Friday, November 12, 2021

Climate change conference vocabulary

I've been intrigued by some of the phrases and terms used throughout the Glasgow COP26 climate change conference. These climate conferences have engendered their own specialized vocabulary, some of which had worked its way into the general idiom.
Among others:
  • "implementation gap"
  • "stubborn optimism"
  • "keep 1.5 alive"
  • "sustainable development goals"
  • "nationally determined contributions"
  • "tipping point"
  • "nature-based solutions"
  • "common but differentiated responsibilities" (CBDR)
  • "global heating" (as opposed to "warming")
  • "net zero" and "net zero is not zero" (which I have already looked at in more detail)
  • "phase down" (not "phase out")
  • "unabated coal"
Look for these words and phrases in next year's OED ("climate emergency" was 2019's OED Word of the Year).

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