Neal Smith

Unit 5 Vocabulary and examples

Economic development- efforts that seek to improve the economic wellbeing and quality of life for a community by creating and/or retaining jobs
and supporting or growing incomes and the tax base.
Sectors of the economy- is the sector of an economy making direct use of
natural resources. This includes agriculture, forestry, fishing and mining.
This is contrasted with the secondary sector, producing manufactured
goods, and the tertiary sector, producing services.
Substance economics- is a doctrine in the tax law of the United States
under which a transaction must have an economic purpose aside from
reduction of tax liability in order to be considered valid.
Development- the process of developing or being developed.
The human development index- is a composite statistic of life expectancy,
education, and income indices used to rank countries into four tiers of
human development.
The north/south split- is broadly considered a socio-economic and political
divide. Generally, definition of the Global North include North America,
Western Europe and developed parts of East Asia. The Global South is
made up of Africa, Latin America, and developing Asia including the
Middle East.
Fair trade movement- is an organized social movement whose stated goal
is to help producers in developing countries achieve better trading
conditions and to promote sustainability.
Non-governmental organizations- is any non-profit, voluntary citizens
group which is organized on a local, national or international level.
Formal economyInformal economy- is the part of an economy that is not taxed, monitored
by any form of government or included in any gross national product,
unlike the formal economy.
Digital divide- the gulf between those who have ready access to
computers and the internet, and those who do not.
Foreign direct investment- is a controlling ownership in a business
enterprise in one country by and entity based in another country.
Technology transfer- the transfer of new technology from the originator to
a secondary user, especially from developed to less developed countries
in an attempt to boost their economies.
Debt crisis- a period of time in which several European countries faced the
collapse of financial institution, high government debt and rapidly rising
bond yield spreads in government securities.

Agriculture- the science or practice of farming, including cultivation of the

soil for the growing of crops and the rearing of animals to provide food,
wool, and other products.
Commercial agriculture- is roughly defined as that part of agriculture
producing output primarily for the market.
Subsistence agriculture- is self-sufficiency farming in which the farmers
focus on growing enough food to feed themselves and their families. The
typical subsistence farm has a range of crops and animals needed by the
family to feed and clothe themselves during the year.
Agribusiness- agriculture conducted on commercial principals, especially
using advanced technology.
Genetically modified organisms- can be defined as organisms in which the
genetic material has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally
by mating and/or natural recombination.
Monoculture- the cultivation of single crop in a given area.
Globalization agricultureSustainable agriculture- is the act of farming using principals of ecology,
the study of relationships between organisms and their environment. The
phase was reportedly coined by Australian agriculture scientist Gorden
McClaymont.
Aquaculture- the rearing of aquatic animals of the cultivation of aquatic
plants for food.
Green revolution- a large increase in crop production in developing
countries achieved by the use of fertilizers, pesticides, and high-yield crop
varieties.
Industrial revolution- was the transition to a new manufacturing processes
in the period from about 1760 to sometime between 1820 and 1840.
Maquiladoras- a factory in Mexico run by a foreign company and exporting
its products to the country of that company.
Agglomeration- a mass or collection of things; an assemblage.
Export-processing zones- are areas within developing countries that offer
incentives and a barrier-free environment to promote economic growth by
attracting foreign investment for export-originated production.
Outsourcing- obtain from an outside or foreign supplier, especially in place
of an internal source.
Deindustrialization- decline in industrial activity in a region or economy.
Economics of scale- a proportionate saving in costs gained by an increase
level of production.
Footloose industry- is a general term for an industry that can be placed
and located at any location without effect from factors such as resources
or transport. These industries often have spatially fixed costs, which

means that they costs of the products do no change despite where the
product is assembled.
International division of labor- occurs when the process of production is no
longer confined to national economics. Under the old international
division of labor, until around 1970, underdeveloped areas were
incorporated into the world economy principally as suppliers of minerals
and agriculture commodities.
Multiplier effect- an effect in economics in which an increase in spending
produces and increase in national income and consumption greater than
the initial amount spent.
Offshoring- the practice of basing some of a companys processes or
services overseas, so as to take advantage of lower costs.
Postindustrial- of or relating to an economy that on longer relies on heavy
industry.
Transnational corporation- are incorporated or unincorporated enterprises
comprising parent enterprises and their foreign affiliates. A parent
enterprise is defined as an enterprise that controls assets of other entities
in countries other than its home country, usually by owning a certain
equity capital stake.
Threshold/range- the magnitude or intensity that must be exceeded for a
certain reaction, phenomenon, result, or condition to occur or be
manifested.
Sustainable development- economic development that is conducted
without depletion of natural resources.
Renewable resources- any resource, such as wood or solar energy, that
can or will be replenished naturally in the course of time.
Nonrenewable resources- a resource of economic value that cannot be
readily replaced by natural mean son a level equal to its consumption.
Most fossil fuels, such as oil, natural gas and coal are considered
nonrenewable resources in that their use is not sustainable because their
formation takes billions of years.
Global warming- a gradual increase in the overall temperature of the
earths atmosphere generally attributed to the greenhouse effect cause
by increased levels of carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and other
pollutants.
Acid rain- rainfall made sufficiently acidic by atmospheric pollution that it
causes environmental harm, typically to forests and lakes. The main cause
is the industrial burning of coal and other fossil fuels, the waste gases
from which contain sulfur and nitrogen oxides, which combine with
atmospheric water to form acids.
Biodiversity- the variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or
ecosystem.

Alternative energy- energy generated in ways that do not deplete natural

resources or harm the environment, especially by avoiding the use of
fossil fuels and nuclear power.
Kyoto protocol- is an international agreement linked to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change, which commits its Parties by
setting internationally binding emission reduction targets.
Carbon emissions- carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, and the
emissions of other GHGs, are often associated with the burning or fossil
fuels, like natural gas, crude oil and coal. While this is harmful to the
environment, carbon offsets can be purchased in an attempt to make up
for these harmful effects.
Carbon trading- another term for emissions trading. Emissions trading is a
system by which countries and organizations receive permits to produce a
specified amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, which
they may trade with others.