See also our table of area measurements.

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TERM or ACRONYM	EXPLANATION
AZE site	The Alliance for Zero Extinction is a global initiative of biodiversity conservation organizations that aims to prevent extinctions by identifying and safeguarding key sites where species are in imminent danger of disappearing. AZE Sites are those considered the highest conservation priorities globally.
Association for Biodiversity Information	see NatureServe
biodiversity	biological diversity at all levels, from genetic variation within species, diversity of (number of) species, diversity at higher taxonomic levels (orders, families, etc.), and diversity of biological communities and ecosystems
bilateral donor/agency/aid/funding	The bilateral relationship is between a a country acting on its own (through its governmental aid or development agency) and recipient countries
carbon emissions trading	The buying and selling of carbon credits within a system of targeted carbon dioxide emission reductions, by which parties exceeding reduction targets or adding to carbon sinks (e.g. through tree planting) receive payments and other parties purchase credits to cover emissions that exceed targeted values. The most economically efficient way to reduce CO2 emissions (explanation).
carbon sequestration	the creation/operation of a 'carbon sink' that stores carbon rather than releasing net CO2 into the atmosphere.
CBD	Convention on Biological Diversity. This agreement, reached at the 1992 Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro, obligates developed countries to provide "new and additional" funding for conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in developing countries, and obligates all signatory countries to develop economic incentives to support the same and to increase their domestic funding for implementing the CBD. The Convention establishes three main goals: the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits from the use of genetic resources. With 193 Parties and 168 Signatures, its provisions call for national surveys of fauna and flora, the establishment of parks and reserves, and the assessment and protection of endangered species. The governing body of the CBD is the Conference of the Parties (CoP), which implements the CBD and holds periodic meetings (the 10th was in Nagoya, Japan in 2010).
CDCs	Conservation Data Centres (see NatureServe)
CI	Conservation International is one of the large U.S. based international conservation organizations. It has recently broadened its mission to include a focus on people and a "sustainable, green development path".
CITES	The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora was inaugerated in 1973 and forbids the commercial transport across borders of live specimens and body parts of rare plants and animals.
conservation concession	With this recently developed tool, conservation organizations lease a large tract of land at market rates (competing with logging companies, for example) for conservation purposes. Two early examples: in July 2001, the Amazon Conservation Association signed a contractual agreement with the government of Peru which gives it a long-term, permanently renewable lease on 340,000 acres of old growth Amazonian forest in the Los Amigos watershed of southeastern Peru. A year later, Conservation International, through agreement with the Guyana government, leased 200,000 acres of pristine forest in Guyana; it employs people locally to manage the forest.
CSD or UNCED	United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development, also called the "Earth Summit", took place in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro and was convened to address urgent problems of environmental protection and socio-economic development and attended by more than 100 heads of state. The commission produced the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and other agreements.
debt-for-nature swap	Two types are recognized: A commercial debt swap occurs when a conservation agency purchases debt at a discount from a creditor, and negotiates with the debtor government by offering to cancel the purchased debt in exchange for internal conservation project funding. A bilateral debt swap is an agreement made between a creditor government and a debtor government. The creditor government forgives the debt owed to it, and in exchange the debtor government agrees to set aside a pre-determined amount of money to fund conservation programs within its borders.
DFID	U.K. Department for International Development
easement	A conservation easement (or conservation restriction) is a legal agreement between a landowner and a land trust/other conservation group or government agency that permanently limits uses of the land in order to protect its conservation values. Two good articles pro (McLauglin) and con (Echeverria) easements are included among the guest editorials on the website of The Ecosystem Marketplace.
ecosystem	ecological system of interacting biotic and abiotic components through which nutrients cycle and energy flows
ecosystem services	Benefits from natural ecosystems, including: the regulation of water flows and maintenance of water quality, the formation of soil, prevention of soil erosion, pollination, natural waste treatment and pollution, pest and pathogen control, and climate regulation through carbon sequestration. These have been estimated to value $33-trillion a year.
endemic [species/etc.]	a species or other taxonomic group that is found only in the referred to geographic area (e.g. "lemurs are endemic to Madagascar and the Comoro Islands")
EF environmental fund	a.k.a. national environmental fund (NEF) or environmental trust fund. These are trust funds (or depending on the legal system, foundations) set up for a specific purpose that are managed by an independent board of directors. They are either endowment funds, in which the capital is preserved, or sinking funds with declining capital, or revolving funds that continually receive new revenues from user fees or earmarked taxes.
ENGO	environmental non-governmental organization
GCP	The Global Conservation Program of USAID is a $45-million biodiversity program in partnership with six NGOs: the African Wildlife Foundation, Conservation International, Enterprise Works Worldwide, The Nature Conservancy, Wildlife Conservation Society, and the World Wildlife Fund. Projects include "enterprise-based conservation, protected area management, community-based natural resources management, institutional capacity building, ecoregional planning and management, [etc.] and innovative conservation financing."
Global 200 Ecoregions	WWF has identified about 200 of the most valuable and sometimes vulnerable ecoregions, the Global 200, which best represent the range of the world's biodiversity and ecological processes.
Global Environment Facility (GEF)	Financed by a subset of its 182 member nations, the GEF is an independent financial organization that helps developing countries fund projects and programs that protect the global environment and is the designated financial mechanism for international agreements on biodiversity, climate change, and persistent organic pollutants, notably the Convention on Biological Diversity. In financial year 2008-2009, it financed 234 projects for a total of $5.97 billion.
"greenwashing"	the practice of engaging in environmentally friendly programs to deflect attention from an organization's environmentally unfriendly or less savory activities
hectare	100 m x 100 m; 2.47 acres (See table of area measurements)
hotspots	This concept arose from attempts to determine worldwide conservation priorities. Hotspots are "regions that harbor a great diversity of endemic species and, at the same time, have been significantly impacted and altered by human activities". See Conservation International's hotspots webpages for a more precise definition.
IBAs	Important Bird Areas: BirdLife International, which developed the IBA program, states: "IBAs are priority areas for the conservation of globally threatened, range restricted and congregatory birds. Our data demonstrates that IBAs are also excellent indicators of biodiversity richness and are therefore also important for a wide range of species."
ICDP	integrated conservation and development project (similar term: community-based conservation)
IFIs	International financial institutions, e.g. the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), and the Asian Development Bank
important natural area	a natural area of relatively high value for its biodiversity and/or its environmental "services" (capacity to improve or maintain environmental health, for example water quality)
IPCC	The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change was formed by the World Meteorological Organization and UNEP to assess scientific, technical and socio-economic information for understanding climate change, its impacts, and options for adaptation and mitigation.
IUCN	The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (a.k.a. World Conservation Union) describes itself as: "the world's oldest and largest global environmental network — a democratic membership union with more than 1,000 government and NGO member organizations, and almost 11,000 volunteer scientists in more than 160 countries." In 2009, 58% of its funding came from governments.
land trust	land trusts are local or regional (e.g. state/province) nonprofit non-governmental conservation organizations directly involved in helping protect natural, scenic, recreational, agricultural, historic, or cultural property. Land trusts help interested landowners find ways to protect their land in the face of development pressure. They may protect land through donation and purchase, by working with landowners who wish to donate or sell conservation easements (permanent deed restrictions that prevent harmful land uses), or by acquiring land outright to maintain as open space.
LDC	less developed country
m	When used in a monetary figure (e.g. $100m, £120m), m denotes million(s)
MA or MEA	The Millennium Ecological Assessment is a 4-year international study of trends in ecological processes at regional and global scales; their effects on human well-being; what kinds of mitigating actions we can take at various levels, and the outlook for the future under various scenarios of human responses to environmental challenges.
MPAs	marine protected areas
Millenium Development Goals (MDGs)	These are goals to be reached by the year 2015 that were agreed to by the 191 Member States of the United Nations.
Minimum area requirements (MARs)	minimum area required for a viable population of a particular species (a function of minimum viable population times the inverse of population density) or for ecosystems, sufficient to allow for continuance without human interference
Minimum viable population (MVP)	minimum population size required for continuance of a species without human interference
multilateral donor/organization/aid/funding	The multilateral relationship is between recipient countries and an international (regional or global) organization or agency comprised of member governments. Important multinational organizations in conservation include the Global Environment Facility, the World Bank, regional development banks such as the Inter-American Development Bank, and U.N. agencies such as the United Nations Environment Programme
NEF	national environmental fund - see EF
NatureServe	Formerly the Association for Biodiversity Information. An organization dedicated to providing reliable information on species and ecosystems for use in conservation and land use planning. Provides support to the approximately 90 conservation data centres (CDCs) located in the Western Hemisphere.  www.natureserve.org
NGO	non-governmental organization
Norad	The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation With generous funding through Norad, Norway punches far above its weight in supporting international conservation
NPO	nonprofit organization
NTFP	non-timber forest product (e.g. Brazil nuts, fruits, medicinal plants)
ODA	Official development assistance by national governments, includes aid for conservation and environment
PA	protected area (park, reserve, etc.) Defined by the IUCN as: "an area of land and/or seas especially dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biological diversity, and of natural and associated cultural resources, and managed through legal or other effective means".
Ramsar	Ramsar refers to The Convention on Wetlands (popularly known as the "Ramsar Convention"), an international treaty aimed at "wetland conservation and wise use" adopted in 1971 in Ramsar, Iran, and administered by the Ramsar Convention Bureau, a U.N. secretariat. There are now 124 contracting parties and more than a thousand wetlands included on the "List of Wetlands of International Importance".
RAP	Rapid Assessment Program: created by Conservation International in 1990; small teams of expert tropical field biologists conduct rapid first-cut assessments of the biological value of selected areas over a short time period (three to four weeks).
Red List	The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the most comprehensive body of information on the global conservation status of plant and animal species.
RFTF	The Rain Forest Trust Fund arose from the Pilot Program to Conserve the Brazilian Rainforest in 1992 and is a partnership of the government of Brazil, Brazil's civil society, the international community and the World Bank. Administered by the World Bank Rain Forest Unit and funded by the Group of Seven (G-7), the European Union, the Netherlands and Brazil itself with about US$404 million, it supports projects aimed at reducing the rate of deforestation of Brazil's rainforests.
species	A key concept in biology: Species are groups of interbreeding natural populations whose members are reproductively isolated from other such groups. With asexually reproducing organisms: A group of organisms that shares an ancestor; a lineage that maintains its integrity with respect to other lineages through both time and space. At some point in the progress of such a group, members may diverge from one another: when such a divergence becomes sufficiently clear, the two populations are regarded as separate species.
taxon, taxa (pl.), taxonomy	Taxa: groups or categories of living organisms; the published groups within each of the divisions in the Linnean hierarchy (Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Tribe, Genus, Species + sub & super categories). Taxonomy: the naming of organisms and groups of organisms (literally, the naming of taxa); the systematic classification of living, or once living, things, which is encouraged to be consistent with their presumed evolutionary relationships.
TNC	The Nature Conservancy began by conserving natural areas within the United States, but now is a major player in international conservation.
UNDP	United Nations Development Programme
UNEP	United Nations Environment Programme; includes the Ecosystem Conservation Group and the World Conservation Monitoring Centre
UNESCO	United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization, includes a Man and the Biosphere Program
USAID	United States Agency for International Development, whose programs includes one for Biodiversity Conservation, which received $125-million in funding in FY 2002.
UNFCCC	The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (Rio Convention), held in 1992, agreed on the objective of the "stabilisation of greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate syste", leading to the signing of the Kyoto Protocol to the Convention in 1997.
WCED	World Commission on Environment and Development, a UN commissioned study chaired by Gro Harlem Brundtland (hence, also called the "Brundtland Report") and published in 1987, whose purpose was to propose environmental strategies to achieve sustainable development and ways to develop international cooperation to deal with large scale environmental problems.
WCS	The Wildlife Conservation Society is one of the large U.S. based international conservation organizations.
World Bank	The World Bank is an international financial institution owned by 184 member countries that provides low-interest loans, interest-free credit and grants to developing countries for education, health, infrastructure, communications and other pursposes including environmental and conservation programs.
WCPA	The World Commission on Protected Areas, within the IUCN, exists to "promote the establishment and effective management of a world-wide representative network of terrestrial and marine protected areas.
WCMC	The World Conservation Monitoring Centre is a collaboration between the United Nations Environment Programme and WCMC(UK), a UK-based charity. The group collects and maintains information on global biodiversity and a full range of biodiversity related issues.
WDPA	World Database on Protected Areas of the World Commission on Protected Areas within the IUCN
Wild Foundation	Wild is a small, but influential organization focussed on preserving wilderness globally.
World Parks Congress	Every ten years, the IUCN, with World Commission on Protected Areas, holds the World Parks Congress, which provides a global forum for experts to discuss issues and make recommendations relating to protected areas. The fifth and most recent was held in Durban, South Africa in 2003.
WRI	World Resources Institute
WSSD	The World Summit on Sustainable Development, held in Johannesburg in 2002.
WWF	The World Wide Fund for Nature (a.k.a. World Wildlife Fund)

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