B
Balanced Scorecard
A process introduced by Robert S. Kaplan and David Norton in 1992 designed to give managers tools for measuring the performance of a business from a: • Financial perspective, • Customer perspective, • Business process perspective, and a • Learning...[Read more about this term]
Basic Browns
A selection of consumers defined by the Roper ASW Green Gauge Report as the least interested in "green" or environmental issues. In 2007, this category was renamed "apathetics" and has exhibited a sharp decline (from 33% in 2005 to 18%...[Read more about this term]
Best Practices
A set of learned practices and procedures an organization finds successful in accomplishing its goals. Best practices are most successful when clearly described or codified, part of employee training, and shared throughout an organization. These are sometimes shared with partners...[Read more about this term]
Bio-based Material
"Bio-“ is Greek for life.Bio-based material refers to a products main constituent consisting of a substance, or substances, originally derived from living organisms. These substances may be natural or synthesized organic compounds that exist in nature. This definition could include...[Read more about this term]
Biodiesel
An alternative to standard diesel fuel. Biodiesel has become America’s fastest growing alternative fuel (according to the Department of Energy). This clean-burning, renewable fuel is created by combining methanol or ethanol (the base) with any type of vegetable oil, such...[Read more about this term]
Biodiversity
The biological diversity of life on Earth. As human influence spreads, there is concern over the reduction of the total number of species and its effect on economics, medicine, and the ability of ecosystems to remain viable. Some measures of...[Read more about this term]
Biofuel
Biofuel is any fuel derived from an organic material that is not fossilized like coal or petroleum. Common sources of biofuel grown for the U.S and European markets are corn, soybeans, flaxseed and rapeseed. Biofuel can appear in solid, liquid,...[Read more about this term]
Biomass
Organic, non-fossil material that is available on a renewable basis. Biomass includes all biological organisms, dead or alive, and their metabolic by products, that have not been transformed by geological processes into substances such as coal or petroleum. Examples of...[Read more about this term]
Biomimicry
Applying lessons learned from the study of natural methods and systems to the design of technology. Science writer Janine Benyus articulates nine principles in her 1997 book Biomimicry: 1. Nature runs on sunlight 2. Nature uses only the energy it...[Read more about this term]
Biosphere
Coined in 1875 by Eduard Suess, the biosphere is that part of a planet's outer shell—including air, land, and water—within which life occurs, and which biotic processes alter or transform. From the broadest geophysiological point of view, the biosphere is...[Read more about this term]
Blended Value
A term coined by Jed Emerson at Stanford University to describe social, financial, and environmental value created by all organizations' activities (whether non-profit or for-profit). When investors acknowledge these value components, they can be more focused about their investments in...[Read more about this term]
Bootstrapping
A term derived from a German legend about Baron Münchhausen who pulled himself from a swamp by his own shoelaces or bootstraps. It refers to starting a business with limited capital and growing it based primarily on internally-generated profit instead...[Read more about this term]
Bottom of the Pyramid
A term developed by Stuart Hart and C. K. Prahalad at the Center for Sustainable Enterprise and now popularized by Prahalad’s book, The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid. It refers to the poorest people in the world. These...[Read more about this term]
Brand
Often referred to as a promise or expectation, a brand is the collective market understanding or perspective of a company, product, or service (either from the perspective of customers, competitors, partners, or peers). A strong brand can have considerable value...[Read more about this term]
Brand Experience
Often confused with a corporate identity or package design, a brand experience is the total interaction of customers with a company, product, service, or other offering through all senses, media, and touchpoints (such as television advertising, customer service, product use,...[Read more about this term]
Branding
The process of developing a brand or brand strategy for a product, service, or organization....[Read more about this term]
Brown Power
Electricity generated from the combustion of fossil fuels, which generates significant amounts of anthropogenic greenhouse gases. Brown power sources include coal, oil, and natural gas. Also, called Brown Energy....[Read more about this term]
Business Ecosystem/Ecology
A system-level view of the relationships and interdependencies evident in organizations, markets, or industries, including their components, actors, resources, and stakeholders. Inspired from nature, this is a similar approach to understanding biological ecosystems in their fullest sense....[Read more about this term]
