturally replenish, such as solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal.
Resilience
The ability of systems, ecological, social, or economic, to adapt and recover from shocks or stresses.
Metrics & Reporting
Sustainability Reporting Frameworks
Structured guidelines (e.g., GRI, SASB, TCFD) that help organizations disclose sustainability performance in a standardized way.
Indicators & KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
Quantitative or qualitative measures used to track progress toward sustainability goals (e.g., energy intensity, water use per unit).
Greenhouse Gas (GHG)
Gases like carbon dioxide and methane that trap heat in the atmosphere and drive climate change.
Quantification
Carbon Footprint
Quantitative measurement of greenhouse gas emissions associated with a product, activity, or organization.
Quantitative measurement of greenhouse gas emissions associated with a product, activity, or organization.
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
A standardized method to evaluate the environmental impacts of a product or service across its entire life cycle (from raw material extraction to disposal).
A standardized method to evaluate the environmental impacts of a product or service across its entire life cycle (from raw material extraction to disposal).
Environmental Product Declaration (EPD)
Third‑party verified document summarizing LCA results according to ISO 14025 and product category rules (PCRs).
Third‑party verified document summarizing LCA results according to ISO 14025 and product category rules (PCRs).
Material Flow Analysis (MFA)
Tracks the flow of materials through a system to identify inefficiencies and opportunities for circularity.
Tracks the flow of materials through a system to identify inefficiencies and opportunities for circularity.
Water FootprintMeasures freshwater use, distinguishing between blue (surface/groundwater), green (rainwater), and grey (polluted water).
Methodology
Life cycle assessment approach that allocates average environmental burdens to a product system, describing what is rather than what would change.
Biogenic Carbon
Carbon that originates from biological sources, such as plants, animals, or organic waste. In sustainability assessments, it is distinguished from fossil carbon because it is part of the short-term carbon cycle (absorbed and released naturally), whereas fossil carbon adds long-term emissions when burned.
LCA approach modeling the environmental consequences of decisions, focusing on marginal changes and market-mediated effects.
Dynamic LCA
Time‑dependent LCA modeling that accounts for temporal variations in emissions, degradation, or energy mix.
Time‑dependent LCA modeling that accounts for temporal variations in emissions, degradation, or energy mix.
Functional Unit
Quantified performance of a product system used as the reference for LCA comparisons (e.g., “1 kWh delivered”, “1 km driven”).
Quantified performance of a product system used as the reference for LCA comparisons (e.g., “1 kWh delivered”, “1 km driven”).
Mass Balance
Mass Balance in Chain of Custody is a method of tracking the proportion of sustainable input materials (e.g., bio-based, recycled, or responsibly sourced) as they are mixed with conventional inputs during production. The share is then allocated to outputs for the purpose of sustainability claims.
System Boundaries
The defined limits of a study or analysis (e.g., in Life Cycle Assessment). They specify which processes, inputs, and outputs are included or excluded — for example, whether the analysis covers “cradle-to-gate” (production only) or “cradle-to-grave” (full life cycle including disposal).
Standards, regulations & frameworks
ISO 14025
Environmental labels and declarations - Type III environmental declarations - Principles and procedures. ISO 14025
EN 15978
Sustainability of construction works - Assessment of environmental performance of buildings - Calculation method.
LEED (USGBC)
A global green building certification system evaluating energy, water, materials, indoor air quality, and innovation. LCA contributes to material impact credits.
A global green building certification system evaluating energy, water, materials, indoor air quality, and innovation. LCA contributes to material impact credits.