Glossary

The level of potential losses that a society or community considers acceptable given existing social, economic, political, cultural, technical and environmental conditions.

United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction: UNISDR Terminology on Disaster Risk Reduction. UNISDR, Geneva, Switzerland, 2009.

The process of adjustment to actual or expected climate and its effects. In human systems, adaptation seeks to moderate or avoid harm or exploit beneficial opportunities. In some natural systems, human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate and its effects.
See also Autonomous Adaptation, Evolutionary Adaptation, Incremental Adaptation and Transformative Adaptation

IPCC: Annex II: Glossary [Mach, K.J., S. Planton and C. von Stechow (eds.)]. In: Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, R.K. Pachauri and L.A. Meyer (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland, pp. 117-130.

The practice of identifying options to adapt to climate change and evaluating them, in terms of criteria such as availability, (co-) benefits, costs, effectiveness, efficiency and feasibility.

A. Connelly, J. Carter: RESIN Glossary. H2020 RESIN Deliverable D1.2, 2016. Online: http://www.resin-cities.eu/resources/tools/online-glossary/

The array of strategies and measures that are available and appropriate for addressing adaptation needs. They include a wide range of actions that can be categorised as structural, institutional, or social.

IPCC: Annex II: Glossary [Mach, K.J., S. Planton and C. von Stechow (eds.)]. In: Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, R.K. Pachauri and L.A. Meyer (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland, pp. 117-130.

[Adaptation Strategies] include a mix of policies and measures with the overarching objective of reducing vulnerability. Depending on the circumstances, the strategy can be set at a national level, addressing adaptation across sectors, regions and vulnerable populations, or it can be more limited, focusing on just one or two sectors or regions.

IPCC: Annex II: Glossary [Mach, K.J., S. Planton and C. von Stechow (eds.)]. In: Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, R.K. Pachauri and L.A. Meyer (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland, pp. 117-130.

The ability of systems, institutions, humans, and other organisms to adjust to potential damage, to take advantage of opportunities, or to respond to consequences.

IPCC: Annex II: Glossary [Mach, K.J., S. Planton and C. von Stechow (eds.)]. In: Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, R.K. Pachauri and L.A. Meyer (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland, pp. 117-130.

The “archaeological heritage” is that part of the material heritage in respect of which archaeological methods provide primary information. It comprises all vestiges of human existence and consists of places relating to all manifestations of human activity, abandoned structures, and remains of all kinds (including subterranean and underwater sites), together with all the portable cultural material associated with them.

International Committee for the Management of Archaeological Heritage (ICAHM): Charter for the Protection and Management of the Archaeological Heritage. ICOMOS, 1990. Online: http://www.icomos.org/charters/Engl.%20Archaeological%20Heritage%20Management.doc

buildings or structures of historical or cultural importance, which are a vital part of the country’s heritage and require conservation.

https://www.bidwells.co.uk/what-we-think/what-is-heritage-architecture/

Heritage asset that is materially original or genuine as it was constructed and as it has aged and weathered in time.

ICOMOS, “The 1994 Nara Document on Authenticity,” Online: https://www.icomos.org/charters/nara-e.pdf

Adaptation in response to experienced climate and its effects, without planning explicitly or consciously focused on addressing climate change. Also referred to as spontaneous adaptation.

IPCC: Annex II: Glossary [Mach, K.J., S. Planton and C. von Stechow (eds.)]. In: Climate Change 2014: Synthesis Report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II and III to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Core Writing Team, R.K. Pachauri and L.A. Meyer (eds.)]. IPCC, Geneva, Switzerland, pp. 117-130.