Glossary

Abrasion Sandpaper effect of material being carried by water, wind or ice upon
surrounding landforms.
Adaptive capacity The ability of a nation to adapt to and overcome the obstacles
presented by change.
Aerosols Solid or liquid particles which are dispersed within a gas, which can exist as
pollutants within the atmosphere.
Affluence Relative wealth. Describes the ability to afford luxuries.
Ageing population A demographic characteristic that occurs in the developed world,
where the proportion of the population aged 65+ increases steadily over time, and
when the median age of a country or region rises.
Air mass A large body of air with uniform characteristics throughout. Its characteristics
of temperature, pressure and humidity are a consequence of its area of origin and its
modification as it moves.
Albedo The ratio of the intensity of light reflected from a surface as compared to the
light received from insolation.
Annex 1 countries Those nations identified in the Kyoto Protocol as being most
responsible for causing global warming and therefore with the largest responsibility to
address climate change.
Anthropogenic Caused by human activity.
Anticyclone An area of high pressure, often associated with descending air and calm
clear weather. Anticyclones are large several hundred kilometres across, and have
widely spaced isobars on weather charts.
Atoll A more or less circular island of coral surrounding a lagoon.
Attrition The gradual wearing down and rounding of sediment particles as they come
into contact with each other, when being carried in water. On the coast this forms
shingle.
Avalanche A sudden downward movement of snow or ice.
Backshore The part of the beach lying above normal high tide.
Backwash The flow of water back down the beach as a wave retreats.
Barrage A dam built across an estuary, usually to harness tidal energy.
Barrier beach or island A long ridge of sand or coral lying parallel to the shoreline and
enclosing a lagoon on the landward side.
Beach nourishment Deliberate addition of sand or shingle to an area of coastline that
is subject to erosion.
Beach profile The cross-section shape of the beach, usually from the cliff to the edge of
the water.
Bedding plane The line separating layers or strata of sedimentary rock, showing that
the sediments were deposited at different times.
Berm A ridge of sand or shingle on a beach indicating the highest point that the waves
have reached at the previous high tide.
Best case scenario The optimum result or outcome in any given situation.
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Best-fit line A line on a scattergraph indicating the trend of the data. Strictly speaking,
its angle should be calculated using regression analysis (see trend line). A quick
calculation to plot a best-fit line involves dividing each set of data in half, then finding
the mean value for each half-set of data. This will give you two sets of co-ordinates
which can be plotted on the graph, and the best-fit line can be drawn through these
two points.
Biomass fuel A fuel that is derived from an organic source, such as a crop.
Biophysical Of or relating to the living world and the natural environment.
Birth rate The number of births per thousand population.
Bottom-up projects Projects instigated and driven by ordinary members of the
community, not those in positions of power. They are locally based and have high
levels of public participation and support.
Brownfield development Development on land that has already been developed in
some way.
Brownfield site A piece of land within a town or city which has previously been built
upon but is no longer used. It may contain old factories and housing or it may have
been cleared ready for redevelopment.
Capacity The ability of a community to absorb, and ultimately recover from, the effects
of a natural hazard.
Carbon capture A possible solution to climate change which involves greenhouse gases
being contained and stored safely before they can enter the atmosphere.
Carbon dioxide The most significant of the so-called greenhouse gases, which is a byproduct of many anthropogenic activities.
Carbon emissions Carbon released into the atmosphere which increases the
greenhouse effect.
Carbon market Refers to the ability to 'buy' and 'sell' any emission quotas which are
imposed in relation to the production of gases such as carbon dioxide.
Carbon sink A place where carbon is stored within the biophysical environment.
Census A count of the number of people living in a region or country at a given point in
time. In Britain, the first census was carried out in 1801, and the exercise has been
repeated every 10 years since, except in 1941 (during the Second World War).
Central Business District (CBD) The district that contains the main business and
commercial interests within an urban area.
Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) A Belgium-based
organisation that monitors the occurrence of natural disasters.
Choropleth map A shaded map showing spatial distributions, usually based upon two
to six categories.
City Challenge partnerships A regeneration scheme whereby local authorities form
partnerships with the private sector and local community groups, and together bid for
government funding.
Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) A process by which developed nations can
offset their carbon emissions by encouraging and financing 'clean development' in
other nations.
Climate change Long-term significant change in the average weather that a given
region experiences.
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Climate modelling The process by which complex and sophisticated computer

programmes are used to simulate climate change, in the past, present and future.
Climate-friendly technology Any technological innovation or development which has
little or no impact upon the earth's climate.
Coastal management The use of strategies and structures to control or limit the
effects of marine and sub-aerial processes at the coastline.
Coastal resorts Towns that developed in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries to
exploit a growing demand for seaside holidays. Many of these towns in the UK and
northern Europe now face a falling demand for their attractions, as tourists prefer to
travel further afield.
Colony A territory or country under the immediate political control of another country.
Combined cycle turbine A new form of turbine which produces electricity in a much
more efficient way than in the past.
Commitment period The period of time during which the signatories to the Kyoto
Protocol must demonstrate their progress towards reducing their emissions of
greenhouse gases.
Community memory The lessons learnt about the local environment and the impact of
natural hazards in a given area, over time.
Constructive wave A wave in which the swash is stronger than the backwash, so that
it deposits more material than it removes from a beach.
Continental drift The movement of the continental landmasses, over vast periods of
time, in response to currents that exist in the earths mantle.
Convection current The movement of molten materials within the mantle of the earth
in response to the heat generated by the earths core.
Coral bleaching The whitening of coral reefs when they die as a result of temperature
changes within the marine environment.
Coral reef A line or arc of coral the calcium carbonate secretions of living organisms
that flourish in shallow water between 20 C and 30 C and feed upon plankton by
filtering the sea water.
Corporate sponsorship Financial support given to an organisation or person by a
company (which would usually expect recognition in some way).
Corrasion see abrasion.
Corrosion The weathering process involving the solution of rocks.
Costbenefit analysis (CBA) A system of measuring policy decisions in terms of their
likely costs and benefits to individuals, communities and society as a whole. In its
simplest form this involves the identification of the pros and cons of a scheme,
allocating a financial cost or benefit for the impact of each, and considering the total
effect.
Counter-urbanisation The growth of rural settlement due to the movement of people
out of urban and suburban areas. This leads to the creation of suburbanised or
dormitory villages.
Critical mass The minimum number of customers or interested people needed to start
or maintain an economic activity, e.g. tourism as a significant contributor to a local
economy.
Crust The hard, rocky, yet relatively thin, outer layer of the earth.
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Cultural regeneration Using art, music and other cultural activities, such as museums,
to help urban redevelopment and as a launch pad for further development.
Cumulative causation The economists way of saying that one thing leads to another.
Once a strategy (including rebranding) has successfully attracted a new business or
enterprise then its arrival will stimulate further enterprises to locate in the district, and
an upward spiral begins.
Cuspate foreland A roughly triangular section of coastal land made of sand and/or
shingle.
Cycle of poverty A vicious circle of hardship from which it is difficult to break out.
Cyclone Any area of very low atmospheric pressure that is created when air rises from
the surface of the earth.
Death rate The number of deaths per thousand population.
Deindustrialisation The decreasing importance of manufacturing (secondary) industry
in an economy. Manufacturing may continue but with a reduced labour force.
Delta An accumulation of sediments that are deposited at the mouth of a river system.
Democracy The government of the people by elected representatives.
Demographic transition model A model showing how a population changes over time,
in relation to the changing birth and death rates. It is suggested that all countries will
pass through all stages in the transition, but this is proving not to be the case.
Demography The study of population dynamics.
Dependency ratio The ratio of the economically dependent part of the population
(those aged 015 and over 64) to the productive part (those aged 1664).
Depression A low-pressure system generated where different air-masses meet and set
up a rotation, with low-pressure in the centre where air is rising. Depressions spin
anticlockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere.
Deprivation Lacking the resources to enjoy the living conditions and amenities
experienced by others, such as adequate housing, sufficient food, or access to
employment. A lack of welfare in terms of the material goods and resources needed
for a persons well-being.
Destructive wave A wave in which the backwash is stronger than the swash, so that it
removes more material than it deposits on a beach.
Development The use of resources to improve the standard of living in an area. It may
cover the encouragement of economic growth, technological change, and social and
cultural regeneration.
Development pathway The predicted course of economic progress or development for
any given nation.
Direct loss The loss directly attributable to the impact of a natural or other hazard or
misfortune.
Disaster An occurrence that involves great loss or damage, in terms of life and/or
infrastructure, often resulting from the onset of a natural hazard.
Discharge The measurement of a river flow. It is calculated by multiplying the depth
and width of a channel by its flow velocity, and is usually expressed in cubic metres
per second.
Downward spiral A vicious circle of deprivation and exclusion.
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Drosscapes Landscapes of wasted land large areas of abused and damaged land on
the margins of cities where urban sprawl meets urban dereliction. They comprise
contaminated former industrial sites, mineral workings, rubbish dumps, container
stores, polluted river banks, sewerage works and large expanses of tarmac used for
airport car parks.
Drought A prolonged dry period, during which lower-than-average rainfall is
experienced and demand exceeds supply for a significant time.
Dryland agriculture An agricultural technique for cultivating land which receives little
rainfall.
Duration The length of time over which a natural hazard or other event occurs.
Earthquake A series of vibrations that are caused by the movement of rock within the
earths lithosphere.
Economic groups A group of countries which work together for trade reasons, such as
NAFTA.
Economic loss A monetary measure of cost which may be used to describe the impact
of a natural disaster.
Economic migration The movement of people to find employment and improve their
standard of living.
Economies in transition A term used within the Kyoto Protocol to describe the newly
independent nations that were former states of the Soviet Union.
Ecosystem A community of plants and animals interacting with and within an
environment.
El Nio A warm ocean current that intermittently appears off the western coast of South
America.
El Nio Southern Oscillation (ENSO) The change of weather conditions between El
Nio conditions and La Nia conditions.
Emergency Disasters Database (EMDAT) An international database that stores
information on natural hazards from across the globe.
Emissions The greenhouse gases that result from anthropogenic activities.
Emissions targets The goals that nations agree to meet in relation to reducing their
production of greenhouse gases.
Enterprise Zone A government initiative established (from 1981) to attract business
and industry to a run-down area using short-term tax allowances and limited local
authority control.
Environmental impact assessment (EIA) A planning tool whereby the potential
environmental effects of a development are identified, assessed and evaluated so that
more damaging impacts may be avoided. It involves the measurement of both the
severity and magnitude of an impact and its importance.
Erosion The wearing away of the land surface and the removal of debris, by wind, water
or ice.
European Union (EU) A political and economic community of 27 European member
states.
Eustatic change The worldwide changes in sea level that are a result of tectonic
processes and climate change.

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Exclusion Social, ethnic or economic isolation from the general community in a region
or country.
Exploitation Use of the environment in such a way that it is damaged and will be of no
use to future generations.
Externalities Impacts on third parties of events or actions. For the most part, private
businesses are not keen to bear any of the external costs of their actions.
Expert Group on Technology Transfer A United Nations group dedicated to helping to
fight climate change by encouraging nations to share their climate-friendly technology.
Fair trade A market-based approach to alleviating global poverty and promoting
sustainability by ensuring producers get a fair price for their goods.
Feedback A term used in systems analysis to describe the effect of a given part of any
physical, ecological or climatological cycle on another part of the same process.
Fertility rate The average number of children women have in a given population.
Flagship schemes Headline-grabbing projects that are intended to encourage other
types of inward investment.
Flash flood A sudden increase in river discharge, causing flooding.
Flood Land that is usually dry being inundated with water.
Fluorescent bulb A more energy-efficient light-producing device than the conventional
incandescent bulb.
Food towns Towns that have attempted to regenerate their economy by concentrating
on specialist food products, organic farming and restaurants.
Foreshore The part of the coastline that is between the low and high tide positions.
Fossil fuels Naturally occurring hydro-carbons that are used to produce energy fuels
such as coal, oil and gas, which have formed as a result of the decomposition of
prehistoric organisms.
Free trade Exchange of goods and services between countries that is not hindered by
government-imposed restrictions, such as tariffs or taxes.
Frequency The rate at which something, such as a natural hazard, can be expected to
occur in any given location.
Fringing reef A coral reef lying close to the shoreline.
Front The zone or boundary between two unlike air-masses, which is represented
symbolically on weather maps. Cold fronts mark a change from warmer to colder air
whereas warm fronts mark a change from colder to warmer air. The passage of fronts
is often marked by high winds and precipitation.
Garden festivals A scheme to reclaim derelict urban areas, usually after the demolition
of redundant industrial buildings. Their aims were to improve the image of an urban
environment and to create employment.

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Gentrification A bottom-up process of urban renewal whereby more affluent people

buy run-down inner city property and refurbish it. This leads to a wider regeneration
and refurbishment of the neighbourhood and the displacement of poorer residents by
more wealthy residents.
Geographic information system (GIS) An integrated computer tool for handling,
processing and analysing geographic data.
Geomorphology The study of the structure of landforms and the processes that create
them.
Geophysical hazard A natural hazard caused by the physical processes that act upon,
above or below the surface of the earth.
Ghetto An area where the population is highly segregated, usually by ethnicity.
Global depression A slow down (recession) in the economies of the worlds most
developed countries. A severe or long recession is referred to as an economic
depression. A recession is generally associated with a decline in a country's real gross
domestic product (GDP), or negative real economic growth, for two or more successive
quarters of a year.
Global hub A city or country which is highly connected and forms the node of one or
more global networks.
Global networks Global flows of money, trade, aid, information and people.
Global warming The observable increase in the average temperature of the earth,
caused by the increasing greenhouse effect, and now thought by many experts to be
at least partially caused by human activities.
Globalisation Defined by the United Nations as the growing economic interdependence
of countries worldwide through the increasing volume and variety of cross-border
transactions in goods and services, freer international capital flows, and more rapid
and widespread diffusion of technology.
Greenfield development Development on land that has only ever had non-urban uses
agricultural land or other open green space.
Greenfield site A piece of land that has not previously been built upon usually an
area on the edge of a city which has never been developed in any way for urban use.
Greenhouse gases The atmospheric gases that trap outgoing radiation, thus
increasing atmospheric temperature. The main gases involved are water vapour,
carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides and methane and they maintain the temperature of
the earth at a temperature some 33 C higher than it would otherwise be. This is
called the greenhouse effect. Increasing amounts of these gases in the atmosphere
are leading to an enhanced greenhouse effect.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) The total value of all the goods and services produced
within a nation in a given year a standard measure of national wealth.
Halocarbons A class of organic compounds used in a wide range of products, some of
which damage the environment.
Halophyte A plant that is tolerant of a saline (salty) environment, such as sand dunes
or a salt marsh.
Halosere A succession leading to a community of halophytes living on a salt marsh.
Hard engineering Methods of engineering that involving building structures to control
natural processes.

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Hazards Threats to human life and property. They are unpredictable in terms of power,
geographical extent and timing.
Heritage Relating to what has been inherited from ones ancestors, including culture
and traditions, as well as property, industry and transport. In the regeneration of
urban and rural areas, the idea of heritage is to celebrate and sell the past. The past
being sold may not always be a real past and it can include fictional characters.
Heritage industry The conservation, restoration and preservation of buildings and
landscapes, usually for their tourism potential.
Hollowing out The loss of population, employment and services from central city areas,
which may cause a doughnut effect.
Honeypots Places that attract large numbers of visitors, such as especially attractive
landscape features or buildings with historical or cultural significance.
Hotspots Term used to describe vulnerable places where two or more hazards may
occur.
Human development index (HDI) A statistical combination of three variables
(relative income, education and life expectancy) designed to indicate the level of
development for a country.
Hurricane The name given to tropical cyclones in the Caribbean and Atlantic.
Hydraulic action The force exerted by moving water which erodes rock and other
surfaces.
Hydrograph A graph showing changes in river discharge over time. Flash floods will be
shown with a very rapid (steep) rise in discharge.
Hydro-meteorological hazard Natural hazards that are caused by water, the weather,
or a combination of both.
Hypothesis A supposition, proposition, theory or provisional explanation that may be
tested.
Ice cores Cylinders of ice that are obtained from the ice sheets in polar regions that
have remained permanently frozen for centuries.
Impact The effect of an event. In geographical use, it can be subdivided into economic,
social, political and environmental effects.
Incandescent bulb Old-fashioned light bulb, now regarded as an inefficient piece of
lighting technology because it wastes much electricity in the form of heat.
Indigenous people The original or first people to inhabit an area an ethnic group
who have the earliest historical connection with a geographic region.
Indirect loss A loss that occurs as an indirect result of a natural hazard or other human
or natural misfortune.
Industrial heritage Buildings and landscape of a previous industrial era that are
conserved for educational, cultural and tourism purposes.
Infant mortality The number of deaths of children aged up to 12 months per 1,000 live
births.
Informal sector All of the economic activities that fall outside the formal, taxed
economy.
Infrastructure The capital equipment of a place, region or nation, including basic
utilities such as roads, rail and air links, sewerage and telephone systems.
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Insolation Incoming solar radiation.

International trade The movement of goods and services between countries.
Inward investment Money (capital) flowing into an area as new enterprises are
established (direct investment) or as existing local enterprises are supported with
money from outside the area (indirect investment).
IPCC The Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change, set up in 1988 to provide
decision-makers and others with an objective source of information about climate
change.
Isopleth map A map in which lines are drawn joining points of equal value. A contour
map is the most common, showing relief. Isobars join points of equal air pressure,
isohyets show rainfall, and isohels show sunshine.
Isostatic change Change in the height of land, relative to sea level, caused by tectonic
processes or by isostatic recoil as the ground rises again following depression by the
weight of ice during the ice ages.
Joint implementation A term used in carbon trading, referring to a mechanism which
allows the reduction of emissions in one nation to offset (compensate for) an excess of
emissions in another.
Kyoto Protocol The international agreement in 1997 that set emission targets for the
more developed nations of the world.
La Nia A period of generally cooler and wetter weather which coincides with a cooler
ocean current off the coast of western South America.
Lag time The time that passes between the cause and effect of a phenomenon, usually
applied to a rainstorm and the subsequent peak flow in a river, but also referring to
the production of greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on the climatic system.
Lagoon A bay totally or partially enclosed by a coral reef, barrier island or spit.
Landfill site A place for the disposal of waste materials where the refuse is buried in
the ground.
Landslide The sliding of a large amount of rock or soil down a slope, under the force of
gravity.
Lava The name given to molten magma once it appears on or above the surface of the
earth.
Leakage The loss of potential income from a place as the money spent there ends up in
the bank accounts of enterprises elsewhere.
Lithology The permeability, solubility, relative hardness and texture of a rock.
Lithosere A plant succession that develops on bare rock.
Lithosphere The crust that comprises the thin, outer layer of the earth.
Local authority The local government body responsible for local environmental
services, public amenities, education, social services and planning.
Logarithmic scale A scale commonly used for one or both axes on a graph, where a
very wide range of values have to be plotted. It uses a series of cycles, each
increasing by a power of ten (0.11, 110, 10100, etc.).
Longshore drift The movement of sediment along the coastline caused by oblique wave
approach.

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Loss/recovery cycle The term used to describe the process of devastation and repair
that occurs as a result of a natural hazard. This can become cyclical in some locations
which are frequently beset by hazards.
Low pressure system An alternative name for an atmospheric depression within which
the air is rising. Low pressure systems bring high winds and precipitation, and may be
recognised by the closeness of isobars on weather charts.
Low-carbon energy The relatively small emissions of carbon dioxide that are produced
by some forms of energy.
Magma The molten material found within the earths mantle.
Magnitude The relative size and/or scale of a particular natural hazard.
Mantle The molten and semi-molten layer of material found between the earths crust
and its core.
Marginal land Land that is less suitable for agricultural or urban development. Land of
this type is utilised more readily in the less-developed world, especially for squatter
settlements.
Marina A parking area for leisure boats, yachts and other sailing craft, often including
other onshore facilities, such as specialist shops.
Marine processes The processes caused by the movement of the waves erosion
(abrasion, hydraulic action, attrition and corrosion) and deposition.
Marrakesh Accords A set of rules agreed at a meeting, held in Marrakesh (Morocco)
in 2001, designed to help nations to operate the Kyoto Protocol more effectively.
Mass movement (also called mass wasting) The movement of material on the land
surface. It can be very slow (soil creep) or rapid (rock fall), small-scale (forming
terracettes) or large-scale (landslides). On the cliffs, slumping is a common form of
mass movement.
Megacity A metropolitan area with a total population of more than 10 million people.
Megadelta One of the earths largest deltas the Nile, Mississippi or Mekong deltas, for
example.
Meltwaters Waters that enter river systems as a result of the annual melting of snow
and ice.
Methane One of the greenhouse gases. Its emissions have increased due to agricultural
practices such as cattle herding and rice production in paddy fields.
Migrant A person who moves from one place to another temporarily, seasonally or
permanently.
Military junta A committee of military leaders forming the government of a country.
Mortality The number of deaths in an area in any given period. The mortality rate is the
number of deaths per thousand population. The term may be used to measure and
compare the impact of natural hazards or deprivation in different locations.
Mudflats Deposited silt in estuaries that are inundated with the incoming tide. They are
rich in fauna (such as molluscs, crustaceans, and waders).
Multiple deprivation A measure of disadvantage with regard to several socio-economic
indicators.
Multiple stresses Stresses experienced when more than one factor impinges upon the
ability of a community or nation to respond to and/or cope with change.
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Multiplier effect The theory that an initial increase in spending leads to an increase in
income, which in turn encourages more spending, and so forth. Thus, if a new industry
arrives and new jobs are created then more jobs are created in shops, restaurants,
and supporting businesses. Similarly, it works the other way around when industries
pull out of a city or region, producing a negative multiplier effect.
National Health Service The publicly-funded healthcare system in the UK.
Natural disaster The situation when a natural hazard results in a large degree of loss
or damage to life, property or prosperity.
Natural hazard A naturally occurring event that can have a significant impact upon
people, property and the environment, such as a major hydro-meteorological or
geophysical event.
Neighbourhood Watch A local scheme involving police and the public working together
to prevent crime. The police advise on home security and the public report local crime
incidents.
Net migration The numerical difference between immigration and emigration in an
area.
Nitrous oxide One of the greenhouse gases.
Non-climatic stresses The factors (not related to climate) that make a location more
vulnerable to disaster. Poverty and homelessness are good examples.
Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) A United Nations
international aid agency which often provides assistance to those people affected by
disaster.
Offsetting Covering increases in CO2 emissions by sponsoring programmes that reduce
emissions in other communities or nations.
Offshore The part of the coastline that is beyond the low tide point.
Onshore The movement of wind or water towards and on to the land.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) A group of
thirty of the worlds wealthiest nations, which meets regularly to achieve shared
economic, environmental and social goals.
Out-sourced work Goods made or services provided by another company that has
been subcontracted by the parent company.
Palaeoclimatic Referring to the ancient history of the climate on earth.
Particle size analysis The measurement of sedimentary particles, such as shingle or
sand. It is usual for different-sized particles to be found on different parts of the
beach.
Partnerships In planning, the combination of parties working together in
redevelopment and regeneration schemes. Usually these will be local and/or national
government and commercial companies, but local community groups are increasingly
also involved.
Parts per billion (ppb) A measure of the concentration of gases in the atmosphere.
Concentrations measured in parts per billion are relatively small.
Parts per million (ppm) A measure of the concentration of gases in the atmosphere.

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Pathfinder Project The governments Housing Market Renewal Initiative in the North
and the Midlands, which was started in 2003 to address the problems of
neighbourhoods with poor housing stock that had suffered longstanding deprivation by
providing grants for compulsory purchase and rebuilding.
Peak emissions The point, in the future, at which global greenhouse gas emissions
reach their highest level.
Pedestrianisation The conversion of roads usually shopping streets in city centres
to pedestrian-only or limited traffic access thoroughfares (by time of day and/or type
of vehicle).
Per capita Per person.
Permafrost Permanently frozen ground which exists in some of the colder regions of
the earth.
Place marketing The process of trying to sell a positive image of a specific rural or
urban area to clearly identified customers and clients and thus attract inward
investment.
Players The individuals and groups involved in a particular enterprise or issue similar
to stakeholders.
Political groupings Group of countries who have the same political affiliation.
Political migration The movement of people motivated by political interests. It may be
individuals fleeing from governments with whom they disagree or who threaten their
life or livelihood, towards countries with more friendly governments. Or it may be
because of governments seeking to resettle communities for beneficial or hostile
reasons.
Population structure The age and sex composition of a population.
Post-war baby boom The large number of babies that were born after the Second
World War when couples were reunited.
Post-colonial The time after the devolvement of the British and other colonies.
Poverty A deficiency of important or essential factors for a satisfactory standard of
living. Relative poverty is defined in relation to the standards that exist elsewhere in
society, whereas absolute poverty is the lack of basic human needs such as food, safe
drinking water, sanitation facilities, shelter, education.
Primary data Data that you have collected yourself or that is collected by the group in
which you are working. It may be questionnaire responses, photographs, or any
fieldwork measurements that you have made.
Property-led regeneration Where urban regeneration has been spearheaded by the
building of flagship developments to improve the image of the area and thus to attract
other regenerative work and investment.
Psammosere A plant succession that develops on sand dunes.
Push and pull factors The factors that encourage people to migrate. Push factors are
negative factors operating at the area of origin, driving people away. Pull factors are
positive factors operating in the destination area, drawing people in.
Quartile The division of a ranked set of data into four quarters. The median is found
and then the median of the top half of the data is found (the upper quartile) and the
median of the bottom half of the data (lower quartile). Commonly these data are
displayed on a dispersion diagram.

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Rainforest Alliance A non-governmental organisation (NGO) founded in 1987, with a

mission to protect ecosystems and the people who depend on them by transforming
land-use practices, business practices and consumer behaviour.
Rebranding A major makeover of a places image by changing its logo, its sales pitch
and sometimes, although not always, its physical and human environment.
Recurrence interval A measure of how frequently an event is expected. It is used in
forecasting and assessing risk for insurance purposes. The larger the event, the longer
is the recurrence interval.
Recycling The reprocessing of materials into new products.
Redevelopment The demolition and replacement of old buildings with new buildings for
similar or different purposes.
Refurbishment A refitting of an urban area, involving provision of street furniture,
traffic-calming measures or improved road access, as well as the interior and exterior
improvement of buildings.
Regeneration The renewal and re-imaging of an area through the investment of ideas
and capital. Regeneration projects aim to promote inward investment into an area of
region. This has multiple forms, including new places of employment, cultural centres,
heritage sites and leisure facilities.
Re-imaging The selling of an area or region, using new packaging, and new content,
much like corporations changing their logos. This is to give any regeneration projects
the impetus that they might need to attract people to them.
Remittances The money sent back by economic migrants to their country of origin.
Renewal The replacement of old buildings with new ones (redevelopment) or
conversion of old buildings to new purposes (such as warehouses to apartments).
Replacement rate The number of babies that need to be born for the population of a
country to replace itself, normally expressed as a ratio. A fertility rate of 2.1 children is
considered to be the replacement level to maintain a population.
Re-urbanisation The regeneration of urban areas and their repopulation.
Risk The risk of disaster can be seen as a function of the hazard itself, the vulnerability
of a population, and their capacity to cope with that hazard.
Risk assessment The identification and evaluation of the risks that may be
encountered (and used when carrying out practical or field work). It is usually
assessed in terms of the likelihood of something harmful happening and its degree of
harmfulness.
Risk equation A formula to help measure the likely impact of a hazard in a given
location and for a given community.
Rotational slumping see slumping.
Rural Relating to the countryside rather than the town. Rural areas are now defined in
the UK by population their size and location relative to other places, rather than
their function, given that most rural settlements are no longer very different from
larger urban places. In other parts of the world their may well be a distinctive
functional difference in that rural areas will still be dominated by agriculture.
Rural diversification The attempts in rural areas to develop a range of incomegenerating opportunities beyond agriculture.
Saltmarsh Tidal mudflats within an estuary or on the landward side of a spit that have
been colonised by salt-tolerant plants (halophytes).
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Sampling The selection of data in order to achieve a representative proportion of the

whole population (whether of people, plants, or properties). Sampling may be random,
systematic or stratified.
Scattergraph A graph used to illustrate the correlation or relationship between two
variables by means of co-ordinated points.
Scenario families Descriptions of future families used by the United Nations to help
simulate the impacts of climate change in the world of the future.
Sea ice The ice that is found in the seas of the earths polar regions.
Secondary data Data that has been collected by someone else, such as a government
or commercial organisation. This will include published maps, census data and
newspapers all previously gathered information found in published form or on the
internet.
Segregation The division of a society into separate groups, along economic, social, or
ethnic lines, often with a spatial outcome.
Shanty town Illegal or unauthorised squatter settlement whose inhabitants have built
their homes, using scrap plywood, corrugated metal, sheets of plastic and any other
materials which have been found.
Shingle Material of gravel or pebbles that accumulates on beaches, spits and other
coastal depositional features, characteristically of rounded appearance.
Slumping A form of mass movement whereby a section of soil and/or unconsolidated
rock or clay, lubricated by water, slides downslope. This often produces a concave scar
as the material slips along a curvilinear plane in a rotational movement .
Social-demographic A measure that is based upon the nature, health or well-being of
the given population.
Social exclusion see exclusion.
Soft engineering Methods of engineering that are deigned to work with natural
processes, managing them rather than preventing them from operating.
Source region A place that people move from.
Special Report on Emissions Scenarios A snapshot of the future world, produced by
the IPCC, in which the impact of climate change is measured against a range of
various scenarios, based on the family unit.
Sphere of influence The area from which an enterprise or settlement may draw its
customers. This can apply at a range of scales, from a small primary school or pizza
delivery service to a major city or premiership football ground.
Squatter settlement An illegal or unauthorised settlement (see shanty town).
Stakeholder Person or organisation with a vested interest in a project or issue.
Storm beach A ridge of sand, shingle and drift material thrown up the beach by the
highest storm waves.
Stratosphere The second layer of the atmosphere, where temperatures rise with
altitude and where the ozone layer is located.
Sub-aerial processes The processes of weathering and erosion that operate on the
surface. On coasts, they attack the coastline above that part eroded by marine
processes.
Suburbanisation The outward growth of urban areas to engulf surrounding villages and
isolated settlements, facilitated by the growth of transport networks. The suburbs are
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predominantly comprised of residential property. More recently the term has been
applied to rural villages that have grown to accommodate new residents who commute
to the city for employment (forming dormitory or commuter villages).
Succession A series of vegetation changes (called seral stages) that take place as a
plant community develops. Primary colonisers are progressively succeeded by larger
and more complex organisms, until a climax community is established.
Super Output Areas The smallest areas from which UK data can be gathered. They are
all about the same size to make comparison easier. There are 35,000 SOAs in the UK.
Supply chain The system of organisations, people, technology, activities, information
and resources involved in moving a product or service from supplier to customer.
Sustainable development Development that meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Swash The flow of water up the beach, as a wave advances.
Switched off countries Countries that do not have the requirements to develop their
economies quickly because they have few connections with other countries.
Switched on countries Countries that have all the requirements to develop their
economies quickly because they have many connections with other countries.
SWOT analysis A preliminary technique for evaluating an issue. It involves identifying
the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
Synoptic charts Maps showing surface pressure, areas of high and low pressure,
weather fronts and other basic meteorological information.
Technology transfer The sharing of ideas and techniques, particularly from the
developed world to the less-developed world, such as in the fight against climate
change.
Tectonic plate A section of the earths crust, which may move and collide with other
sections as a result of movements within the earths mantle.
Temperate storms Intense low-pressure systems, otherwise known as depressions.
Unlike hurricanes, they have no distinctive meteorological form.
Third Assessment Report The 2001 report of the IPCC in relation to climate change.
Tidal range The maximum difference between high tide and low tide.
Tides Onshore and offshore movements of sea water, driven by the gravitational force of
the moon and, to a lesser degree, by the sun. When the two pull together they
produce the bigger spring tides (not to be confused with the season). When they pull
in opposition they produce the smaller neap tides. These alternate in a fortnightly
cycle.
Tiger economy The economy of a country which undergoes rapid economic growth,
usually accompanied by an increase in standards of living. The term was initially
applied to South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan (East Asian Tigers).
Subsequent modernising countries have been called Tiger Cubs.
Top-down projects Projects driven by governments and larger institutions, sometimes
with limited public participation.
Tornado A column of rapidly spiralling air with very low pressures at the centre. They
are short duration events associated with frontal storm conditions.
Transect A means of collecting and displaying data along a line, to show how
measurable characteristics change or vary along that line.
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Transnational company/corporation (TNC) A commercial organisation operating

(producing or selling) in at least two and usually several countries. Also known as
a multinational company/corporation.
Trend line A line drawn on a scattergraph indicating the general direction of the plotted
points. It is drawn by eye, but ideally there should be an equal number of points
above and below the line.
Tropical cyclone An intense low pressure system generated in the tropics by taking
energy from warm water. This is the family name and includes local variations such
as hurricane or typhoon. Sometimes referred to as a tropical revolving storm.
Troposphere The lowest of the atmospheric layers where temperatures fall with
altitude.
Tundra The ecosystem found where the ground is permanently frozen, except for the
top few centimetres which thaw in summer, so it can only support small plants that
are able to grow and reproduce in about three months, and then lie dormant for the
rest of the year.
Typhoon The popular name for tropical cyclones in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
An international agreement, created in 1994, as an important first step in combating
global warming.
Urban settlements Towns, cities and conurbations (as opposed to rural settlements).
These are now defined in the UK by population, in other words their size and location
relative to other places, rather than their function.
Urban Development Corporation An organisation, set up under a 1981 government
scheme, to coordinate rapid improvements within depressed city areas.
Urban land use models A largely outdated set of theoretical plans designed to explain
the structure of cities in terms of the CBD, and residential and industrial areas. The
most commonly used models were those of Burgess, Hoyt, and Mann.
Urbanisation The increase in the proportion of a region or countrys population living in
urban areas. This may occur as a result of rural-to-urban migration and/or natural
population increase in urban areas.
Variable A characteristic that can be measured or quantified.
Vicious circle A downward cycle or negative multiplier effect.
Volcanoes Openings within the earths crust, from which molten material and gases
from below the earths surface are, or have been, ejected.
Vulnerability The likelihood that a particular location or community will be affected by a
hazardous event.
Water stress Any of the conditions that result from a lack of water during a drought.
Weathering The breakdown of rocks at or near the earths surface, where they are
situated.
Wetlands Areas where the land (soil) is permanently or frequently waterlogged.
World Bank An international organisation, established in 1945 to assist economic
development through the provision of loans to the less-developed nations of the world.
Worst case scenario The worst possible result that might occur in any given situation
or circumstance.

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