ESG Investing Glossary

Work or service exacted under threat of penalty and not offered voluntarily.

A certification system for forests and forest-based products intended to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable forest management.

Coal, oil and natural gas formed from ancient organic matter and used primarily for energy and industrial feedstocks.

A process through which Indigenous Peoples can give or withhold consent to activities affecting their lands, resources, rights or cultural heritage before decisions are made.

The right of workers and employers to form and join organisations of their choosing without interference or retaliation.

A quantified account of greenhouse gas emissions and, where applicable, removals within defined organisational and operational boundaries.

The widely used suite of standards and guidance for corporate, value-chain, project and product greenhouse gas accounting.

The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, adopted under the Convention on Biological Diversity, sets global goals and targets for halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030 and 2050.

A global network that supports the development of impact investing through research, tools, market infrastructure and shared practice.

An independent standard setter whose Standards enable organisations to report their most significant impacts on the economy, environment and people.

A factor comparing the heat-trapping effect of a greenhouse gas with carbon dioxide over a specified time horizon.

A bond whose proceeds are exclusively used to finance or refinance eligible green projects.

Environmental statements about a product, service, organisation or activity, such as claims of recyclability, low carbon or carbon neutrality.

A tradable unit representing one metric tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent reduced, avoided or removed under a carbon-crediting programme.

A naturally occurring greenhouse gas released through respiration, decomposition, combustion and industrial processes and removed by oceans, vegetation and other sinks.

A common unit that expresses the warming effect of different greenhouse gases relative to carbon dioxide using global warming potentials.