Definitions - j

Jatropha Curcas is a bio-fuel crop that is being widely touted as a sustainable and more efficient alternative to first generation feed stocks, such as corn and palm oil.

Firms seeking to commercialise the jatropha-based biofuels, argue that the plant delivers high yields of oil and can be grown in marginal areas with low levels of water, limiting the extent to which cultivation would eat into existing agricultural land and water resources.

Climate change is a change in the statistical distribution of weather over periods of time that range from decades to millions of years. It can be a change in the average weather or a change in the distribution of weather events around an average (for example, greater or fewer extreme weather events). Climate change may be limited to a specific region, or may occur across the whole Earth.

In recent usage, especially in the context of environmental policy, climate change usually refers to changes in modern climate. It may be qualified as anthropogenic climate change, more generally known as global warming.

Wikipedia - Climate Change entry

Cork isn’t just for wine bottles anymore. Probably the most popular use of cork now is flooring because it provides natural thermal insulation, thus helping to lower energy consumption, and it also has the natural ability to absorb sound and shock. It is a type of flooring that suits most allergy sufferers and is very durable despite its rubbery feel. Did you know there is actually a Cork Oak tree? Well, there is and it’s a pretty cool tree that is responsible for all those wine corks and cork flooring. Cork is harvested by peeling away the bark from the trunk and branches every 9-12 years and does not necessitate the felling of the tree. And, Cork Oak trees do not die when their bark is removed like most trees.