How to Improve Environmental Literacy: A Guide to Common Terms and Sources

As environmental issues become hotter topics in regular day-to-day conversations, we thought it could be helpful to compile a short reference guide that will help you partake in environmental dialogue. To ease us in, let’s take a look at a few of the not-so-well-known (or easily remembered!) terms used in environmental arguments. Following this list, a brief crash course in evaluating sources; and finally, a few helpful people/links to explore in order to learn more about the movement and how to engage respectfully with those holding opposing views.

Hot Words to Know:

Anthropogenic - Used in reference to environmental pollution and pollutants, anthropogenic means “originating in human activity”.

• Example: Anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide have been high due to increased reliance on vehicular and air transportation.

Carbon Neutral - Carbon neutral is a term used to refer to the process of counteracting emission outputs of CO2 by balancing the amount released with the amount removed by the company/group/individual promising carbon neutrality.

• Example: Shipping is promised to be carbon neutral as the company has means of carbon collection and offsetting.

Carbon Budget - This is an upper limit of total carbon dioxide emissions associated with remaining below a specific global average temperature. This is used to illustrate how much the planet can “afford” in hopes of preventing climate change.

• Example: We have been exceeding our global carbon budget in previous years and need to make a change in production in order to lower emissions and meet goals.

Circular Economy - This definition can be more or less involved depending on the context. For a broad, more simplistic, definition offered by The Waste and Resources Action Programme (which operates as WRAP), a registered UK Charity, “A circular economy is an alternative to a traditional linear economy (make, use, dispose of) in which we keep resources in use for as long as possible, extract the maximum value from them whilst in use, then recover and regenerate products and materials at the end of each service life.”

Ethical Consumption - This practice is a type of activism based on making purchases that align with your personal/environmental morals. For example, some may choose to purchase only products that support small scale manufacturers and local businesses, protect animals and the environment, or boycott products that exploit people/animals/landscapes.

• Example: Her ethical consumption patterns keep her from buying fast fashion products.

Food Desert - An area with scarce access to affordable and nutritious food.

• Example: Environmental racism sometimes shows itself through the presence of food deserts.

Intersectional - An approach that promotes an understanding of how social aspects and identities overlap or intersect, to create different levels of discrimination and privilege.

• Example: Intersectional feminists acknowledge that BIPOC individuals identifying as women, tend to face greater discrimination in their day-to-day lives.

Plant-Based- A diet that consists, at least, mostly of foods sourced from plants. While this diet includes few or no animal-based foods, it is not necessarily vegetarian or vegan.

• Example: This salad is plant-based as only one of the eight ingredients, the cheese, comes from an animal.

Quick Tips for Evaluating Sources + People and Places to Check Out for More

I’m sure most of us have heard of how important choosing credible sources is at some point in our lives, whether it was from writing or researching courses or word of mouth. So, my goal is to keep this concise and condensed as a reference guide rather than a how-to piece. With that said, below are my personal “A’s” to source evaluation, and don't worry, there are only three.

1. Analyze - Skim the source or read the abstract to gauge the relevance of the content to your purpose and usage. What is the main topic? When was it published?

2. Author - Research the author, if available, and evaluate their credibility on the topic as well as identify any background that may reveal motivations for writing.

3. Acknowledge - After completing the first two “A’s” try to identify any biases in the writing or in the author’s background that may affect your usage of the source.

If you are looking to learn more about engaging in environmental conservation and work, along with the above tips and definitions, here are a few of my favorite online resources for further exposure to the movement, and if you like them too, following, sharing, and compensating them for their educational content are great ways to show support:

@queerbrownvegan

The person behind this account, Isaias Hernandez, creates bite-sized introductions to various environmental issues ranging from addressing white-supremacy in veganism to clarifying definitions of lesser-known environmental terms, such as “Ecoholic”.

Check out his website here for additional, educational resources as well as links to his various social media accounts, allowing you to connect in multiple ways!

@mikaelaloach

Mikaela Loach offers a personal touch to her activism that offers a look into her personal life as she tackles racism as well as champions the importance in preserving our planet earth. She also has a podcast, “Yikes”, with Josephine Becker (@treesnpeace on Instagram), offering another mode for learning more about climate activism.

@sustainablesabs

Sabs is an activist that addresses zero waste tips as well as dabbles in bringing other social issues into her followers’ feeds. The space and posts she has curated via her Instagram page are subtle; however, her photos are paired with resources, thoughtful captions, and sometimes even recipes!